The band practice field located between Patterson Ave. and Maple St. will soon be the site of a new dining and residence hall. (LISA GEHRING | The Miami Student)
Construction is underway on Tappan Field to accommodate marching band practice for the 2012-13 school year and beyond. The current practice location, next to the Center for the Performing Arts, will be the future site of Maplestreet Station, a dining complex/residence hall, as well as another yet unnamed residence hall.
The construction cost of the new Tappan Field is $58,000, "which includes the grading, addition of six inches of new topsoil, fertilizing and seeding," said Tappan Band Field Relocation project manager Constance McCarthy. The project is currently within its allotted budget.
Current band members have been hearing murmurs of a move to Tappan Field for a number of years. The change will likely be a welcome one, given the conditions of the current practice site.
"The band field now is unleveled and terrible to march on," junior saxophonist Kelsie Gerardi said. "I am really excited about the move."
Miami's marching band has been invited to march in the famed Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade in New York City this year, an honor not bestowed on many groups. A well- maintained and functional practice field is undoubtedly important to a marching band. According to Gerardi, instrumental music majors are required to take marching band for two years, making the presence of quality facilities important from an academic perspective as well.
As for the soon to be former band practice site, construction on Maplestreet Station is scheduled to begin in late October, said Constance McCarthy. The building will face Maple Street and will feature a dining complex as well as a 90-bed residence hall. Construction is scheduled to be completed by January 2013. The construction cost is yet to be determined and bidding will begin this month, according to McCarthy.
A second building, a residence hall featuring 232 beds, is scheduled to be constructed on the south side of the current band field. The building is in the early design stages and the construction schedule has not been finalized. According to McCarthy, "A large amount of green space will be maintained in the existing field area."
The addition of 322 new beds in total on the site of the band practice field will help accommodate the increasing demand for on-campus housing.
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