BOZEMAN — Upgrades to prominent Montana State University parking lots and Bobcat Stadium have officially begun.
Construction to expand and repair campus parking outside Bobcat Stadium began in early May after the state approved millions for development and maintenance in January. Additionally, video and audio upgrades to Bobcat Stadium, announced last summer, are nearly complete, according to MSU sports information director Bill Lamberty.
The decision to improve the university’s parking lots came after the expected loss of spaces due to new academic buildings. To offset this, MSU plans to spend $13 million on parking lots near Bobcat Stadium.
Michael Becker, Director of MSU News Service, said this funding would primarily focus on expanding parking capacity around the football stadium, including paving, lining and additional lighting.
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“Without the lines, you know, the parking could get a little inefficient at times, and what adding lines and proper paving out there will do is actually add a couple 100 parking spots,” Becker said.
Construction crews work to prepare the Bobcat Stadium parking lot for paving later this summer. Paving and other upgrades are expected to be completed by the start of next school year.
The Montana University System Board of Regents approved the projects at its Jan. 11 meeting. In September 2023, the board approved approximately $151.2 million for new MSU buildings and facility upgrades, including the Mark and Robyn Jones College of Nursing building on the current site of Wolf Lot 14.
MSU plans to allocate $4 million for routine maintenance, addressing issues such as potholes, cracks, curb repairs and lighting replacements in lots requiring attention, as outlined in the Jan. 11 meeting agenda.
Becker hopes the upgrades to the lots outside Bobcat Stadium will offer users a “smoother experience.”
The paving and lining around Bobcat Stadium is expected to be completed by the start of next school year, according to Becker.
Additionally, Lamberty expects the video and audio upgrades for Bobcat Stadium to be finished around the same time.
Last summer, MSU announced that the stadium would receive an LED video display, a custom audio system and a fixed-digit scoreboard from Daktronics in Brookings, South Dakota.
Before the latest upgrades, the stadium received score and sound updates in 1998 and 2011. The 2024 upgrades now provide Bobcat Stadium with the largest scoreboard in the Big Sky Conference, according to the university.
“It was out of necessity,” Lamberty said.
He said physical construction is nearly finished, but the new equipment setup is still pending. Lamberty anticipates the upgrades will be operational before the university’s first home game in September.
Lilly Keller can be reached at lkeller@dailychronicle.com.
