Erlanger Park is on schedule for completion by the Chattanooga Lookouts’ opener in April, with nearly $38 million spent on the project, developers and officials said Thursday.
The Chattanooga-Hamilton County Sports Authority Board heard the update exactly eight months before the Lookouts play their first home opener April 14 at the South Broad stadium against the Montgomery Biscuits.
“We are on schedule, which is phenomenal,” Andy Stone, a partner in the company that owns the former U.S. Pipe/Wheland Foundry site, told the board.
The industrial site between Broad Street and Interstate 24 forms the western entrance to downtown Chattanooga, and developers like Stone say the stadium will be a catalyst for up to $1 billion of surrounding development.
(READ MORE: Erlanger Park progress evident as ‘every permanent structure framed’)
Chattanooga-based EMJ Construction, the general contractor, and its subcontractors had spent $37.8 million on the project as of Aug. 1, according to a report presented to the board.
Lookouts stadium construction on track for April 14 opener
The spending fell below cash flowing into the project from $80 million of bonds sold by the sports authority as the key funding source for the $115 million project.
The lagging spend is the result of delayed invoices and savings EMJ achieved that will go to cover unforeseen costs, said Charita Allen, the city’s senior adviser for economic and workforce development.
More than $26 million of construction is in progress, according to the report.
Recent updates include structural and interior renovations to the Powerhouse, the oldest original industrial building on the site. It dates to 1882 and will provide seating and food.
Contractors have begun pouring concrete for the seating areas and begun improvements to the Riverwalk, which will serve as the stadium’s main entrance.
A long section of the Riverwalk closed in July despite fears from cyclists and pedestrians about the lack of a detour. Stadium crews hope to get the Riverwalk open in early 2026, perhaps sooner than the stadium opening date.
“The goal is to get it open as quickly as possible and resume connectivity,” Stone said. “It’s going to be really weather-dependent.”
CHANGE ORDERS
The sports authority board approved two change orders that raised the value of a design contract by more than $735,000 and a materials testing contract by more than $143,000.
Because of a $400,000 contingency in the design contract, the increase to its value was really $335,000, said Geoff Spiva, a third-party construction consultant to the city.
The design change order was the result of a decision made in late 2023 to raise the level of the playing field by 10 feet.
The change came after officials with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation raised concerns about contaminated groundwater on the former foundry site.
“They were concerned if we went as deep as we wanted to go, and we’re having to pump water on a daily basis for several weeks, we might draw that contaminated water closer to the property,” Spiva told the board.
While the change raised the cost of the design contract, it will save a significant amount of money for construction long-term, Spiva said.
The increases to the contract values were contained inside the $86 million construction and site preparation budget, officials said. Even after the increases, the budget includes between $300,000 and $500,000 that is not yet allocated.
A special tax district around the stadium has begun generating new property tax revenue that can pay off the stadium debts, said Allen, the city’s advisor.
The district generated $506,298 last year to pay down debt, the first of 30 years that incremental tax revenue will contribute to the project, Allen said in a presentation in June to the Chattanooga City Council.
Despite heavy rains Tuesday that shut down Interstate 24 and unleashed flash flooding linked to four deaths, the stadium project resumed quickly, thanks to a drainage system in the design that runs under the adjacent interstate.
“We were able to drain the field, and everybody was back to work,” Stone said. “We’ve had very little downtime with the weather, which has been surprising and very fortunate.”
Contact business reporter Daniel Dassow at ddassow@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318.