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A $1 million gift to Albright College from local alumnus John D. Scholl is helping to launch reconstruction of Albright College's Shirk Stadium as a new multi-sport stadium. Demolition of the existing stadium will begin in December 2004. The $4 million first phase of the stadium project is expected to be completed by fall 2005. The stadium reconstruction is the first initiative in the College's new master plan for athletics over the next decade.
The new stadium's footprint will be the same as the existing structure, from 13 th Street on the north to Exeter Streets on the south and 12 th Street on the west. A new field house/grandstands building will be constructed. The existing stands will be completely replaced, and new locker rooms added. The new field will be large enough for football, field hockey, soccer and lacrosse. Grass will be replaced with artificial turf.
According to David C. Stinebeck, interim president of Albright, the College has critical needs for two building projects: reconstruction of Shirk Stadium and construction of a new Science Center.
"We have been planning stadium reconstruction for a long time, and with our new athletics master plan have been working to find a way to make it reality," Stinebeck said. "John Scholl's generous gift, added to College funds, was the final part of the funding equation and is allowing us to finally begin construction. The stadium is a much smaller undertaking than the new Science Center, so we are able to get it underway immediately."
According to Stinebeck, with Albright enrollments at their highest levels ever along with Scholl's gift, the time was right to tackle the stadium project.
The century-old stadium "has become an eyesore that detracts from the rest of our beautiful campus," Stinebeck said. "It does not make a very good impression on prospective students and visitors."
Stinebeck stressed that fundraising will not be necessary for the stadium, but that funds will need to be raised to construct the planned Science Center.
John Scholl, Albright class of 1969, of Mohnton, Pennsylvania, is a member of Albright's Athletics Hall of Fame and previously served on the Albright Board of Trustees. Scholl is owner of Berkco Properties, a real estate investment company. In 1998, Scholl spearheaded a $425,000 renovation of Albright's Bollman Center gymnasium and basketball court. Scholl's gift to the stadium comes to Albright from the Scholl Fund of the Berks County Community Foundation.
At Albright, Scholl was a star athlete in basketball, track and baseball. He retains the College's single-game scoring record in basketball of 54 points against Lycoming College in 1969.
"I am happy to make this donation to the stadium project because Albright needs a new facility. I am pleased with the overall direction of the College and its administration," Scholl said. "Back in the late '90s I saw a need when I compared Albright's athletics and fitness and wellness facilities to other colleges', and we tackled the Bollman Center. Albright and I share the same vision and I was willing to step up to the plate to keep the momentum going so we can complete our athletics master plan. The stadium was obviously the first thing to do. Renovating the stadium is good for Albright and for the Reading community."
Shirk Stadium, built around 1909 as Circus Maximus, was originally the home of the Tri-State Minor League Baseball League. The stadium was donated in 1923 to Schuylkill College, which then merged with Albright College in 1929 when Albright moved to its current location in Reading. The College named the facility Eugene Shirk Stadium in 1981 after the beloved Albright professor and former mayor of Reading.
The athletics master plan is by Derck & Edson Associates, LLP and The Ray Group Architects.
The 80,000-square-foot Science Center that will replace the 75-year-old Merner-Pfeiffer Hall of Science is in the planning stages. According to Stinebeck, the College must raise funds for the project, which has been approved by the Berks County Capital Campaign Review Board for a 2006 campaign, and there is no date set for groundbreaking.
