GRIFFIN PLEDGES FUNDS TO UPGRADE MOORPARK COLLEGE STADIUM.

Byline: Sylvia L. Oliande Daily News Staff Writer

A waning fund-raising effort to pay for improvements to Griffin Stadium at Moorpark College has gotten a hefty boost from the man for whom the structure was named.

Although the college's athletic department announced last fall that it was soliciting donations, little had been collected toward the goal of about $1 million to install 4,000 aluminum seats in the concrete bleachers and to build a new ticket booth, a new entrance to the stadium and an all-weather track that the disabled as well as other athletes could safely use.

But developer Paul Griffin Jr., whose contribution in 1985 helped build the stadium, has pledged $100,000 to be paid over five years toward improvements, including ones that would make it easier for handicapped athletes to compete.

``We'd like to maybe create a host site for Special Olympics in the area,'' said Keith Kephart, assistant track coach and new director of facility development for the athletic department. ``We'd like to be able to offer the stadium to the community and bring in a disability-type event here.''

He said blind runners and racers in wheelchairs are among those who can safely use an all-weather, rubberized track. A crushed-clay track, such as the stadium has now, can be hazardous to handicapped athletes.

Department officials said they also hope to expand the stadium's simple, cramped entrance and build split walkways that go around the hill and into the seating area. The proposal includes a wall etched with donors' names.

The improvements could be completed in six to eight months after the football season, Kephart estimated.

Griffin's pledge is the largest to date. Bob Beatty Ford and Sunrise Rotary each pledged $1,000, the next biggest gift.

Griffin is the president of Griffin Industries of Calabasas.

Kephart said the athletic department views the stadium as an asset for the entire community, not just the college students. While liability and security concerns force most high schools to close their fields to nonstudents, the college can be more inclusive, he said.

``Being a community college, we're a little more able to do that,'' he said about opening the campus to community residents.

``They can use the track in their off time and get what they need from it without getting chased off by security.''