The Morse Field at the Harold Alfond Sports Stadium, Orono, Built in 1947,  to Seat Over 8,000 Fans.   It Underwent Extensive Renovations Between 1996 – 1998.

A Native of Massachusetts, Harold Alfond, Founded the Dexter Shoe Company and Established the First Factory Outlet Store.  His Grandson Justin Alfond & His Family Live on the West End of Portland.  The Latter is a Local Real Estate Developer.

A $110 million plan that will transform athletic facilities at the University of Maine System was unveiled today in a press release by the University. Small upgrades are expected to occur this summer with construction beginning on new fields in the summer of 2022.

The massive plan is made possible by the Harold Alfond Foundation that announced a historic $500 million investment in Maine education last October.

Among the features of the Athletics Master Plan are:

Construction of the UMaine Multipurpose Center, the new home of UMaine men’s and women’s basketball on the Orono Campus.  This facility will feature new men’s and women’s basketball locker rooms, new team offices, lounges, and film rooms, new administrative offices, a new location for the Bear Necessities Fan Shop and a new sports medicine center; manufacturing the new Speed Dome, a 100,000 plus sq. ft. enclosed facility complete with a 100-yard synthetic turf field and 300-meter track; A second, new indoor facility, with 60% more indoor space than the current dome structure; significant upgrades to Alfond Arena, including a new enlarged entryway and encourse area, the installation of high definition video and ribbon boards, a new sound system and upgraded Wi-Fi and television production services; expansion of the Shawn Walsh Hockey Center, with a new hockey development center, new film rooms, new offices and new team lounges.

“For many years our athletes have been performing in outdated and even crumbling, cramped facilities.  Thanks to the generosity of the Alfond Foundation and support from University leadership, we will be able to provide the quality of facilities necessary for our Black Bears to compete on a national level,” said Ken Ralph, athletic director, at UMaine.

For more background information on the subject, please visit two posts herein dated October 6 and October 7, 2020.