In the 87 years since it first awed New England sports fans, the Yale Bowl has gained a special place in Yale athletics lore and in the lives of many New Haven community members.

The Bowl’s illustrious history — it has seen hundreds of Yale games, two years of professional football, and even the 1995 Special Olympics — makes it especially painful to see it in its current state. Last summer, the administration finally decided to sand and paint the splintered and broken benches, but the Bowl’s facade and portals are literally crumbling, and the facility is desperately in need of a more extensive facelift.

This week, the Yale Daily News reported that the Yale Facilities Office presented University President Richard Levin with a feasibility study for starting a $25 million renovation project as early as this fall.

Of course, the fate of the project depends largely on fund-raising success, but it also depends on what priority the University places on the renovation drive. The Athletics Department should continue doing its part to court donors, but the administration and the Yale Corporation should also try their best to find a way to finally move forward on a project has gone neglected for far too long.

Given the large and proud role football has played in Yale’s history, that should not be an unreasonable request.