LAWRENCE — As Kansas football continues to prepare for its 2024 season, the Gateway District project continues to progress.

David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium and its immediate surrounding area already look remarkably different. In real time, people driving through Lawrence can get an idea of what the future of this part of KU’s campus will look like. And there’s still so much more that’s yet to be done.

So, what does the timeline look like for the first phase of this multi-phase venture? How are recruits reacting to the construction and vision for what’s to come? In late July, Kansas director of athletics Travis Goff took some time to answer some questions on the project.

What is the timeline for stadium renovation?

Goff said the first phase of renovation of David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium will see a new East side, as well as a new Northwest and North portion of the stadium — with a conference center attached to that North side. It’s something that’s being worked on as the Anderson Family Football Complex is also undergoing a renovation. And, according to Goff, they are on schedule to complete the first phase of the renovation of the football stadium in time for the 2025 opener.

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“That’s phase one, that’s a $450 million project, the entirety of which will be completed in 12 and a half months — so early August 2025,” Goff said. “We’re scheduled for August 23, 2025 to host Fresno State here in Lawrence. That’d be week zero, so it’d be a really fun opportunity to open, celebrate with Lawrence, with the state, with our fans, and dedicate that first phase.”

How is fundraising going for not just phase one, but the entire project?

Goff noted it’s going well, and explained why.

“When you look at the components to get to ($450 million), $250 million of that is a fundraising goal,” Goff said. “And as it stands today we’re on the cusp of jumping over the $200 million mark, and with some really important active conversations that we’re hopeful can be catalysts to then moving us with momentum into planning for phase two.”

How would KU handle home games during a future renovation of the East side?

As phase one is being completed, Kansas is playing its home games away from Lawrence in 2024. But should the East side be renovated at some point, Goff said the objective would be to complete the stadium renovation without relocating again. He reiterated that while it wouldn’t have been ideal, there was a plan to play games in Lawrence this season that they could have gone with.

Whether that construction on the East side would have to happen during an offseason, or if it would happen while a future season is played, is unclear at this point.

“I think we’ve seen anecdotally projects that have done the heavy lift in the offseason and then maybe they’ve gotten elements operational, or kind of bare-bones components operational, of the new piece,” Goff said. “So, that’s something, maybe, that could be conceivable. Or, you could see a scenario where part of the new construction on phase two is up and running and part isn’t, right? And so, maybe there’s some reduced capacity implications to continue to play through the phase two and the construction. But the details of that are still out in front of us.”

How important is Kansas football realizing its potential to ensuring KU Athletics is in the financial place Travis Goff would want it to be?

Kansas football has the potential to contend for a Big 12 Conference title this season and reach another bowl game in the process, and Goff acknowledged this question is something he has thought about himself. But Goff noted he doesn’t know if it’s a discussion point within the department as a whole. Regardless, Goff said head coach Lance Leipold and the team feel the pressure that comes from heightened expectations in a positive way.

Goff also mentioned that no matter what happens this fall, Leipold and his team have already done their part and more to give KU a chance to do a project like this. They’ve reset the culture around football at this university.

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“I just feel that so much has been achieved that the fall is going to be the fall, and we all expect great things but the reality is: we get to a bowl game that’s three-straight bowl games for Kansas football — which will be the first time in our history that that’s happened, right?” Goff said. “Now, we have ambition beyond that. But the reality is it’s a win-win and it’s a no-lose proposition as far as we can gather. Because the momentum’s going to withstand, going to continue.”

Has Travis Goff seen the Gateway District be a positive influence in recruiting?

Goff highlighted that he has seen this happen.

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“When we’ve had our official visits over the course of the spring and summer, those guys and their families are getting hard hats on and they’re going through Anderson and they’re stepping out on that perch and they’re seeing that that West side and that North is real,” Goff said. “And, of course, when you’re talking to class of ’25 or class of ’26, every one of them is going to play every one of their football games right here.”

Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Analyzing the progress of Kansas Athletics’ Gateway District project