The Asheville Memorial Stadium improvement project of more than US$900,000 is underway. Although the entertainment facilities host a variety of sports events, regional football players are particularly excited about the prospect of better venues and more practical facilities.

AstroTurf Corp., headquartered in Dalton, Georgia, began construction in late August and is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year. Planned improvements to the Memorial Stadium east of the Asheville visitors’ McCormick Field include new artificial turf and improved drainage, new rainwater infrastructure, sidewalk installation, and existing concrete stands that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act usage of.

According to Christy Bass, project and operations manager of the Asheville Parks and Recreation Department, the venue has always been designed to accommodate multiple sports and provide Asheville athletes with fair space for sports planning. She said that the games played in the facility include but are not limited to football, lacrosse, flag ball, ultimate frisbee and hockey.

But football dominates the Memorial Stadium, and its users include the semi-professional Asheville City Football Club and the casual Asheville Boncombe Adult Football Association. Eric Usher said that the current changes will make the already good facilities better.

"Playing at the Memorial Stadium-this is the atmosphere that football players dream of," said Arthur, co-director of the Beer City Cup. The National Championship claims to be the country’s largest adult football event, and the finals are held in the stadium every Labor Day weekend.

Arthur has also served as a referee for many Southern Football Conferences, and he attributed some of the beer city Cup growth to the field. "This is a great arena. It overlooks the city and is located in the center of the city, with the sun setting down from the mountains," he said. "It's incredible. When you play there, it feels like more than just playing. You feel that people are really watching."

According to the project’s city webpage, the 100-year-old memorial stadium facility has been moderately improved over time; its most recent turf renovation took place in 2000. The 2009 Parks and Recreation Master Plan marked the current batch of improvements as important "supporting the needs of multiple sports uses, improving safety and increasing community park space."

Asheville voters approved funding for the project in November 2016 as part of a referendum on a $17 million bond to improve the city's parks and recreational facilities. The renovation planning and design of the Memorial Stadium and nearby Mountainside Park began in 2017, and since 2019, several community and stakeholder meetings have been held to gather feedback on the scope of work.

Ryan Kelley, co-owner and former chairman of the Asheville City Football Club, said that he was able to communicate with the city on different aspects of improvement over the past few years. "The turf replacement should have taken place long ago, and we are very happy that it finally happened. It will be a huge upgrade for us and all users of the stadium," he said.

Bath said that in addition to the new venue, solving the problem of rainwater drainage is a major element of the stadium project. As stated in Asheville's 2018 Climate Resilience Report, looking ahead to extreme weather patterns driven by climate change, the city believes that as the frequency of heavy rains increases, it is important to address drainage issues.

“Although we are replacing the turf, this is a great opportunity to replace the aging rainwater infrastructure and move it out of the site. Although important, the public will not notice these improvements to a large extent,” she said.

Kelly said that the impact of a good venue on his club and the larger football community cannot be overemphasized. "This is an important part of the culture of the Asheville City Football Club. It provides one of the best atmospheres in minor league football. Our players and visiting players said they played in the memorial in front of thousands of local fans under the lights. It is one of the best experiences in their careers," he said. "I haven't encountered a better downtown stadium experience anywhere in minor league football."

Those who participate in the sport at an amateur level are also eager to gain a foothold in the new facility. Although Asheville is relatively small, football is huge in Asheville. Frank Balentine, who played at UNC Asheville, said that no other football community in the state can match Asheville.

"The [Adult League] has more than 1,000 participants. When you include their family members who play in the youth league, there are 3,000-4,000 people playing," he explained. "The refurbishment of the Memorial Stadium has provided the football world with the space it deserves."

Usher with the Beer City Cup said that in terms of Asheville's sport, football may be overlooked, but that is not the case. He said that this sport is very suitable for the culture of the city: it attracts people from different cultural backgrounds, beliefs and orientations. It is also suitable for beer scenes.

"The history of football is intertwined with the bar. The brewery sponsors the Beer City Cup and showcases top professional games from all over the world," he said. "The people here are very active and like outdoor activities. It's just right."

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