The East Stadium construction project at Memorial Stadium has been topped off but it will be next season before the new sky-boxes are in use.
Today university officials and Davis Erection placed the last beam with the traditional American flag and Christmas tree atop the structure.
The tree symbolizes that there were no serious injuries on the job site. Now that the structure is in place the rest of the stadium addition can proceed.
Dr. Tom Osborne emceed the event.
Dr. Tom Osborne says, "We'll be adding about 6,000 or 7,000 seats so the capacity of the stadium will go to 92,000. It still won't be as big as three other stadiums in the Big Ten but it will put us somewhere in the top 10 nationally."
The new seats are expected to generate approximately $9 million in annual revenue for the university.
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A ceremony was held at Memorial Stadium Thursday to "top out" the east stadium construction project that added more seats along with a new East Stadium Research Facility.
NU Athletic Director Dr. Tom Osborne emceed the event. "We'll be adding about 6,000 or 7,000 seats so the capacity of the stadium will go to 92,000. It still won't be as big as three other stadiums in the Big Ten, but it will put us somewhere in the top 10 nationally."
The extra seats are expected to generate approximately $9 million in annual revenue for the university.
The East Stadium Research Facility will include space for an athletic performance lab as well as the Center for Brain, Biology and Behavior. Officials said this unprecedented research facility will allow UNL partners to study the human brain as it relates to athletic performance and to conduct concussion research in order to keep student-athletes safe.
The tradition of topping out has become a custom of iron workers whenever the skeleton of a bridge or building is completed. It is a signal that the uppermost steel is going into place, that the structure has reached its height.
As the final beam was hoisted, per tradition an evergreen tree and an American flag were attached. The evergreen tree symbolizes that the job went up successfully without loss of life and as a good luck charm for the future. The flag salutes patriotism and the freedom we are afforded.
The final beam placed is just north of the gate 20 entrance toward the outermost part of the stadium.
The new sky-boxes won't be in use until next season.
