Michigan Stadium construction gears back up Monday

ANN ARBOR - Workers won’t waste anytime beginning the next phase of construction on Michigan Stadium once the regular season ends Saturday.

Executive associate athletic director Mike Stevenson said members of Michigan’s athletic department will return to the stadium Sunday to salvage personal and work belongings, and workers will begin disassembling the press box Monday morning.

The $226-million renovation has been ongoing for two years and is scheduled to be completed in time for the 2010 season.

“Once we’re done here they‘ll be going full blast ahead,” Stevenson said. “The only thing that will disrupt them from their normal schedule will be graduation in the stadium and then our spring game.”

Stevenson said the project is “about 85 percent done,” with the build out of new suites and club seats expected to be completed by early June.

Once the press box is dismantled, piece by piece beginning from the back side, about 600 seats will be added. Construction on a new exterior wall on the west of the stadium will start in March, closing one lane of Main Street, and the project should be finished by mid July.

New FieldTurf also will be installed after the spring game.

Construction has been ongoing all season, Stevenson said, with workers putting in four 10-hour days on weeks when Michigan hosted a game and five eight-hour days when the Wolverines were on the road.

Michigan (5-6, 1-6) hosts ninth-ranked Ohio State (9-2, 6-1) on Saturday.

“We’re right on schedule so we’re very optimistic everything’s going to continue to go in a positive way,” Stevenson said.

Dave Birkett covers University of Michigan football for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached by phone at 734-623-2552 or by e-mail at davidbirkett@annarbor.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.