2008 Woodie Awards
Class designs stadium
Architecture students work to create new BSU baseball diamond
Joseph Lanane
Rather than the same old song and dance, professor Tony Costello afforded his architecture students a different opportunity during their recently concluded summer studio: create a new Ball State University baseball stadium.
Such a hands-on approach is nothing new to students within the department, he said, but thanks to an $8,000 grant from the National Concrete Masonry Association, Costello said he planned to submit the best design for actual consideration by athletics administration.
As a result, 17 architecture and landscape architecture students teamed into four groups to contrive the best baseball stadium concrete masonry can create. The grant paid for students to travel to schools throughout the area to accurately gauge how other newer facilities have been developed.
Following specific guidelines suggested by Associate Athletics Director Pat Quinn, Costello said he and his students were able to analyze stadiums from MAC schools such as the University of Dayton and Miami University of Ohio. They also viewed Big East Conference venues at the universities of Louisville and Cincinnati.
"When we went to see the other stadiums, [Quinn] made a point to say 'Look at the way they handle certain aspects,'" Costello said. "That was very, very enlightening to both the students and myself because you really get a good sense of what makes a collegiate stadium."
Costello said this project allowed students to learn how to design in a team format and work under an intense time schedule. The elective course was not a requirement but an open invitation without any promise of long-term success, he said.
"Right out of the gate, students knew this was all hypothetical - their projects may or may not be implemented," Costello said.
Still, they continued with designs Costello said were both realistic and relatively inexpensive.
Junior architecture major Jessie Rabideau said she was not much of a baseball fan, but a tennis enthusiast. Still, she said the project helped her love for the game grow.
Such a hands-on approach is nothing new to students within the department, he said, but thanks to an $8,000 grant from the National Concrete Masonry Association, Costello said he planned to submit the best design for actual consideration by athletics administration.
As a result, 17 architecture and landscape architecture students teamed into four groups to contrive the best baseball stadium concrete masonry can create. The grant paid for students to travel to schools throughout the area to accurately gauge how other newer facilities have been developed.
Following specific guidelines suggested by Associate Athletics Director Pat Quinn, Costello said he and his students were able to analyze stadiums from MAC schools such as the University of Dayton and Miami University of Ohio. They also viewed Big East Conference venues at the universities of Louisville and Cincinnati.
"When we went to see the other stadiums, [Quinn] made a point to say 'Look at the way they handle certain aspects,'" Costello said. "That was very, very enlightening to both the students and myself because you really get a good sense of what makes a collegiate stadium."
Costello said this project allowed students to learn how to design in a team format and work under an intense time schedule. The elective course was not a requirement but an open invitation without any promise of long-term success, he said.
"Right out of the gate, students knew this was all hypothetical - their projects may or may not be implemented," Costello said.
Still, they continued with designs Costello said were both realistic and relatively inexpensive.
Junior architecture major Jessie Rabideau said she was not much of a baseball fan, but a tennis enthusiast. Still, she said the project helped her love for the game grow.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Rusty Bruce
posted 6/19/08 @ 10:22 AM EST
Many thanks to Professor Costello for arranging this competition. Your love of baseball and the need to overhaul the current baseball and softball facilities at BSU made this project a perfect fit. (Continued…)
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