Boggus Upgrades: Stadium now has new scoreboard, railings

HARLINGEN — The shiny railings run up the bleachers on both sides of Boggus Stadium.

They may look simple enough, but they represent a new message to spectators attending football games.

From now on, those with physical limitations won’t suffer so much when climbing the bleachers. They’ll have the handrails to prevent falling.

The railings have just been installed as one of many TRE projects throughout the Harlingen school district. The TRE — Tax Ratification Election — is a property tax increase approved by voters two years ago.

The extra tax dollars collected through the TRE are funding upgrades to air conditioning systems, tracks and parking lots this summer.

The railing project cost $148,945, but it’s just one of several projects recently completed at Boggus.

“We are really excited about what we’ve got going so far,” said Randy Cretors, athletic director for the Harlingen school district.

The railing project included the installation of aluminum mid steps in the concrete bleachers. Previously, each step was nine inches high, creating additional problems for people with physical problems such as arthritis. No more.

“The 4 1/2–inch mid steps will make it a lot easier,” he said.

The new scoreboard has also been completed with brand new technology. That $550,000 project was funded through sponsorships, said Shane Strubhart, spokesperson for the district. It might have cost much more, but use of existing infrastructure cut the expense by $400,000.

The old scoreboard used LED lighting in only a small area of the center. The LED lighting in the center allowed for footage of the games as they were played. The rest of the board had only static light and sound, meaning it didn’t move like the video.

The new construction will increase the size of the video from 160 square feet to 755 square feet. This will allow significantly more space for live footage, dynamic advertisements and scoring of games.

“They’ve been testing each module,” Cretors said.

He added with excitement that later this month technicians will begin testing the computer system and uploading information into the scoreboard.

“We are extremely proud and excited to unveil our new scoreboard this fall,” Cretors said. “With the latest technology, this board will only enhance the Friday Night experience for our fans.”