Albi a piece of history

It will be a shame when District 81 demolishes Joe Albi Stadium, but more importantly the citizens will lose a monument meant to honor soldiers who gave the ultimate sacrifice for us … for freedom.

The original name back in 1950 was Spokane Memorial Stadium. It was built on the Baxter Army Hospital site. Two years of extensive fundraising occurred. The stadium was a gift, free and clear, donated by private clubs, organizations and the public as a memorial to the city’s sons who gave their lives in their country’s wars.

The stadium has a rich history. The first NFL preseason game ever in the state was played there (Chicago vs. Green Bay, 1953). Elvis rocked the house in 1957, Billy Graham reached out to 223,500 fans in eight days. It was not uncommon to have high school football games reaching 30,000 spectators to help the Shriners Hospital.

We need to bring back that tradition. Countless college games, rodeos, car racing and horses were there. Jr. Bloomsday to Fourth of July concerts. We need to bring back the glory of old. Look at the generations of families that have played there. Everyone has memories.

The city has ignored Albi for years and it unfortunately shows. Normal maintenance and upkeep would have done wonders for this iconic stadium. Nice way to treat a gift. So very sad.

A simple solution would be to use the $31 million to revitalize, upgrade, promote and operate Albi. The savings to renovated compared to demolish and rebuild could pay the operations just from the interest in the bank for many, many years. A stadium manager who has actual knowledge on how to run a large event center could be hired. Experts like Jack Lucas could be consulted on how to promote the venue. And most importantly - never forget the veterans!

Once Albi is gone, Spokane will never rebuild and another large stadium, never! Friends of Albi.

Craig Gerlack

Spokane