By Hub City Times staff

MARSHFIELD – The new football and soccer stadium at Marshfield High School is on track to host games starting Aug. 30, while renovations at the Marshfield Middle School are planned to start in late fall.

“(The) Kenneth & Ardyce Heiting Community Stadium is on schedule to host contests on Aug. 30 for soccer and football,” said Marshfield Athletic Director Nathan DeLany. “The construction team, led by the Boson Company and in partnership with Rettler Corporation, continues to work diligently through minor delays and weather related delays that have plagued most construction projects this spring and summer. The dedication of completing the project on time and the excitement within our community leaves us very optimistic we will play as scheduled starting on Aug. 30.

“Our plan for opening night, Aug. 30, is to play soccer at 4:30 p.m. vs. New Richmond and football at 7:30 p.m. vs. Oshkosh North. It will be the first opportunity to hold contests in our new home. In the coming weeks, we will work with local and social media to provide a visual layout of parking, ticket booths, and seating for our fans.”

While the stadium is on schedule, DeLany said that other projects have been affected by weather conditions.

“Mother Nature has delayed the start of other project locations for baseball and softball,” he added. “With better weather this week and in the next 10 days, you will see progress being made on the baseball and softball sites. While, there is not a definitive deadline, the construction team plans to have those two sites complete this fall.

“We have intentionally planned renovations to begin this fall at the middle school site, just in case Mother Nature or any other unforeseen delay comes up between now and then. This would allow us to continue as we have for the past 78 years with playing at Beell Stadium.”

DeLany said that while the school district has experienced some anxiety in meeting the deadline, they have also been able to witness excitement from the community.

“You can see the pride and joy when we are able to tour the site and see the progress made each day and week,” he said. “Community members who watch the progress on the Boson Company cameras or comment on Athletic Department Social Media posts are impressed and sometimes surprised with the design and structure that soon will be a reality in our community.”

DeLany reminds the public that the new athletic facilities are an active construction site and the public should avoid entering the area while construction is completed during the final weeks.

“We greatly appreciate the community’s excitement and curiosity of this new facility,” DeLany stated. “Please remember the facility is an active construction site and while the general public may not see active construction taking place, construction hazards are still present. We want all fans, curious information seekers, and community members to be safe and we respectfully ask to refrain from entering the construction site. The season is 28 days away from today and we want everyone who is able to be able to safely and comfortably enjoy events in the new facilities.”

A ribbon-cutting ceremony is currently scheduled for Sept. 27 at 6 p.m., to coincide with Homecoming 2019.

“I look forward to opening night, working through the kinks, welcoming the community into their new facility, and making the necessary adjustments as we all learn how to navigate a facility that is fantastic and new,” DeLany said.