ATLANTA - New Falcons Stadium (65,000)

[RaiderATO]

Originally Posted by GaForce

You are spot on with all of that said. AB wants control and profit of everything that happens on Sundays at Falcons games. From concessions to parking, etc. The Georgia Dome makes money hand over fist, but when it comes to the Falcons, they take little of that home.

The issue is that the GWCC would still own a huge chunk of the operation since they own the site. If the city/state finances the stadium, the Falcons can't expect much control. If the Falcons do it through bonds, they might have more control after paying it off.

Taxing the public for a new stadium will be tough to impossible. Especially since the public views it as a great venue.

[Jericho-79]

Let's say that this new stadium does get built.

Do you guys think Ted Turner will pony up some of his millions to put his name on the venue?

Turner Stadium?

Personally, I think Coca-Cola Field, Delta Stadium, SunTrust Stadium, or GP Field would sound better.

[will101]

Originally Posted by Jericho-79

Let's say that this new stadium does get built.

Do you guys think Ted Turner will pony up some of his millions to put his name on the venue?

Turner Stadium?

Personally, I think Coca-Cola Field, Delta Stadium, SunTrust Stadium, or GP Field would sound better.

Why would he want his name on two stadiums in the Atlanta region?

[Jericho-79]

Originally Posted by will101

Why would he want his name on two stadiums in the Atlanta region?

I don't see why not. He's loaded.

[GaForce]

Originally Posted by Jericho-79

I don't see why not. He's loaded.

Nah. Ted has no affiliation whatsoever with the Falcons. And I don't believe Arthur Blank and his ego would go for that. I believe Coca-Cola Field sounds good. And it's colors match the Falcons

[swaugh3]

Couldnt the Falcons and GWCCA just renegotiate the lease agreement so the Falcons can get a larger share of game day revenue instead of building a new stadium? Im sure that this new stadium pursuit is really all about that and not the bells and whistles of a new venue.

[swaugh3]

I dont know how much money the state has collected to pay off the bonds, but they should to be paid off as soon as possible before shovels go into the ground.

[MWPMWP]

I think Arthur Blank is interested in a venue for soccer and football. If I'm not mistaken, he was in the running for an expansion MLS franchise for Atlanta several years ago. An outdoor stadium would be far better for soccer and football.

The MARTA train doesn't reach the Turner Field location. You have to hop off the train and take shuttle buses to the stadium.

The Kennesaw State stadium is amazing!

[Lord David]

Perhaps it's time for another Olympics for Atlanta? It would be the perfect excuse to build a new main stadium that would be home to the Falcons post Olympics.

A perfect chance for a of conventional looking athletics stadium of 80,000, that could technically have it's pitch lowered to make room for a lower tier of seating (like the City of Manchester Stadium, England).

A great opportunity to show what the Centennial Olympics should have been.

Simply build the new stadium either directly adjacent Turner Field (where you'd have to make parking underground, and tunnel some roads), or at a purpose designed Olympic Park elsewhere in the city accessible by train.

[sweet-d]

Yeah that could actually help it get built if it were part of an Olympics bid but, the only problem is well it doesn't look an American City will be getting the Olympics for quite some time after Chicago's bid for 2016. But hey it couldn't hurt to try biding because the only way that I could see justifying this would be to use the venue as an Olympic Stadium.

[Jericho-79]

So are they actually going to proceed with this new stadium for the Falcons?

I saw the Georgia Dome for the first time this past weekend when I attended Wrestlemania 27.

The Dome looks so 'blah' on the outside. It reminds me of another aging structure- the Pontiac Silverdome.

[Lord David]

The Pontiac Silverdome is considerably older and is nowhere near downtown in Detroit, so it's hardly a comparison.

All Georgia Dome needs is a roof replacement and to somehow make the exterior upper walls that support the roof look more pleasant, perhaps mirrored glass? Something that would match the exterior facade? It really doesn't look too bad, and probably doesn't need to be replaced for now.

[Jericho-79]

So what happened to all this talk about the Falcons eventually getting a new stadium?

Is the project at a standstill like the new Vikings stadium?

[will101]

Originally Posted by Jericho-79

So what happened to all this talk about the Falcons eventually getting a new stadium?

Is the project at a standstill like the new Vikings stadium?

Probably even more so. The Falcons have no need for a new stadium. The Vikings do, sort of. Building something new in Atlanta is pure vanity. And waste.

[GaForce]

Originally Posted by Lord David

The Pontiac Silverdome is considerably older and is nowhere near downtown in Detroit, so it's hardly a comparison.

All Georgia Dome needs is a roof replacement and to somehow make the exterior upper walls that support the roof look more pleasant, perhaps mirrored glass? Something that would match the exterior facade? It really doesn't look too bad, and probably doesn't need to be replaced for now.

I agree with this. Actually, if they could find a way to put a level of suites where the upper walls are, that would add more suite revenue that Blank is looking for. Maybe cut out a section of seats in the upper level in the endzone facing the GWCC and Philips arena. Let a little natural light into the place and it would also have a view of the Atlanta Skyline. the Georgia Dome has great sightlines. I honestly believe that if the Superdome can have its transformation, the Georgia dome definitely can. It's just a matter of whether AB is willing to continue dealing with the GWCC...

[desertpunk]

Atlanta Business Chronicle

Atlanta Falcons to kick off new stadium design

Date: November 10th, 2011, 10:35 pm

By Maria Saporta
Friday, November 4, 2011

The Atlanta Falcons and Georgia World Congress Center will soon send out a request for proposals to potential designers of a new football stadium.

Falcons and GWCC officials expect to issue the RFP by the end of November for national and international architects to provide conceptual designs for a new open-air football stadium. The new stadium would be located north of the Falcons existing home — the Georgia Dome — at the intersection of Northside Drive and Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard. “It gives us an opportunity to look at some conceptual designs for the stadium and to get cost estimates,” said Rich McKay, Falcons president and CEO. “Our hope is that it would be issued in the next 30 days.”

McKay said the RFP is an important next step in the future development of a new stadium. It follows a master plan that was done by Kansas City, Mo.-based Populous, which was released last February. “If you look at what Populous did, it was at the 40,000-foot level,” said Frank Poe, GWCC executive director. “This will take it to the 25,000-foot level.”

The Populous report estimated a new stadium would cost about $700 million. But to have a more accurate assessment of what it would cost, McKay said a conceptual design is needed. An independent third party likely will break down the costs once a conceptual design has been selected. “There are a lot of qualified architects, and there are a lot of stadiums that have been designed in the last 10 years that have made great advancements from a design and sustainability standpoint,” McKay said.

Having a conceptual design and a more accurate cost estimate is critical in the ongoing negotiations between the Falcons and the GWCC to develop a business agreement for financing the new football stadium. “We are at the point where this piece of information is important to understand whether a financial deal can be done,” Poe said. “You have got to look at the cost, the design and what the financial plan would look like.”

The Falcons are committed to building a new outdoor stadium rather than remaining in the Georgia Dome. But until a financial agreement is reached between the team and the state on how to pay for a new stadium, the option to remain in a renovated Georgia Dome is still on the table — which would be a far less expensive alternative. “We are focused on trying to make a business deal on a new stadium,” McKay said. “We look at it as a long-term solution rather than a short-term solution, which is what a renovation would be.”

If a new stadium is built, the state would try to make sure there would be enough revenue to keep the Georgia Dome open as an amenity to the convention center for large gatherings, other sporting events and concerts. The state also would seek to be made whole in other ways. As currently envisioned, the new stadium would be built on the 21-acre truck marshaling yard that is necessary to serve one of the country’s largest convention centers. (The stadium also would need the property that is now the 7-acre yellow parking lot.)

Either the marshaling yard would need to be relocated to a new site or planners would need to figure out a way to design the stadium in such a way that it could co-exist with the current truck marshaling yard. Either option would add a cost to the development of a new stadium. “It is a functional part of the center,” Poe said of the truck marshaling yard. “It is a critical element of what we do. It’s an item that will be included [as part of a development plan].”

McKay and Poe said the two parties are still working on what would be included as part of the RFP, and it has not yet been decided whether the state or the Falcons would actually issue the request for proposals. If the GWCC issues the RFP, the process would then need to follow state procurement guidelines. In determining which firm would be selected, McKay and Poe said several factors would be considered, such as the proposed design and the firm’s professional experience. But McKay said the process probably would not turn into a full-scale design competition, such as was used in selecting the architectural team for the proposed National Center for Civil and Human Rights.

Still, McKay said that the architect selected through the RFP process likely would be commissioned to do the actual final design of the stadium. The final design, however, could end up being different from the conceptual design that comes out of the RFP process. “Our intent going in is that they would be the one ultimately to design the stadium, pending the ability to work out a financial arrangement between the Congress Center and the Falcons,” McKay said.

Once the RFP is issued, then architectural firms likely would have a couple of months to turn in their conceptual designs. Then the Falcons and GWCC officials would conduct a formal evaluation of the various proposals. McKay said they likely would make a decision on the firm and the conceptual design by next spring. But until a financial agreement is reached, the actual timeline to build a new stadium is unknown.

The Falcons have to play in the Georgia Dome until the bonds that were issued to build the facility are paid off. The 30-year bonds are scheduled to be repaid by 2020, but could be paid back earlier — maybe 2017. The bonds are being repaid through hotel-motel taxes collected in the city of Atlanta. The Falcons would like to be able to move to a new facility once the bonds are paid off — ending the team’s lease of the Georgia Dome. The Georgia General Assembly passed a bill that would allow the collection of hotel-motel taxes to be extended if the new stadium were to be built as part of the GWCC campus

[...]

[BoulderGrad]

Dont get it...
Georgia dome built in 1992... All the luxury boxes, club seats, bathrooms and snooty bars you could ask for in a new arena... What could you possibly get for $700mil that you couldn't get with another (yes another. already spent $30mil in 2006 for renno...) update? K, so you need your fancy new scoreboard or perhaps new video equipment... Maybe a new coat of velvet on the team locker room? What?

[desertpunk]

Originally Posted by BoulderGrad

Dont get it...
Georgia dome built in 1992... All the luxury boxes, club seats, bathrooms and snooty bars you could ask for in a new arena... What could you possibly get for $700mil that you couldn't get with another (yes another. already spent $30mil in 2006 for renno...) update? K, so you need your fancy new scoreboard or perhaps new video equipment... Maybe a new coat of velvet on the team locker room? What?

Open-air fan experience vs crappy indoor dome; and oh, btw: SUPER BOWL. Atl basically got told that there will be no Super Bowls coming to the Georgia Dome anytime soon. But build a spanking new fantastic outdoor field, and it's party time!

[BoulderGrad]

Originally Posted by desertpunk

Open-air fan experience vs crappy indoor dome; and oh, btw: SUPER BOWL. Atl basically got told that there will be no Super Bowls coming to the Georgia Dome anytime soon. But build a spanking new fantastic outdoor field, and it's party time!

K... so take the roof off of it...

And wouldn't that it hurt your chances for getting the Superbowl? Atlanta does have a bit of a winter last time I checked.

Besides the dome, whats crappy about it? On top of what I already said, its right downtown next to a metro stop... Not the prettiest thing in the world outside, but 'we don't have a pretty stadium' is a poor excuse for throwing down $700mil on a new stadium.

I can understand SF, Oakland, SD, Minnesota etc. need for new digs, but the situations with Saint Louis and Atlanta are just crazy to me. Espcially considering what stadium deals can do to local governments if they're not careful. Ask Cincy (or better yet a Cincy school teacher) how the fancy pants Bengals and Reds stadiums are working out for them.

[rantanamo]

The Cowboys didn't need a new stadium either. Jerry just wanted it to keep the revenues. Probably a similar situation.