Benet Academy has received permission from the village of Lisle to pursue a two-phase plan to upgrade Baumgartner-Gilbert Stadium.

Lisle Village Board members voted unanimously on Monday to approve the private school’s proposal to improve its outdoor athletic facilities.

As part of the first phase of the project, Benet will construct a 1,400-capacity grandstand, bleachers for visitors, a press box, a turf football field, new track and field facilities, stadium lighting, and two scoreboards, including a video scoreboard. New parking and two storage buildings will also be added.

The second phase will include the installation of a synthetic field for soccer and lacrosse. A covered pavilion and a multipurpose building with concessions and restrooms will also be constructed.

“I’m very happy with the results tonight,” Benet Academy President Bill Myers said Monday night after the village board decision.

“I do think it was a thorough process with the village, and the neighbors gave us feedback,” Myers said. “We listened to that feedback. We tried to accommodate as much as we could. We’re very excited about the future. It’s good for the school, it’s good for the village of Lisle, and we’re very happy with the result tonight.”

The proposal was reviewed by the village board after Lisle’s Planning and Zoning Commission voted 6 to 1 in November to recommend approval.

Benet Academy sought to improve its athletic facilities because they have been essentially unchanged since 1961.

The school has not played a football game at Baumgartner-Gilbert Stadium since 2004. Since that time, its home games have been at Benedictine University, which is located across Maple Avenue to the south of the high school’s campus. Other Redwings sports teams have also needed to find alternative hosting sites.

Myers said he hopes construction will start this summer. The goal is to finish the first phase by the summer of 2027.

https://www.dailyherald.com/20260407/news/lisle-approves-benet-academy-stadium-plan/