GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Swamp’s high-priced makeover won’t affect attendance or ambiance inside one of the Southeastern Conference’s rowdiest venues for football, Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin said Thursday.
Days after sending a survey to gauge “what matters most to Gator fans” while shaping “the future vision of The Swamp,” Stricklin told reporters capacity will remain at 88,548 for the venue officially known as Steve Spurrier-Florida Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium but popularly referred to by its nickname.
Stricklin stopped short of providing many other details, saying formal renderings, seating concepts, total project budget and a projected construction timeline will be released later this year. The school initially estimated project cost at $400 million in July 2023, but it has reportedly reached $1 billion in the nearly three years since.
The survey stirred enough chatter that Stricklin wanted to make it clear that part of what has made the Swamp one of the toughest places to win over the past few decades won’t change.
The project is expected to touch nearly every aspect of an on-campus stadium that first opened in 1930. It has undergone several renovations since, including a $50 million expansion in 2003 that included the addition of 2,900 luxury club seats, an expanded press box and 34 new suites.