The Tiger Athletic Foundation will use the bond sale proceeds to finance construction of 3,000 additional club-level seats, as well as an upper deck with a seating capacity of 1,500. The total cost of the expansion is anticipated to be $100 million, of which $25 million will be used to create 60 private suites. However, due to IRS regulations that exclude the suites from tax-exempt bond financing, a separate financing arrangement will be made to fund their construction.
In addition to the stadium construction, the bond proceeds will also be used to improve the facilities of LSU’s “Olympic” sports – tennis, gymnastics and track and field.
“The LPFA is proud to support TAF in its effort to expand and improve LSU’s athletic facilities,” said LPFA President and CEO James W. Parks II. “Through these improvements, it is our goal to bolster the university’s ability to serve its students and the greater LSU community, lending a hand to increase accessibility to our state’s flagship university.”
When completed in late summer of 2014, the total capacity of the stadium will climb to about 99,500, an increase of 6,900 above the current seating accommodations. The added capacity will rank Tiger stadium as the seventh-largest in the nation and third-largest in the Southeastern Conference.
The Louisiana Public Facilities Authority is a self-supporting public trust and public corporation that issues both taxable and tax-exempt bonds to finance public and private projects throughout the state. The LPFA finances industrial and economic development projects, provides low-cost funding for hospitals and hospital equipment, universities and other educational facilities, and essential programs for state and local governmental units. The LPFA does not receive any funds from the state for its operations.
The LPFA scheduled its next meeting for July 10, 2012.
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