Views of the future

The artist's rendering above shows a ground-level view of the entrance to the All Sports Museum, which will be incorporated into Beaver Stadium's southwest corner. The museum will serve as a tribute to all Penn State athletes and all varsity sports.

Above is an artist's rendering of how the stadium will look when approached from the northeast corner. For more pictures, click here.

Beaver Stadium expansion
receives $3 million

Board approves final
plans for Beaver Stadium

By Michael Bezilla
University Relations

Philadelphia insurance executive and Penn State alumnus Alvin H. Clemens and his wife, Valerie, have given $3 million to support the University's Beaver Stadium expansion and renovation project. The project will add more than 10,000 seats and make major improvements to the stadium's infrastructure.

Alvin Clemens is chairman and chief executive officer of Provident American Corp. and HealthAxis.com. He has been a Penn State trustee since Gov. Tom Ridge appointed him to the board in 1995. He is a 1959 Penn State graduate in business administration, and was named an Alumni Fellow of The Smeal College of Business Administration in 1997.

Valerie Clemens is a director of Provident American Corp.

The Clemenses' gift will establish the Alvin and Valerie Clemens Football Team Complex to help expand and upgrade locker rooms; coaches rooms; game-day space for officials, cheerleaders, managers and others; media facilities; and a room containing X-ray facilities, ice baths and other post-game treatments.

In addition to more seating, the stadium project will make improvements to restrooms, access for fans with physical disabilities, concessions, ticket offices and other aspects of the infrastructure. The project, which carries a total cost of $93 million, is expected to help meet a growing demand for tickets and contribute significantly to the fans' enjoyment of the game.

Alvin Clemens has spent most of his career in the insurance industry. He began as a supervisor of sales for the Insurance Company of North America (CIGNA). In 1967, he founded his own company, later named the Academy Insurance Group, with a $50,000 investment.

When he sold his interest in the company 17 years later, its market value exceeded $500 million. This company was the innovator of sales direct to the consumer over the television. Clemens' present company is selling health (medical) insurance direct to the consumer via the Internet. He previously endowed the Alvin H. Clemens Professorship in Entrepreneurial Studies in The Smeal College of Business Administration. He is a member of the Smeal College's board of visitors, the advisory board of the Penn State Great Valley campus and the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics' capital campaign committee.

Valerie Clemens is a former Miss Maine and later served as co-executive director of the Miss Maine pageant. She currently serves on the Miss Maine Pageant committee, affiliated with the Miss America Organization.

Board approves
final plans for Beaver Stadium

Picture this -- more seats, broad pedestrian ways, improved spectator entrances, additional concession stands, new restrooms, an escalator, new video scoreboards a spectacular, glass-enclosed club lounge and comfortable club seating. All this and more, including an All Sports Museum, will be part of the new Beaver Stadium at Penn State.

On Sept. 10, the Board of Trustees approved final plans and gave authorization to obtain bids and award contracts for the construction of additions and alterations to Beaver Stadium as prepared by architects HOK Sport/John C. Haas Associates of Kansas City and State College.

The Beaver Stadium of today was developed in phases over a number of years to its current seating of almost 94,000. A needs assessment and market analysis conducted last year identified several key areas that the additions and alterations will address, including the need for more seats.

The additional seats will help meet the increasing demand for tickets by students -- 3,200 student applications for tickets this year had to be denied -- Mount Nittany Club members, alumni and the general public. New and renovated seats total more than 10,000, including 60 private suites, 4,000 club seats, 6,000 general arm chair seating and more seats that are accessible to the handicapped.

On the ground floor, improved spectator entrances will improve the traffic flow of spectators into the stadium. Reconstructed ramps, elevators and a new escalator also will help traffic flow. Coach Joe Paterno will finally be able to assemble and address the entire team in pre-game and half-time meetings in the new team locker room, and the new media room will finally be large enough to accommodate the media without a squeeze.

The two-floor All Sports Museum with an entrance on the ground floor was originally planned to be a separate building across the street. It will now be incorporated into the stadium at the southwest entrance opposite The Bryce Jordan Center and will serve as a tribute to all Penn State athletes and all varsity sports.

Also new will be a continuous concourse at the 60th row with expanded restroom facilities and concession stands.

At the Club Lounge level, club members will have access to the multi-level glass enclosed club lounge that overlooks Mount Nittany and is flanked by private suites on the upper concourses. Fans also will enjoy the two video scoreboards at either end of the stadium. These are being funded separately through sponsorships.

The overall project cost of the stadium addition and alteration is estimated to be $93 million, including approximately $40 million for the general stadium upgrades and $53 million for the additional seats, Mount Nittany Lounge, private suites and the All Sports Museum. Funds to pay for the renovation and expansion will come from private suites, club seating and external support. While some revenue from ticket sales may also be allocated to the project, tuition dollars and funds from state appropriations will not be used.