Via Kansas Athletics
LAWRENCE, Kan. — Just more than 33 months after the initial vision was announced, the reimagined David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium is set to officially reopen this Saturday when the Kansas Jayhawks host Fresno State in a nationally televised affair.
The opening of the stadium marks the completion of Phase 1 of the Gateway District, a transformative, multi-phased development that redefines the campus’s northern entrance.
“We are incredibly excited to open the reimagined David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium on Saturday,” Kansas Director of Athletics Travis Goff said. “The completion of the first major phase of the project is a testament to the power of the Jayhawk community. The impact of the new Booth will be far-reaching, and we cannot wait for our fans and student-athletes to experience the transformation. It will bring tremendous joy to see our community come together at the corner of 11th and Mississippi to support our football program and celebrate an exciting new era for the University of Kansas.”
Designed by HNTB and Multistudio and brought to life by Turner Construction, Henderson Engineering and Legends Project Development, the project has already transformed the corner of 11th and Mississippi streets with three connected buildings—Anderson Family Football Complex, David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium and the newly built conference center on the north end of the stadium — into a seamlessly interwoven, multi-use venue.
Anderson Family Football Complex, which was structurally integrated with the stadium before this renovation, has been reconfigured to support expanded use including a new team room that looks out onto the field. Other amenities in the additional 20,000 square feet of the building include a new walkthrough room, meeting rooms and team room, along with complete redesigns in the locker room, weight room, training room and player lounge.
Plans for the reimagined stadium and Gateway District were first announced in October of 2022 when Goff and Chancellor Douglas Girod held a press conference on The Hill on the south end of David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium one day before the Jayhawks hosted ESPN’s College GameDay.
“It has been rewarding to see this project come to life during the past few years,” Girod said. “We have long talked about the positive impact the stadium and conference center will have on our community, and we are excited to begin experiencing it this weekend. Saturday will be a great celebration for the community, and we look forward to many more great days ahead as we fully build out the Gateway District.”
The newly opened stadium also introduces a restructured seating bowl with improved sightlines and increased fan proximity to the field, along with all new concession offerings. Enhanced concourse circulation, upgraded accessibility, and diverse new premium seating options—including clubs, ledge suites, and loge seating—contribute to a more immersive and comfortable game day experience. Every seat on the west has a seatback and 3,000 seats on that side also have access to premium areas. There are four club areas and a total of 42 suites on the west side of the stadium. Legends Premium Sales and Service, along with the assistance of Kansas Athletics Development, sold out all 3,000 premium seats in the venue.
Demolition at the stadium began in December of 2023 and the stadium opened for operational use earlier this month. There have been more than 570,000 hours worked to date with 115,000 hours worked solely in October of 2024. There are approximately 570 workers on site every day with 630 workers at peak time. Altogether, 6,500 pieces and 5,200 tons of structural steel were used. The stadium also features a new scoreboard that is two-and-a-half times bigger than the previous scoreboard (2,680 square feet to now 5,200 square feet).
With Phase 1 now complete, future phases of the Gateway District will introduce new east side seating, student housing, retail, and a hotel. These components will extend the district’s impact and continue to positively impact the Lawrence community with more details being revealed in the future.
