Newcomerstown, Ohio - Newcomerstown school officials are giving an update on a project that will create more opportunities for Trojan athletes

Superintendent Jeff Staggs says the school board recently approved a contract with Classical Construction to build a fieldhouse and athletic facility on the grounds of Lee Stadium. He says now they just have to finalize the design so crews can get started as soon as the weather breaks.

“Right now, we’re getting everything together as far as the colors, the exact flooring brick, and getting it all together,” he says. “Materials are being ordered right now, and we should be breaking ground, I would say sometime in March.” 

Staggs says the multi-purpose facility was designed to meet the needs of all current and future Trojan athletes.

“Inside the fieldhouse itself will be a full-size basketball court, which will have a netting or a curtain that will go down the middle and we can have two practices at once, whether that be volleyball, basketball. We will have permanent baseball and softball netting in, so that can be year-round and they can be in there using those batting cages. We have a two-lane track that’s around side it, so that can be used by multiple sports. There’s a fitness room inside it, two locker rooms, and a coach’s office,” he explains.

Staggs says they’re able to accomplish this at no cost to taxpayers thanks to the generosity and forward thinking of Vernon and Edith Lee.

“This was all bought by the Lee Foundation,” he says. “The Lees left money for the district, and it was in a trust fund. We received the amount of that trust fund this year, and we are paying for that through the trust fund, the fieldhouse itself.  We’re investing part of that money and using part of the money, and our intent is every 10 to 15 years to do another project with the Lee money.”

Staggs says they expect the project will take around a year to complete. Their goal is to open the facility before the start of next year’s spring sports season.