FAIRMONT, W.Va. (WBOY) – Upgrades and renovations are being made to East-West Stadium in Fairmont.
The current board of education Director Donna Costello and Marion County Schools Superintendent Donna Hage have brought back the East-West Stadium Committee to tackle problem areas.
Upgrades the committee and the Marion County Schools Maintenance Department have already completed are lighting on the outsides of the stadium, they’ve filled in tripping hazards on the sidewalks and have reinforced the upper fence.
Marion County Board of Education officials feel the upgrades and maintenance of the stadium are beneficial to more than just the high school athletes that use it, those from Fairmont Senior and East Fairmont high schools.
“Our facilities are used by multiple people in our county, the young and the old,” Andy Neptune, Marion County Board of Education administrative assistant in charge of maintenance facilities and athletics said. “You not only get into the educational side of athletics and those that may not be in athletics, but you also get into the community side of things and being able to utilize those facilities.”
Neptune said there are some projects they plan to tackle when the football season is over, such as adding more handicap accessible seating and putting in handicap accessible bathrooms. The committee also has plans to fully renovate the regular bathrooms in the stadium.
The funds for the work came out of the regular maintenance budget that the Marion County Board of Education has every year for all the educational system needs. Neptune said East-West Stadium also has money set aside from past fundraising efforts that they can use for bigger projects, if needed, but haven’t yet.
East-West Stadium is currently the home field for the East Fairmont Bees and the Fairmont Senior Polar Bears high school teams. The stadium was originally built in 1938 and the track was originally constructed in 1969.