The last time City High School had major reconstruction and renovation was in August 2021. Starting in the winter of 2025, the district plans to start a four-year, multi-million-dollar master plan to add new athletic and fine arts facilities and provide brand-new training for their student-athletes. The City High board believes it is time for an update across the sports program to maintain top performance across all its athletic programs.
“The purpose of the proposed fine arts and athletic projects is to continue to offer our students state-of-the-art, cutting-edge facilities,” Principal John Bacon said. “We want our students to have every opportunity to flourish and thrive.”
The plan involves major changes to the baseball/softball field, which will be moved to Mercer Park. This will bring new dugouts, fresh grass to play on, new bleachers, and more. Players are excited for the latest fields and opportunities as a team.
“It’s going to be fun having both our baseball and softball programs in the same place, because of the new location, a new field, and more fun, which means improvement all around,” softball player Ellie Fraga ‘27 said.“People will want to show up, and having this new field location close to the baseball fields means we can collaborate with the baseball coaches and have more resources.”
Baseball player Beau Hall ‘26 is excited about the upgrades and thinks it’s a reflection of the team’s success in winning a state championship.
“This means a lot to the team because a new field is much needed. Getting the new field is a great reflection of how well our coach Brian Mitchell has led this program and taken it to the next level,” Hall said.
The soccer field will also be receiving new overhead lights for late-night games. And the track will see smaller improvements throughout to maintain top maintenance for athletes.
City High plans to repurpose the land that currently houses the softball fields and build an indoor facility, maximizing training by allowing them to train year-round regardless of the weather.
“I think anytime you can improve facilities, it’s a positive for everyone involved. Student-athletes, coaches, community, etc. The majority of our athletic programs will benefit from the renovations that are planned,” Athletic Director Phil Lala said.
Bacon and Lala ensured that most sports programs at City High would benefit from this indoor facility. These include not only City High sports teams, but also local youth clubs. Students will be able to improve their skills and enjoy more consistent practice to participate in. Consistent access to this space can benefit the overall team’s success, personal player development, and performance. The number of student-athletes is growing at City High, but also at local youth club teams.
Bacon is excited to help the local community and allow the youth teams to benefit from the new facilities as well.
“Our high school programs will always get first dibs on any new facilities, but youth feeder programs will also be allowed to use them. Our current baseball/softball hitting facility is a great example of this. I anticipate a great many youth programs benefiting from the facility,” Bacon said.
Aside from sports, City High is also looking at an update to the auditorium, Little Theater, and fine arts division. Starting this winter, the auditorium will be under construction for new lighting, sound quality, and technical upgrades. There are also plans for more rehearsal space for the music departments.
Within the past five years, outdoor classrooms have been added to the Iowa City Community School District. These help students be more connected with nature and are a more accessible option for their learning.
“I believe the idea is to strengthen the connection between students and the outdoors. Students benefit from spending time outdoors, fresh air, etc,” Bacon said. “I think it provides a nice change of pace for students during the day when they get to experience a class out there, especially on a beautiful day.”
This new construction plan is to encourage both the students and athletes of City High to continue to achieve at new standards. Starting in 2026, City High has plans to construct new outdoor classrooms, facilities, fields, and more over the next couple of years for the school and students.
