Details of a planned $58 million phase one renovation of a stadium belonging to the University of New Mexico reveal a wide variety of structural upgrade and modernization work.
Located at 1111 University Boulevard SE, the historic University Stadium was opened in 1960 and has for decades served as the home to the New Mexico Lobos football team.
Now plans call for renovating and expanding the stadium’s north entry plaza as well as its concourse, adding to parking space, and building 32 new gate lines. The stadium’s concessions infrastructure is to be improved and will include the construction of a full-service kitchen, along with a general upgrading of its bathrooms.
The east and west concourses are slated to be widened from the current 9 feet to 20 feet, while making sure that all such work is Americans with Disabilities Act compliant.
In a statement, Garnett Stokes, UNM President, said the stadium is an important component of the school’s campus, as well as a “shared public asset for our state.”
Stokes added that the phased project is designed to focus on “critical infrastructure, accessibility, and safety needs in a thoughtful, responsible way while laying the groundwork for long-term improvements that benefit students, fans, and the broader community.”
Of the anticipated $58 million price tag for the project some $50 million is expected to be secured via a capital outlay request approved by the New Mexico State Legislature.
Built at a cost of $4 million, University Stadium has a 39,200-seating capacity and has seen the additional construction of a press box with private suites in the mid-1970s, and a field house and athletic training facility in 1995.
Built over a period of two years beginning in 1958, the stadium originally had a capacity of 30,000 seats.
January 26, 2026
By Garry Boulard
Rendering courtesy of University of New Mexico
