High school Principal Mike Mitchell’s booming voice reverberated from a new PA system as he stood atop the grandstands at Schuylkill Valley’s high school stadium.

Waiting outside, 150 students, coaches, parents and community members had come to see the unveiling of the $3.3 million project that has been years in the making.

“Count down to 10 as we open up a new era at Schuylkill Valley,” he said.

On Thursday, the district held a ceremony for its new high school stadium. The project, which began after graduation in June, features a new synthetic turf field; an all-weather, eight-lane track; an electronic scoreboard; LED lights and a new press box, among other features.

Schuylkill Valley husband and wife track coaches Allyson and Terry McKechnie were taking it all in Thursday night. They have made decades of memories at Schuylkill Valley, and Thursday’s unveiling added another to the list.

“I’m going to kiss my wife, and then I’m going to kiss the track,” Terry McKechnie told the crowd.

The field makes its formal debut today as Schuylkill Valley’s football team squares off against Berks Catholic. High school football coach Jeff Chillot gave the team five minutes just to walk around the turf field before practice Wednesday, but it hadn’t quite sunk in, he said.

The next phase of the project will feature a new fieldhouse. The over-$1 million project will require additional fundraising and planning, he said.

“We want to make it a jewel of Berks County,” he said of the stadium.

Cindy Mierzejewski, superintendent, said she could see the excitement on everyone’s faces.

“There are a lot of people who put a lot of time in this to make this happen,” she said.

Board President Kevin Raudenbush said he believed the track and field would become a community hub, and he encouraged people to check it out.

“This is the community’s venue,” Raudenbush said. “Use it, care for it, make a lot of memories here.”

Standing on the turf, Kenny Grauer talked about all the athletes who would get to use the new track and field. He has been one of the project’s biggest advocates as part of the Panther Pride Stadium committee.

Grauer thanked his wife, Lori, for letting him spend so many Monday nights at school board meetings advocating for the project.

“Seeing this, watching friends and families use this, it’s just so special to me,” he said. “I just feel very happy.”

Some students couldn’t wait to take advantage of their new track and field.

Ben Reisenweaver, an 18-year-old senior, sprinted around the track Thursday night, running a mile with junior Brenden Livinghouse, 16.

As he caught his breath, Reisenweaver dreamed of more workouts. The springy, fast surface is “1,000 percent” better than the cinder track he’s run on for the last three years, he said.

“Being cross and track guys, this is the greatest thing that could have happened,” he said. “We’ve been waiting for this for three years, to be able to train on an all-weather track. This is going to make a difference.”

He said he would be back today for another run.

“Now we can stay in our backyard and have the best of the best in the county,” he said.