Transformative Gateway District Phase I over

Article posted by Coliseum, August 27^th, 2025

Image: University of Kansas

Just more than 33 months after the initial vision was announced the reimagined David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, Kansas (US) reopened recently when the athletics team Kansas Jayhawks hosted the football team Fresno State Bulldogs in a nationally televised affair.

‘kuathletics.com’ stated that the opening of the stadium marks the completion of Phase I of the Gateway District, a transformative, multiphased development that redefines the campus’s Northern entrance.

The 41,525-capacity David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium or The Booth is a college football stadium in Lawrence, Kansas (US) on the campus of the University of Kansas (US).

The Kansas Jayhawks Men’s basketball program is the intercollegiate men’s basketball program of the University of Kansas. The program is classified in the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s (NCAA’s – a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States and 1 in Canada) Division I and the team competes in the Big 12 Conference (a collegiate athletic Conference within the NCAA’s Division I that includes 16 universities across the United States).

Exulted Travis Goff, Kansas Director of Athletics, “We are incredibly excited to open the reimagined David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. The completion of the first major phase of the project is a testament to the power of the Jayhawks community. The impact of the new Booth will be far-reaching and we cannot wait for our fans and the student-athletes to experience the transformation. It will bring tremendous joy to see our community come together at the corner of 11^th and Mississippi to support our football program and celebrate an exciting new era for the University of Kansas.”

‘kuathletics.com’ further stated that designed by the HNTB (US-based infrastructure solutions firm) and Multistudio (a multidisciplinary architecture, design and planning practice with five studios nationwide) and brought to life by Turner Construction (an international construction services company), Henderson Engineering (a major national firm specializing in building systems design), and the Legends Project Development (provides the Owner’s Representative and the Project Management Services for sports, entertainment and public assembly venues) has already transformed the corner of 11^th and Mississippi Streets with three connected buildings – the Anderson Family Football Complex, the David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium and the newly-built conference center on the North end of the stadium – into a seamlessly interwoven, multiuse venue.

The 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. The other amenities in the additional 20,000 square feet of the building include a new walkthrough room, the meeting rooms and the team room along with complete redesigns in the locker room, the weight room, the training room, and the player lounge.

Plans for the reimagined stadium and the Gateway District were first announced in October of 2022 when Goff and Chancellor Douglas Girod held a presser on The Hill on the South end of the David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium one day before the Jayhawks hosted ESPN’s (an American multinational sports media conglomerate) College GameDay.

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. The enhanced concourse circulation, the upgraded accessibility and diverse new premium seating options – including clubs, ledge suites and loge seating – contribute to a more immersive and comfortable gameday experience. Every seat on the West has a seatback and 3,000 seats on that side also have access to the premium areas. There are four club areas and a total of 42 suites on the West side of the stadium. The Legends Premium Sales and Service, along with the assistance of the Kansas Athletics Development, sold out all 3,000 premium seats in the venue.

The Kansas Athletics Development is the unit responsible for transforming philanthropy within the University of Kansas’s athletics programs working to secure funding and opportunities for the fans to support the university’s student-athletes and the athletic initiatives.

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 the 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.

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