Plans for a $3 million renovation of Jerry Simmons stadium are taking shape as the stadium is about to get a big makeover.

“I think it is a great time to be a Bulldog,” Jeff Davis School Board Member Greg Patterson said Thursday.

Patterson, a 1989 graduate of Jennings High School and a former football player, is among those excited to see changes to the stadium.

“It’s an exciting time for sure,” Patterson said, noting that the community has rallied behind the project. “Just seeing from where the stadium is now to what the plans will be for the future is exciting for everyone.”

“I think people want something new that they can drive by and see,” he continued. “They are ready for a change and now we will be able to provide it to them.”

Plans for the stadium project call for a new field house, concession stand, press box, new front facade with archway entrance, new home side ticket booth, new perimeter fencing, sidewalks, front parking lot on the south side of the stadium and LED lights. A new ticket booth on the visitors side and additional concrete work are included in the project as an alternate bid if funding is available.

A $700,000 field replacement and drainage project to include installation of new water lines and electrical service has already been completed at the stadium.

“I used to play slow pitch softball competitively and I always said if you look good you play good, so the stadium is going to look good so let’s play good now,” he said, noting that visitors to the stadium are going to see a big change.

Bids for the stadium upgrade project were opened Tuesday with Alfred Palma Construction of Lake Charles submitting the lowest bid of just over $3 million for the project. The bid for the project came in under budget, according to Superintendent John Hall.

The School Board is expected to approve the bid at its November meeting, Hall said.

The low bid was among four bids received for the project aimed at improving safety, easing overcrowding and accommodating fans attending the games. A fifth bid was rejected because it did not use the proper bid form.

The stadium project is the final phase of a 20-year bond cycle to fund improvements to school facilities in Jennings. Previous projects included a parking lot improvement and safety upgrades at Jennings Elementary and Jennings High School.

Contractors will have 270 days to complete the stadium project once contracts are signed, Hall said.

Hall hopes to have the project completed by graduation in May and before the start of the next football season.

The project is being funded by Ward II sales taxes, contingency funds for Jennings schools and the remaining construction funds for Ward II school projects.