The good news: since Lion’s Stadium first opened its gates back in 1976, our student population has more than doubled, and athletic participation has grown five times! The not-as-good news: Walkersville’s proud symbol of athletic excellence is showing its outdated age of 32 years. The extensive repairs and critical upgrades required are real and visible—and, unfortunately, not funded by the Frederick County Board of Education.
Among the existing limitations and mounting problems are:
- Bleacher seating is not fully up to current code for safety, which deters some fans. Also handicap accessibility and seating areas (ADA requirements) are not available.
- Overall seating capacity is undersized.
- The field, being grass, easily wears and damages, which limits and prohibits use during reseeding and rain. Access to outside groups is denied during Fall and Spring seasons due to risk of further damage. Grass turf also comes with high annual maintenance costs (mowing, watering, seeding, fertilizing, lining).
- The press box and scoreboard are outdated.
- Insufficient capacity of restroom facilities.
- There is no Field House, which means no team accommodations. Teams needing locker facilities or private bathrooms must walk out of the stadium and up to the school. Additionally, pre-game and halftime meetings must be held outdoors in the middle of concurring stadium activity.