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GREENSBORO - The city's historic ballpark is crumbling faster than before, engineers have discovered.

After voters turned down a $5.5 million renovation of War Memorial Stadium in 2006 , the city funded about $1.5 million in patch-up work to keep the structure standing for another decade or so.

But engineering consultants discovered this year that the 82-year-old stadium is in worse condition than they originally believed, and $1.5 million approved in August 2007 by council to keep the ballpark standing will not be enough to extend its life, city leaders say.

Now city officials are reconsidering options for a restoration project - and how to fund it.

The City Council will receive a report on the stadium's condition next week.

The stadium was built as a tribute to war veterans in 1926. It was intended to be used for football but instead has been home to Greensboro baseball teams.

War Memorial is on the National Register of Historic Places and hosts about 200 games a year.

"We need it desperately," said Parks and Recreation director Bonnie Kuester . "We certainly don't need to lose a stadium."

Despite the modern relevance, the stadium's 1920s concrete exterior was not able to hold up to freezing and thawing and other weather exposures to the surface.

The concrete has cracked and chipped away, exposing the steel structure below to more deterioration. And the more the structure is exposed to the elements, the faster it corrodes, engineering consultants said.

In 2006, voters turned down a bond referendum that would have funded a structural renovation and partial demolition and reconstruction of the bleachers.

When the vote failed, council approved $1.5 million from two-thirds bonds, which do not require voter approval, to make repairs and to slow the deterioration of the stadium with special coatings.

"The idea was to make the facility look good and stabilize it so it doesn't deteriorate anymore," Deputy City Manager Bob Morgan said.

Before starting that work, the engineering firm Sutton-Kennerly and Associates analyzed the condition of the structure. They found potentially hazardous cracks in shower and restroom areas.

The stadium, the consultants determined, was deteriorating faster than before and the patching materials the city planned to use wouldn't add much life to the structure.

"The coating we were looking at wouldn't do anything except maybe buy us another year," said Butch Shumate , Greensboro Facilities Engineering division manager.

The consultants recommended $3 million to $4 million worth of repairs that might add another 10 to 15 years to the stadium, according to a report provided to the Parks and Recreation commission.

The city is considering demolishing the interior stadium and restoring the entryway towers and arches and exterior walls.

Any demolition - and what kind of structures are built afterward - will be of key interest to the local residents who helped the city plan renovations before the 2006 bonds.

"When a structure goes on the National Register of Historic Places, it's not part of the structure that goes on. It's the whole place," said David Wharton, vice chairman of the Greensboro historic preservation commission.

The city staff has not made any final decisions about renovations, and they expect to include neighborhood representatives and historic preservation advocates in the discussions.

The City Council will discuss the stadium's condition Tuesday.

Morgan said that in the future, the council might use more two-thirds bonds on stadium renovations.

About $11 million in bonds could be issued by the city next year, but the stadium would likely face stiff competition from other proposed projects.

"Priorities will have to be set," Morgan said.

Contact Amanda Lehmert at 373-7075 or amanda.lehmert@news-record.com