Byrne & Jones Sports Construction Receives Five ASBA Awards in 2022

Rantoul Family Sports Complex | Gold Medal Multi-Field Distinguished Sports Facility

Seneca Athletic Complex | Distinguished Multi-Field Facility

Seneca School District hired Byrne & Jones through TIPS Cooperative Purchasing early in January of 2021.  The project consisted of an 8 lane running track, a new baseball stadium, and a synthetic turf baseball field.  The new athletic facilities solved many issues for the district. 

Superintendent Dr. Brandon Eggleston said the impressive features are sure to have virtually everyone in this Southwest Missouri town of about 2,500 residents swelling with pride about this project.  “The track is an eight-lane stand-alone track. The new multi-purpose facility will have locker rooms, bathrooms, a storage area and a concession stand. The track will also be open for the public to use.”  Eggleston went on saying, “Our previous baseball and softball fields were in a flood plain and flooded frequently. And with the new location, we do not have to worry about flooding.  We did not even have a track to practice on, so that is significant for our student-athletes. We now have a complex that can host any size track meet and a baseball/softball field that will be a state-of-the-art facility.  The complex will be a point of pride for our community. It is a place where our student-athletes can compete that is safe, high quality and reliable.” 

Westville High School | Distinguished Multi-Field Facility

Westville’s renovations posed a particular challenge only fit for the most experienced design-build sports contractor. They needed to entrust someone to redesign and shift the location of their existing stadium to fit a new concrete plaza and fitness building, and expanded bleachers, in the extremely limited space they had available.

Having saved capital funds for years and having one shot to get it right, Westville entrusted Byrne & Jones with this huge responsibility. Not to mention the tight schedule it needed to be built within – the project was approved in November 2020, design was completed by January 2021, construction started in February and the new stadium was ready for play by August of 2021, along with a full new turf baseball and softball field. The great success of this project was also awarded the project spotlight in TIPS Purchasing Cooperative’s quarterly newsletter.

La Salle Peru High School | Distinguished Single Field Facility

One of the most historic football stadiums in Illinois, Howard Fellows Stadium was originally constructed during the Great Depression with funding from FDR’s New Deal incentives.  LaSalle-Peru (LP) High School has called this field home for over 80 years, and through thoughtful and proper upkeep and restoration projects, have been able to keep the stadium current while maintaining its historic legacy. The most recent of these upgrade projects was a severely important one – upgrading the playing surface.  Having been plagued by poor drainage and dirt runoff, the stadium field had slowly become a surface full of ruts and puddles. 

LP ran an internal analysis of their options to renovate the field, including a full strip, regrading and re-sodding of the field, and installing synthetic turf.

Ultimately, LP decided that installing synthetic turf was the proper decision due its consistency as a safe playing surface, as well as improved drainage for the site and far less maintenance expenditures.  And this wasn’t any ordinary turf field – LP opted to install a field that rivals most NFL stadiums, choosing the highly resilient IronTurf Woven product from Greenfields, resting on top of a Brock concussion safety pad.  In order to accomplish this, LP sought out the best sports construction team in the business and hired Byrne & Jones directly through a purchasing cooperative to get the job done.  Byrne & Jones successfully delivered their project on time and on-budget.

Plummer Family Park | Distinguished Multi-Field Facility

Plummer Family Park opened in Edwardsville, IL, in August of 2020 and is already becoming a regional destination for tournaments and traveling athletes. The 83-acre, $12.8 million park includes four baseball/softball diamonds, six multi-purpose fields, 12 pickleball courts, concession stands, restrooms, a shared-use path, and parking for 821 vehicles, including 22 ADA-compliant spaces. Additional ball diamonds, a community park space, and additional parking are planned for a future phase.

Byrne & Jones Sports Facilty Construction

If you are interested in learning more about designing and building a world-class athletic facility you can reach out to us at  (314) 254-9766 and ask to speak with a member of our Sports Division. We have completed over 1300+ athletic facility improvement projects across the Midwest since 2010. By combining our in-house design team with certified track and field builders, we can help our clients build their dream facility. From start to finish, we will be with you every step of the way. We are now the winners of 14 ASBA awards – which you can view here.

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