Detroit City Football Club could soon start renovating Keyworth Stadium in Hamtramck, after the Hamtramck School Board approved a lease that would allow the club to fund renovation work.
Earlier this month, the club unveiled a proposal to move to the historic stadium in Hamtramck from its current home at Detroit Cass Tech High School. Last season, the team, which plays in the National Premier Soccer League, finished in second place in the Mid-West Region, with 8 wins, two losses and two ties.
"We realize we have reached a point where we need a new facility to continue the growth of the organization," DCFC said in a release. "It is our hope that the next home of Detroit City FC be historic Keyworth Stadium."
The agreement with the school district is set up as a multi-year lease of the facility, according to DCFC.
Now that the agreement is in place, the club will start raising funds to rehab the stadium, estimated to cost between $750,000 and $1 million. Work could begin as soon as October 2015 and be finished by mid-April 2016.
Those improvements include fixing the grandstand on the west side, repairing the wooden bleachers, updating the locker rooms and restrooms, repairing the concrete and fixing the field lighting. It also includes transferring from artificial turf to natural grass, but not until after the 2016 season.
“Hamtramck Public Schools is confident that the Keyworth Stadium renovations will enhance the quality of life in our city," HPS Superintendent Thomas Niczay said in a release. "The renovated stadium will provide a generous amount of access for HPS athletic programming and community recreation activities in a first class facility.”a
According to the club, rather than making a donation or pre-purchasing a product, fans and supporters can participate in a "revenue share loan," which will be repaid with interest, according to revenues earned by DCFC. There will be tiered levels of the loans, but the club has not announced when the loans will be available.
Keyowrth, located in the middle of Hamtramck, opened in 1936. Use of the stadium has been limited in recent years due to its aging condition.
According to DCFC, they chose Keyworth because it, "gives our club a new home where we can continue our organic, grassroots growth while providing our supporters with the intimate and urban matchday atmosphere that has become the signature of the club."
