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Dayton Daily News education reporter Scott Elliott writes about schools, kids, teaching and learning.
Home > Blogs > Get on the Bus > Archives > 2005 > October > 08 > Entry
Can they bring the Bengals to Dayton?
It took months of delicate negotiations, but Dayton Public Schools and the University of Dayton finally brokered a deal that they hope will guarantee the future success of the stadium they share next to UD Arena — Welcome Stadium.
If their plan works, they hope in a few years Welcome will be a premier destination for sporting events. Of course, they want it to continue to host major high school sports like track meets and state football playoff games. But the hope is that a renovated stadium can attract new events.
And the down the line the big prize could be Bengals training camp.
The Bengals training camp used to be at Wilmington College but lately has been held in Georgetown, Ky. Dayton seems like an even better location for the camp — its closer and the bigger city has more amenities.
If Welcome can be turned into a high quality small stadium, it could be a great fit for the Bengals. It’s a potential win-win-win, bringing cash and visibility to the district and UD, creating a better training camp home for the Bengals and offering a lot of excitement for local fans.
That’s still a long way off. The $1 million they’ll spend right now should correct cracked cement, chipping paint and old seats. New turf, a high priority, will probably cost another $1 million. And then press box upgrades are also needed, as are better concessions. That’s before putting any new bells and whistles in place.
Under the deal between UD and DPS, all non-ticket revenue (concessions, parking, etc.,) will be plowed back into a new fund for maintenance and upgrades. So the key to quicker renovations is success with events — the more money-makers Welcome hosts, the more money for improvements.
That’s where UD comes in. They have a fine marketing staff at UD Arena which now will bring its talents to the Welcome Stadium effort.
If the partnership works, Welcome could become a really valuable amenity for the community.
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