
By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
Thousands of fans and spectators have watched basketball games and
graduations over the years from the wooden bleachers on the second level of the
Kirkman Center at Barton Community College. Sometime around Christmas of this
year, new plastic-material bleachers will replace the wooden bleachers on the west,
north and south sides of the upper level of the gym.
Barton Athletic Director Trevor Rolfs said his staff was working on the bleacher
replacement before the COVID-19 pandemic. With all the delays on construction
and materials, the project will finally take place this winter.
"We're so excited we're going to make things more compliant and appeasing to our fans," said Rolfs. "We feel like the main gym is kind of the front door to our college. It will be ADA accessible. We're excited about how much good is going to come of this."
The total project will cost just over $200,000. The Kirkman Endowment through the Barton Community College Foundation
contributed $100,000 for the bleacher replacement. While the Foundation cannot
fund athletic projects, the gym is used for graduations, community events and
other college functions.
"We couldn't have done this project without the generosity from a lot of people, particularly the Larry and Kathy Schugart family," said Rolfs. "Certainly, the recent contribution from the Barton Community College Foundation was huge in getting us to the finish line and making this thing become a reality."
Rolfs said the color for the new bleachers will be black and the west side will
have seatbacks. The bleachers will include railings throughout to assist spectators up and down.
SOPA Inc. will install the bleachers during the college's Christmas break and be finished before the first home basketball game in January 2023.