By Desiree Cooper, J.T. Keith, Maurissa Munoz, Jacy Terry, and Naomi Yee
Who gets to vote?
According to a mass email sent out by Draco Miller, the students who are eligible to vote are as follows: “Any undergraduate student whether online or on campus who is taking a full course load (12 or more hours) at ENMU’s Portales campus, or any graduate student who is taking a full course load as defined by the graduate school, whether they are online or on campus.”
Whose fees will be raised? By how much?
Full-time students will pay an additional $40 per semester in fees. Part-time students will pay $3.33 per credit hour.
When is the vote?
Voting will start at 9:30 p.m. October 2 and end at 12 p.m. October 4.
How do you vote?
Voting will take place online. There will be a vote icon on the ENMU home page that students can click on. Students also can vote at www.enmu.edu/vote.
How are the votes counted? By whom?
President Steven Gamble said that the vote for the new multipurpose stadium would be conducted online. The faculty and staff will have no involvement whatsoever in this vote. This is purely a student vote. Members of student government will be in charge of counting the votes.
What happens if the vote is no? Will the current stadium be renovated?
If the student body votes against the new stadium, Gamble said that the old stadium will have to be renovated. These renovations will include turf for the field, and restoration and remodeling of the restrooms and the locker rooms. Renovating the Blackwater Draw Stadium will cost around $1-$1.5 million.
If the vote is yes, when will the new stadium be built?
They will not break ground for two years.
Where will the addition $4 million for the new stadium come from?
The total cost of the new stadium will be $8 million. Gamble said that the students will be paying $4 million, and the Eastern New Mexico Foundation will pay $3 million. The foundation has guaranteed that the money given for the new stadium will have no effect on student scholarships. The last $1 million needed will be requested from the Portales School District.
What team(s) will play there?
A new stadium would have expanded usage, according to Gamble. As of now, Blackwater Draw Stadium is only opened 10 times each year, five times for ENMU home games, and five times for Portales High School home games. The new stadium would service football home games for ENMU and Portales High School, track-and-field meets, marching band practices and performances, and intramural sports, which take place four days a week. “The new stadium would be used far more frequently,” Gamble said.
What happens to Greyhound Stadium? What happens to that land?
**Need text from JT Keith**
Why is the time now?
“Blackwater Draw is worn out,” Gamble said. Blackwater Draw Stadium is 45-years-old. It is not as Americans with Disabilities Act accessible as it needs to be. It needs a new artificial turf, new lights, and the locker rooms and bathrooms need to be remodeled.
In addition, Gamble said that, at this time, leadership members of the ENMU Foundation have offered to raise $3 million toward the project of a new stadium if the student vote passes.
Gamble thinks that a stadium located on campus would increase school spirit. An on-campus stadium would enable students to walk to games. Also, visitors and alumni would be able to view the stadium easily when they came on campus.