Excitement is building ahead of Tuesday's kickoff to what city and school leaders call the historic transformation of Lompoc's Huyck Stadium.
The nearly $4 million in renovations will include upgrading to an artificial turf and all-weather 9-lane track, a community exercise zone, filtered water fountains, and security improvements.
Funding for the multi-million dollar project is coming from more than 300 donors over the course of two years, including the Chumash Tribe.
The last update to this stadium was in 1964.
Tom Blanco, a former teacher at the school. has been leading fundraising efforts. Blanco said it's time to polish this community gem.
"I've been wanting this project personally for a long time, teaching here for so long," Blanco said. "It's something that's sorely needed in our community. This is basically the hub of our community and to get an upgrade of this magnitude is just going to make a world of difference as to how people view exercise and how we feel about our community as a whole."
The LUSD Board of Education voted earlier this month to award the project to a Santa Ynez developer, paving the way for Tuesday's groundbreaking ceremony.
During that same board meeting, the committee ponied up $1.2 million for the project, promising an additional $450,000 once the project is complete.
Renovations are expected to wrap up in May of 2020 with a grand opening celebration planned for May 30 an May 31.
The stadium will also feature a donor brick walkway, including over 200 bricks with donor names and concrete columns to recognize larger financial backers.
