Jim Mullin
CFL.ca
Is Empire Stadium the answer to solving the biggest obstacle to CFL expansion?
Perhaps.
Broadcasters and writers have been gushing about the intimate atmosphere of the temporary facility and change in the demeanour of usually sleepy Lions fans once they got some fresh air to breathe outside of the Beatty Street Sweatbox, a.k.a. BC Place Stadium.
The dome will have plenty of outdoor air after the Lions move in after a 458-million dollar retrofit featuring an 85 x 110 metre hole in the roof which can be covered up with a parachute- like closing. The original target date for the move from the shadow of the roller coaster at the Pacific National Exhibition to the Downtown core was originally slated for the start of the 2011 season. However, sources have confirmed it will be closer to the fall of 2011.
Fear not, the 2011 Coupe Grey Cup will be a date that BC Place will be able to service come the last Sunday in November.
Back to Tempire Stadium. The 27,500 seat will be disassembled like a Meccano set a week after the Lions and the Vancouver Whitecaps FC move into Gordon Campbell’s Convertible.
Many who have now been exposed to the best weather of the year in two games in 2010 are already lamenting the move. Having witnessed the mercurial and fickle nature of the Lower Mainland audience, it will only be a matter of months until the skies open up, a deluge ensues and everyone is reminded why they wanted the refuge of that white fabric roof downtown in the first place.
Not every sports fan in Canada lacks the resilience of the pampered Vancouverite.
Many are looking in across The Home and Native Land on TV and wondering. How did Empire Stadium take only 111 days to build at the cost of 14.4 million dollars? And with that price tag, they want to know how they can get one for their town?
Nussli, is a Swiss-based company who specializes in temporary stadiums and they were contracted for Empire. The vast majority of their work has been based in Europe for one-off events. As the case with Empire, the modular stadium seating, dressing rooms, toilets and concessions are all leased to PAVCO, the crown corporation responsible for BC Place Stadium.
Buying the materials adds to the cost significantly. However, Nussli is moving increasingly into semi-permanent facilities which have a projected life span of 20 years.
The main upside for communities like Moncton, Quebec City or Halifax are cost advantages over a permanent venue, and a quicker time to get the facility up and running. But how much could these cities save?
In Germany, Nussli developed and constructed the 13,000-capacity Brita Arena in just 112 days after adopting the modular concept. The club, SV Wehen Wiesbaden, decided it required a bigger stadium in a very short space of time after it was promoted to the second tier of German soccer. In addition to the capacity the stadium had 636 business seats, over 100 VIP seats and 60 press seats. A floodlight system and under-soil heating were also included in the design.
The club estimates it saved at least 30 per cent on the potential cost of building a permanent stadium.
Using 62.5 million dollar BMO Field as an example, the same kind of 20-25,000 seat facility could be developed for around 40-45 million. Certainly it’s a far cry from the 14.4 million Empire was put together for but the modular technology used in Germany is more durable than the aluminum pipe and tube structure at the PNE.
In comparison to past projects in this country, the modular satdium is quick, easy, cheaper and reliable.
For those of you Argonaut fans who want to escape the place formerly known as Skydome to a more intimate facility at York University, Downsview, or some other conceptual location in a similar facility, you can keep waiting.
The Argos brass are in the midst of creating a business plan for the next three seasons, and it does not include a move from the sold out home of the 2007 Coup Grey Cup.
Considering it takes only 111 days to create a stadium in 2010, who knows how the facilities landscape will change across the country over the next decade? In every case, Canadian Football will likely be the driver of change for the better for athletics in this country.
