Hundreds of people gathered outside of Beaver Stadium Saturday, but not for a football game.
The Beaver Stadium press box was demolished Saturday morning as part of the Beaver Stadium Revitalization, which Penn State officials said is a $700 million renovation project taking place at the stadium that will expand and improve the facility.
“Well, there was quite a crowd gathering and I found a good spot to take a photo. We waited and I listened to the crowd, and I was able to hear the countdown.”
That’s just one community member who said he was looking forward to Saturday morning.
“When you don’t do facility projects every couple of years like you need to, you can fall behind and it becomes a massive project. So, this stadium, I know there was a lot of, you know, maybe some anxiety about it, but I think it’s going to create some challenges in the short term, but I think long term it’ll be in everybody’s best interests and will be a stadium that everybody’s really proud of.”
While Penn State fans said they’re excited to see what the improved Beaver Stadium will look like, they said that the removal of the press box, which has stood there since 1960, will take some getting used to.
Officials said that a large-scale demolition of the upper West side of Beaver Stadium will also take place this year.
“It is very much a landmark. It’s definitely a different view and it’s exciting to consider what’s coming, what’s going to be built in its place.”
Penn State officials said that crews will be on site 24/7 for the next 6 weeks as they prepare for more construction ahead of the 2025 season.