Ogden’s Pioneer Stadium – site of a major annual rodeo – getting $4.3M upgrade, new name

OGDEN, Utah — Ogden’s Pioneer Stadium is getting a $4.3 million upgrade, expected to be complete in time for the annual professional rodeo in July that’s central in Ogden Pioneer Days activities.

“It’s dramatic,” said Rick Davis, part of the Ogden Pioneer Days Committee, alluding to the scope of change.

The south stadium seats will be upgraded as part of the changes and new box seats will be added, increasing the capacity of the facility from around 9,000 to 10,200, he said. Bucking chutes and pens will be replaced, the stadium will get a new sound system, a new entry will be added to the west side of the stadium complex, and a new headquarters building is taking shape.

Thanks to an $800,000 donation from the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation to assist with the improvements, the city-owned facility will also get a new name, becoming the Spencer Fox Eccles Pioneer Stadium. The foundation has donated millions of dollars to assist with Ogden Pioneer Days rodeo events dating to the 1980s, and the Ogden City Council approved the naming last week.

Ogden Pioneer Days events coincide each year with Pioneer Day, July 24, which marks the 1847 Salt Lake Valley arrival of pioneers from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The key activity associated with the Ogden celebration is a Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association rodeo that draws top competitors from around the country and beyond and fills the stadium for the five days of its run.

See a photo and the complete story at KSL.com.