Memorial Stadium
Memorial Stadium Replacement Project
A New Vision for Memorial Stadium
Seattle Public Schools (SPS) and the City of Seattle are building on their longstanding partnership by collaborating on the replacement of the school district’s Memorial Stadium.
The project will create an innovative new multi-purpose sports, educational, and entertainment venue that will be seamlessly integrated with the Seattle Center campus and welcoming to all.
SPS will continue to own the stadium and retain priority scheduled use of the venue, which will adhere to all athletic league standards.
Memorial Stadium Partners
Centering Student Opportunities
The vision for the dynamic new stadium is to center on students. This includes expanded opportunities for SPS students with new spaces to deepen engagement with Seattle Center’s resident arts, cultural, and sports organizations.
The project also provides a valuable opportunity to foster potential workforce development with career and technical training in fields such as cultural, culinary, and performing arts; science; journalism; and sports and sports management with access to skilled workers and professionals on the ground.
Preserving Memorial Wall
In October 2023, the Seattle Landmark Preservation Board voted unanimously to designate Memorial Wall as a Seattle landmark, ensuring current plans to preserve the wall and to elevate its place of honor within the new stadium.
Built in 1951, the wall serves as a memorial to the Seattle Public School alumni who died in World War II.
Greater Integration with Seattle Center
Reimagining the 77-year-old Memorial Stadium will allow for significantly greater integration with the Seattle Center campus, working toward the goals of Seattle Center’s Century 21 Master Plan.
This includes: removing the existing massive walls surrounding the stadium and creating new landscaped open space linking the International Fountain with the stadium.
Funding the Project
Public funds for the project currently include $66.5 million in SPS capital levy funds — approved by voters in 2022 — specifically allocated to build and maintain the district’s buildings and facilities. Additional funding includes nearly $4 million in state support and an anticipated $40 million from the City of Seattle, $21 million of which has been contributed to date.
About Seattle Public Schools Budget and Funding
The funds SPS is committing to the project come from the Buildings, Technology, and Academics/Athletics (BTA) capital levy approved by Seattle voters in 2022.
Because this fund is specifically allocated to build or maintain capital assets, it can’t be used for operating expenses or moved to the general fund. The salary and benefits of most employees are paid from the general fund.
Potential Private Partner Announced
On June 15, 2024, Seattle Public Schools and the City of Seattle announced One Roof Stadium Partnership (a consortium of Seattle Kraken, One Roof Foundation, and Climate Pledge Arena) as a partner for the new memorial stadium.
With this announcement, the parties will continue to discuss the proposal in hopes of a mutual agreement to be considered by the SPS Board of Directors and Seattle City Council later this year. One Roof Stadium Partnership has committed to leading the efforts to raise the additional private funding needed for the project.
News Release: Memorial Stadium Partner Announcement
Process and Next Steps
The partnership agreement is being finalized. In the meantime, students and the community have opportunities to provide input to help shape the planning and design. This community engagement process, which began in Spring 2024, is guided by a commitment to racial equity, for input from students, families, and the greater community about the new stadium’s programming and design.
This thoughtful process will continue with the design review, aligning with the City’s One Seattle focus — to make the city more equitable, livable, sustainable, and resilient for today’s communities and future residents — and with SPS’s policy for educational and racial equity.
In the meantime, the public is invited to visit the project website for the latest information.
Collaborative Planning
This work first began in 2017 with a partnership agreement between SPS and the City of Seattle to collaboratively design a Memorial Stadium replacement and coordinate development of the SPS property with the Seattle Center.
In 2021, SPS and the city signed a Letter of Intent outlining the shared goal of replacing the athletic stadium with a more visionary, multi-use facility, which was followed by a Memorandum of Agreement in October 2022. With this agreement SPS and the City will continue their longstanding partnership at Memorial Stadium, with SPS retaining ownership and priority use for student events, while the City would maximize use of the facility through community activities.
In 2022, Seattle voters approved the Buildings, Technology, and Academics/Athletics V Capital Levy (BTA V), which included $66.5 million for the Memorial Stadium project.
Seattle businesses, community organizations and civic leaders are early supporters of this shared vision for a world-class facility which centers on students and equity, including Cornish College of the Arts, Downtown Seattle Association, Greater Seattle Partners, KEXP, Seattle Building & Construction Trades Council, SIFF, Seattle Sports Commission, Uptown Alliance, Uptown Arts & Culture Coalition, Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle, and YMCA of Greater Seattle.
Over time, a number of concepts have been generated to imagine Memorial Stadium’s future. A selection of images from these studies are below.
About Memorial Stadium
Seattle Public Schools’ Memorial Stadium is a successor to Civic Field, built in 1927 as part of the City’s Civic Complex.
The City of Seattle deeded the land to SPS in 1946 to build, operate, and maintain a new athletic field. Voters approved a school levy and bonds (issued in 1942 and 1944) to provide funding for the improvement of school buildings and the construction of today’s Memorial Stadium, which was completed in 1947.
The stadium was selected as the site for a war memorial by a group of community leaders, appointed by Seattle Mayor William Devin following World War II, to pay tribute to the nearly 800 SPS alumni who lost their lives in the war.
The Memorial Wall was designed by Garfield High School student Marianne Hanson. Revenues from Thanksgiving Day football games played in the stadium from 1947-49 paid for construction and installation of the Memorial Wall.
Throughout its history, Memorial Stadium hosted the opening and closing ceremonies for the Seattle World’s Fair and tens of thousands of concerts and community events.
Today, the 77-year-old Memorial Stadium is used for numerous school events each year — attracting hundreds of thousands of students and community members for high school athletic events, graduation ceremonies, and community events.
Contacts and Resources
Media Contact: SPSmedia@seattleschools.org