Building CB East Stadium: It's all About the Money

To build a stadium or not to build a stadium, that has been the question in CB East since 1999, but now there’s a glimmer of hope.

Last month, the Central Bucks School Board agreed to hold a town meeting about the proposed stadium, which was held Tuesday.

One of the issues is parity; that is, CB East wants a stadium just as CB West and CB South have theirs.

School director Tyler Tomlinson said that building the stadium would go a long way to fulfilling the district's promise to give every Central Bucks student the same education and experiences.

"It's really difficult when every game is an away game," Tomlinson said last month, referring to CB East students who must travel to other schools to play.

On Tuesday, CB East Principal told the school board and attendees, that the stadium is not just about football. “It’s about field hockey and men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s track … it’s about a place where family and friends can sit and watch them.”

Phillburbs.com reports that a couple hundred people attended the town hall meeting including Bill Boger and Don Veix, members of the CB East Stadium Committee, who said that the district has already spent $500,000 to design the stadium and to defend those plans in court.

“We don’t want to see it being wasted and thrown away,” Boger said.

To build or not to build? What’s your answer?

The district received a $2.5 million bond issue after the project's approval, but the construction estimate has been projected at $5.6 million, leaving a $3.1 million deficit.

"I can't move forward with this project until I hear from the public that they want us to find that money," said school director Paul Faulkner last month.

While there is much support for the project, the cost is what had some residents balking. “I can’t believe people are saying this is the time to spend the money on an unnecessary project like this,” a Warrington woman told Phillyburbs.com.

In previous Patch articles, one woman commented, “My daughter leaves her last block 3 times a week for sports. WHY? Because every game is an away game. She misses her last block 3 times a week. Can you imagine missing an AP class 3 times a week? This is about academics and not just about sports.”

The response was that while a stadium might be more convenient for the student-athletes, who is going to pay the extra $3.1 million to build it?

The school board has about $7 million more set aside for building projects, but  the board must decide whether to use it for the CB East stadium or another  project.

Related stories:

• Do You Want a Stadium at CB East?
• Stadium Project Back on the Table for CB East
• CB East Stadium Supporters Celebrate