Marshall's Joan needs a little makeup

[TheGreenhouseEffect]

I know Hambone has done a ton. INSIDE the stadium this year the new turf, and the power washed steps were indeed noticeable. The new Endzone popped and I think they actually got the sound system fixed too.

All that said we need to do some badly needed maintainence outside the stadium and also the city needs to help too.

The paint is visibly peeling off the support beams on the visitors side and make the place look white trash. Additionally the urinals look like they belong in a prison. Rusted and getting worse each season.

When one walks to the stadium the amount of dirt , mud and debris around the stadium quite frankly is embarassing. It flat out is DIRTY. The athletic department needs to work with the city to clean up all that mud. Honestly I walked through 2 blocks of mud to get to the W ky game and the curbs on both sides of 3rd ave were filthy with slime mud and debris. Street cleaners need to be ran the day before every game and if they don't get all the crap get a truck and 4 students with flat nosed shovels and get that crap cleaned up.

When I went to the bowl game at FAU it struck me how clean and well maintained their streets were compared to those around Marshall. Pristine in fact compared to ours. Finally the space between the stadium and the new IAF needs to be utilized pregame as and area where caterered receptions could be held.

That new entire space needs to be either repaved or tarred as to keep mud down and then add trees in the green space. They need to then put up a fence with stone pillars to encompass the entire area to keep it closed off to the public when the stadium isn't in use.

Honestly Mike, the inside looks great but it's time to start sprucing up the outside so the Joan won't become the next old grey lady. Quite frankly it still looks white trash at times and we've came to far to let that ruin all you've done.

 

[bbneutralfan]

+1000. Agree totally. Have posted about how we are building new facilities while letting others fall into disrepair. You think the Joan needs cleaning? Take a tour of the Henderson Center. I would like to take MH on a tour of both and point the places he obviously never looks. Hope they spend time and money between now and next season cleaning and painting.

 

[mubaseballking]

I agree with you and so do many other fans and posters because I and many of these other posters have said the same thing for the last 5 to 6 years. Not sure what can be done because the university is aware of the issues because many have complained.

 

[herd4life5 (HN)]

If more than 20k would show up for a championship game, maybe we could justify a million dollar facility upgrade

 

[muthunder627]

Heck we cant even get the dust off the ledge in HC--no preventative maintenance done!

 

[bbneutralfan]

If any of you are physically capable the next time you attend a game in the Henderson Center I encourage you to go all the way to the top. Look up at the ceiling. Then look around. Paint chips falling in the upper level. Paint peeling off. Dirt and dust all around. Then go to the restrooms. Toilets leaking. Same at the Joan. Those restrooms have not been updated since the place opened BUT MH has nice restrooms up in the box and does not have to use what the majority of us do.

 

[marshallsig]

Originally posted by bbneutralfan:
+1000. Agree totally. Have posted about how we are building new facilities while letting others fall into disrepair. You think the Joan needs cleaning? Take a tour of the Henderson Center. I would like to take MH on a tour of both and point the places he obviously never looks. Hope they spend time and money between now and next season cleaning and painting.

You work on the same campus as MH, why don't you get with him and show him. I am sure he will make time for you. Dead serious here.

 

[jt56]

I'll bet there are volunteers who would gladly wield the paint brushes, etc., if Marshall supplied what was needed to get the job done.

 

[herdgadfly]

In this comparing The Joan to FAU stadium, it is clear to me (but not so much with TGE) that cleanliness is not necessarily next to Godliness. Their stadium was built three years ago and it is not surrounded by the remains of Rust Belt factories.

Boca Raton, like most communities on Florida's Gold Coast is sparkling new with the revitalization efforts in Palm Beach, Broward and Dade counties that began in the '90s. Lots of money accompanied the well-healed retirees fleeing the Northeastern states and the shiny new edifices being built on the Gold Coast bring bushels and bushels of tourist money.

Huntington is part of Appalachia and the poorest state in the USA, - where jobs are shrinking everywhere in our hills and hollers especially where there is no Marcellus Shale to tap for gas and oil. Yeah, the War on Coal gets to all of us.

With all that said, we still put more butts in dirty aluminum bench seats than they will ever put in clean back-rest plastic seats.

 

[MARSHALL77]

Originally posted by jt56:
I'll bet there are volunteers who would gladly wield the paint brushes, etc., if Marshall supplied what was needed to get the job done.

+1

Amazing what can be accomplished with a pressure washer and a bucket or two of paint.

The stadium is beginning to look like a woman who applied half of her makeup...add to this , with the advent of the IPF the stadium needs to look even better , especially to recruits.

 

[TheGreenhouseEffect]

That's MY point Marshall77.

We don't need a million dollar renovation. We need 2 tin knockers and some more stainless steel for the urinals.

A pressure washing of the curbs around the Joan.

A crew with scaffolds to scrub prime and paint the steel support beams.

You've spent 30 million on the new IAF and the entire area around it looks run down.

Not a ton of money, a 100,000.00 to 200,000.00 would probably do it all very well.

 

[GeauxHerd]

Originally posted by MARSHALL77:

Originally posted by jt56:
I'll bet there are volunteers who would gladly wield the paint brushes, etc., if Marshall supplied what was needed to get the job done.

+1

Amazing what can be accomplished with a pressure washer and a bucket or two of paint.

The stadium is beginning to look like a woman who applied half of her makeup...add to this , with the advent of the IPF the stadium needs to look even better , especially to recruits.

Thats against the MU Union policy. Thats the same reason the Henderson center doesnt hold special events because if their is an event the union staff has to be present and the fee for that is very high.

 

[herdit44]

Originally posted by GeauxHerd:

Originally posted by MARSHALL77:

Originally posted by jt56:
I'll bet there are volunteers who would gladly wield the paint brushes, etc., if Marshall supplied what was needed to get the job done.

+1

Amazing what can be accomplished with a pressure washer and a bucket or two of paint.

The stadium is beginning to look like a woman who applied half of her makeup...add to this , with the advent of the IPF the stadium needs to look even better , especially to recruits.

Thats against the MU Union policy. Thats the same reason the Henderson center doesnt hold special events because if their is an event the union staff has to be present and the fee for that is very high.

marshall has a union?

 

[HerdMBA]

I love reading about the janitorial needs of university campuses.
I miss football.

 

[Always The Herd]

Easy solution........if MU has a union for maintenance workers then schedule EACH one of them to work to ALL WORK IN ONE AREA of the Joan OR the Cam (not both) and then bring in a another supervisor (second in command) and let the volunteers report to the that person and get other work done in the other facility.
~
We did it at our UMWA mines when I was working. We would also offer ALL the overtime the union employees would work......if they wouldn't work then we brought in contract labor.
~

 

[TheGreenhouseEffect]

LOL HMBA!

I don't think it's janitorial needs. It's maintaining physical property needs. It needs to be done too.

Hygenics are a part of the game day experience.

 

[Herdmeister]

no way that volunteers cold get involved due to liability concerns. One injury and you get a million dollar law suite.

 

[The Real SamC]

Originally posted by herdit44:

marshall has a union?

No. State employees in WV are not allowed to join a union.

As to the Joan, its fine. The IPF isn't yet finished and the landscaping when it is wil take care of the mud. Its a one-year deal. The rest rooms probably need re done. That is NBD. Couple of thousand dollars. Probably the metal parts need painting in the next decade or so. Its fine.

The Cam is what it is. We need to decide if this is a long term solution or not. If it is, then we need to spend some money, as outlined in the University's long term plan document from last year. Needs cleaned, repaint the inside roof, repaint the whole place, replumb the restrooms, general work. Or, we can live with it for 10 to 15 more years and look for a new building.

BTW, MU and the city have a gentleman's agreement to not use the HC in competition with the Civic Arena. That is not going to change.

 

[marshallmba]

That really isn't 100 percent accurate Herdmeister.

High schools in our area have volunteers doing similar things. High schools and universities are state agencies and have more in common than most imagine.

As long as adults were doing the work after signing appropriate waivers, the liability would be limited. The university also has insurance policies in case a lawsuit was filed.

The reason volunteers are not used probably has more to do with 'how it looks' than anything else. The university's employees would look bad if volunteers showed up on a weekend and did more work than they did all year. Plus, there is the pride thing where the school wants to look like it has the financial resources of an Ohio State.

Volunteers are performing work everywhere these days. In my opinion, there is no valid reason why the good people of Herd Nation could not be utilized to do some of this stuff.

 

[herdit44]

Originally posted by marshallmba:

That really isn't 100 percent accurate Herdmeister.

High schools in our area have volunteers doing similar things. High schools and universities are state agencies and have more in common than most imagine.

As long as adults were doing the work after signing appropriate waivers, the liability would be limited. The university also has insurance policies in case a lawsuit was filed.

The reason volunteers are not used probably has more to do with 'how it looks' than anything else. The university's employees would look bad if volunteers showed up on a weekend and did more work than they did all year. Plus, there is the pride thing where the school wants to look like it has the financial resources of an Ohio State.

Volunteers are performing work everywhere these days. In my opinion, there is no valid reason why the good people of Herd Nation could not be utilized to do some of this stuff.

trolling hard.

 

[TwolfHerdfan]

Originally posted by Herdmeister:
no way that volunteers cold get involved due to liability concerns. One injury and you get a million dollar law suite.

We rented the intermural field last spring and they made us sign a waiver. I'd say that would cover this issue as well. jmo.

 

[herdit44]

Originally posted by TwolfHerdfan:

Originally posted by Herdmeister:
no way that volunteers cold get involved due to liability concerns. One injury and you get a million dollar law suite.

We rented the intermural field last spring and they made us sign a waiver. I'd say that would cover this issue as well. jmo.

had anyone been seriously injured, they still could've sued, and based on the courts in wv, likely would've won some type of settlement.

 

[marshallmba]

A properly-drafted waiver signed by an adult is a powerful tool in the courtroom. Plus, the people who would volunteer to perform such work for the university would be the least likely to ever take legal action against Marshall University. These are people who would undoubtedly sweat Kelly Green when they worked on campus.

The final line of defense is insurance which is there to cover everything from a football fan tripping on a neglected sidewalk to a Big Green member having a faulty tent land on his head.

Additionally, these volunteers would not be dangling from a rope tied to the Henderson Center's roof. They would be doing projects you would feel comfortable letting your teenage son or daughter do at home.

This idea of volunteering has come up many times in the past on this board. It will never happen at M.U. for the reasons I stated earlier.

 

[Herdstruck]

Translation:
"Mike, can you wave your magic wand and snap your fingers so everything takes care of itself?"


You make it sound like he can magically do things like this. He just spent a ton of time raising money for the IPF.

Sam C said there's construction still going on around the stadium...unless you're blind, he's right.

The stuff you're walking through? The mud? Was moved because of...I dunno...the multi-million dollar IPF he just built.
The area around the new Engineering Complex is still rather dirty, but I know it's because of...well...the new Engineering Complex.
I think you're overreacting to some things regarding the stadium.
Yes, paint and bathrooms as well as some other details, need attention...but as a majority, it isn't nearly as bad as some places.


While there's definitely an abundance of good that can come from volunteer work, there's still the legal issues facing it and Marshall needs to cover their asses.
I can see the agreement between the Civic Center and Marshall being something in place...honestly, I'd rather tear down the Civic Center and Cam Henderson Center...re-build the Cam, on campus, either owned by the city or someone else, and Marshall leases it. Why couldn't Marshall have their own version of Rupp Arena?
Plus, the Cam is just...well...ugly and was horribly designed, include the cut in funds and you get what you pay for. Not Marshall's fault I don't believe, but it's not a good thing either.

Someone mentioned the surroundings...well...YEAH!! .

Huntington could take care of that...the surrounding areas of the stadium...the ACF property being the largest part, are all worn down buildings...most abandoned...why not buy those up or use Eminent Domain (not JUST the ACF property, but everywhere) and build lovely new dorms that overlook the river, a hotel plaza as well, even a Casino would be amazing right there...just SOMETHING that isn't what's there now...rusty crap).
Even wall off the Steel plant...seriously, that shit is an eyesore. I know it's a great economic element to Huntington and there are a ton of jobs, but wall that shit off with the same type of walling that highways use near housing developments...I don't like hearing the sound of what seems to be, a billion empty beer cans being poured out onto the ground and being moved around...plus the smell...is terrible. If the workers complain...tell them to eat shit and stay out of the way.

Again, all of this is wishful thinking...likely 1/4 will actually be accomplished because, sadly, threads like these are going to the wrong sources.

Write this topic to the mayor and the AD...it's great on here but won't go nowhere.

 

[mubaseballking]

WV State employees ARE allowed to join a union. I have and have had coworkers belonging to a union.

 

[bbneutralfan]

sig noted. When we return to campus next week I will try to approach him per your suggestion. Keep you posted.

 

[oldeherd]

There has to be better coordination between MU and the city on certain maintenance matters around MU. I note that in the past from experience walking to the stadium from the ACF parking lot on 3rd Ave, that the walk involved traveling over broken, missing, and misaligned sidewalks which, in many cases, were covered with debris, mud, trash, etc. In the vicinity of the Pruett building, whenever there was, or had been, a heavy rain, a small "lake" appeared which pedestrians had to navigate or bypass.

During basketball season parking along 3rd from 18th street heading west, campus side, usually meant you had to be careful getting out of your car as there was a foot or more of accumulated leaves and muck all along the curb well out into the road/lane. It appeared to me that either Huntington had a very infrequent street sweeping and leaf collecting program when it came to the area immediately around the MU campus, or, if MU was responsible for these functions, they were not being done at all. The matter of maintaining clean, refuse free campus environs, including adjoining streets and sidewalks, must be a priority for MU's administration (remember the adage about "first impressions") as not only a matter of school pride, but as a factor in student recruiting, including student athletes. I do realize the fact that there has been a cutting of higher ed budgets by the state the last couple of years or so, and I am sure that maintenance and upkeep have suffered a slashing of their budgets as a result.

Finally, I agree that there needs to be some much needed maintenance/upgrades in the restroom facilities at the Joan and HC. After all, this is one factor in the "total fan experience", and a negative experience in this area could be a factor which prevents some fans from returning to these venues for future games. I would think that someone in the athletic dept. would look at the possible financial gain/savings which could be obtained from replacing outmoded, deteriorating commodes, urinals, sinks, etc., like in the HC, with energy saving/water saving more efficient devices. Hopefully, this will be on Mike Hamrick's "to do" list (soon) after securing a modern baseball facility!
This post was edited on 1/7 9:15 PM by oldeherd

 

[lmckay92]

People in this city bitched and moaned about having to pay a user fee. I don't know how Hamrick and Williams can improve infrastructure without the funds to do it.

What's funny is I bet a lot of the people currently bitching about the sidewalks, flooding, etc. live in Barboursville.

 

[oldeherd]

Don't live in the ville. Make several hour trip to H-town for Herd events. Just pointing out impression of area around MU when visiting there, just like I am sure others notice. People remaining in the city have to find answers why city has lost 40,000 people and become so rundown and dilapidated in last half century. Was there at MU in 60s when city had 20-30 thou more pop and lots more industry/jobs. People there apparently became complacent and thought that all those local plants and business that had been there for decades would go on proving jobs, taxes, etc., "forever". Same applies to very status quo mentality of generation of city government and city councils. Very conservative mentality overall with reluctance to change have been Huntington's detriments to progress, not anyone living in Barboursville. In some ways, same attitudes have crept into MU's administration and kept it from realizing its full potential.

 

[Herdstruck]

I have a great idea on how to generate cash flow for the stadium...

SELL ALCOHOL!

Use the funds STRICTLY for stadium repairs and upgrades...the AD wouldn't have to spend nearly as much.

 

[Catfanatic1979v1]

The urinals stink even during the off season.

 

[TheGreenhouseEffect]

Have to agree with Hambone, not a fan of letting beer make its way into Marshall just yet.

Agreed, there needs to be greater coordination between the city and Marshall.

 

[lmckay92]

Originally posted by oldeherd:
Don't live in the ville. Make several hour trip to H-town for Herd events. Just pointing out impression of area around MU when visiting there, just like I am sure others notice. People remaining in the city have to find answers why city has lost 40,000 people and become so rundown and dilapidated in last half century. Was there at MU in 60s when city had 20-30 thou more pop and lots more industry/jobs. People there apparently became complacent and thought that all those local plants and business that had been there for decades would go on proving jobs, taxes, etc., "forever". Same applies to very status quo mentality of generation of city government and city councils. Very conservative mentality overall with reluctance to change have been Huntington's detriments to progress, not anyone living in Barboursville. In some ways, same attitudes have crept into MU's administration and kept it from realizing its full potential.

Huntington proper may have lost 40,000 people, but the population is growing down Route 60. If the economy hadn't changed in the 70s and on, that population would probably be living and working and paying taxes in Huntington. The infrastructure could be replaced then.

 

[The Real SamC]

Originally posted by Herdstruck:


I can see the agreement between the Civic Center and Marshall being something in place...honestly, I'd rather tear down the Civic Center and Cam Henderson Center...re-build the Cam, on campus, either owned by the city or someone else, and Marshall leases it. Why couldn't Marshall have their own version of Rupp Arena?
Plus, the Cam is just...well...ugly and was horribly designed, include the cut in funds and you get what you pay for. Not Marshall's fault I don't believe, but it's not a good thing either.

That, not the often mentioned "what if I-64 had gone through town" is the great "what if" of Huntington's decline.

The city fathers of the day refused to cooperate with MU and built the, then Civic Center, on their own. Leaving MU in the Field House and forcing MU to spend its political capital to get the HC built just a few year later. And thus allowing Charleston to build its Civic Center and dominate the market. Meanwhile the VMFH was more than adequate for smaller acts for a long time. Leaving MU with the HC, which has always been inadequate, and Huntington with a Civic Center that has always lost money and cannot get acts.

Amazingly, the reason for the non-cooperation was the city idea that the Civic Center was going to be too busy to accommodate MU basketball.

Imagine, what if, they had had the sense to build a joint building. Say something like Charleston's Civic Center. 12 or so K seats. Basketball friendly. MU would have had, in the late 70s, a 12K seat venue. Huge. We could have ridden the wave in something like the Sun Belt or Metro of that era. And when the time came to build WVU's football stadium, the qpq for MU signing off could have been, in the early 80s, an MU football stadium. And Charleston would have never built its civic center, and thus Huntington would be the touring entertainment venue for the region.

 

[herdit44]

Originally posted by marshallmba:
A properly-drafted waiver signed by an adult is a powerful tool in the courtroom.

not in wv.

 

[Herdstruck]

Well then continue to sit there and scratch your head on figuring out how to generate more money for facility upgrades and upkeep.

 

[thundermax]

Henderson Center is a disgrace. Filthy inside and out. Some regular maintenance could have prevented a lot of this from getting to the point of no return.

 

[TheGreenhouseEffect]

It's no secret Hamrick would like to replace the HC. He once said the design was all wrong for wrong for hoops and we needed a circular arena. Actually I've always liked HC and think its design is OK.

I went to the Morehead game, first time back in HC and I thought it was OK. Again the bathrooms are TERRIBLE and were poorly designed. Way too small. But All the other improvements Hamrick has made I think made it a lot better.

 

[The Real SamC]

Originally posted by TheGreenhouseEffect:
It's no secret Hamrick would like to replace the HC. He once said the design was all wrong for wrong for hoops and we needed a circular arena.

After the IPF and soccer fund raising programs, the well is dry. There just is not the support there for another major fund raising project of that magnitude, and don't forget that baseball has to be taken care of first. The state is broke and not inclined to help anyway and the city is beyond broke. Short of somebody doing one of these "lifestyle centers" with an arena being a part of it, the HC is what we have for the rest of our lives, I am afraid.

If you remember the 10 year plan document from last year, it had a proposed renovation to the HC included. Pretty much the idea was to extend the building on the 3rd Ave side out to the edge of the sidewalk, which would create a larger understand lobby with new concessions and restrooms, on that side only.

Even that takes money.

 

[Herdmeister]

Originally posted by TheGreenhouseEffect:
It's no secret Hamrick would like to replace the HC. He once said the design was all wrong for wrong for hoops and we needed a circular arena. Actually I've always liked HC and think its design is OK.

I went to the Morehead game, first time back in HC and I thought it was OK. Again the bathrooms are TERRIBLE and were poorly designed. Way too small. But All the other improvements Hamrick has made I think made it a lot better.

It is terribly designed for basketball. Of course we know it was never finished when they ran out of money. There is so much wasted space in the butterfly design. For a place that seats less than 10k there are some terrible seats. I've been in 12,000 seat arenas where the top row was closer to the floor than in the HC.