A Brand-New Stadium For an Old Gridiron Rivalry

The new, well lit stadium will be rocking Friday night in the Battle of the Creek for Walnut Creek bragging rights. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.

The 3-0 Las Lomas Knights come to 1-2 Northgate.

Perhaps some of the Las Lomas crowd will look around and appreciate the new "Friday Night Lights" look at Northgate, with Northgate's $2.75 million sports complex.

Stadium bleachers were added over the summer in time for the 2011 season — especially Friday night's Battle of the Creek.

"The students and community are so excited to finally enjoy the home-field advantage felt by every high school across the land with their brand new stadium," said Ralph Austin, a leader in the fund-raising effort. "Northgate Community Pride Foundation is very proud to have been a part of it all. "

A press release from the Northgate Community Pride Foundation follows:

This Friday evening, the journey to a true “Friday Night Lights” football experience will be complete when the Northgate High School Broncos take the field in their newly completed, $2.75 million sports complex.  Thanks to years of hard work by dedicated volunteers, school administrators and fundraisers, the 7-year project is now complete with the addition of stadium bleachers, which were added over the summer in time for the 2011 season.

The recently installed bleachers are part of the $1.25 million Phase III of the NHS Sports Complex that includes a press box and a new sound system featuring speakers mounted on the light poles.  The permanent bleachers will hold 1,500 fans, about three times the capacity of the rented set of bleachers the school used in 2010.

“This is a monumental occasion and a real reason to celebrate,” says Kassie Wenzell, President of the Northgate Community Pride Foundation (NCPF), which has worked diligently since 1999 to raise funds for the betterment of the Northgate High School campus.  “This has been a dream of many people who donated funds and time to make this a reality and we certainly appreciated Superintendent Lawrence listening to our parents’ hopes for dedicating some funds to the completion of the project.”

From 1974 to 2004, the football team played all of its “home” games on the road.  The first phase of the volunteer-supported stadium was completed in 2005, allowing the Broncos to play their first-ever home game at Northgate High School. The final piece of funding for the project came from Measure C funds approved by the voters to improve facilities at Mount Diablo Unified School District Schools. 

 “This is public-private partnership at its finest,” said John McMorris, Principal of Northgate High School.  We’ve been fortunate to have a dedicated group like Northgate Pride to raise the funds needed and we feel it’s important for the district to assist in the project. As all states struggle with public funding, the needs will only grow for the type of support from organizations like Northgate Pride.”

NGPF will continue to fund projects on the campus including non-sports related initiatives, thereby lifting a heavy burden off the cash-strapped school district.  Other proposed projects include conversion of the auto shop into a new engineering facility, construction of new classrooms, renovation of bathrooms, and restoration of the girls’ locker room. According to NCPF, the goal is to continue to fundraise to get as many projects completed as possible.

According to Wenzell, NCPF believes its work is never completed as our schools need constant attention and upgrading.  “This is the future.  We can no longer count on the state and local governments to provide for the necessary facilities our kids will need.  We need to work with school administrators and parents to raise funds and keep the schools in the best shape possible. I’m very proud of how our community has responded.”