High hopes for new high-tech Atlanta stadium despite delays
Cranes poke through the retractible roof and frame for a circular video board under construction inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the new stadium for the Atlanta Falcons.
ATLANTA — Several highprofile failures have plagued Atlanta’s reputation on a national stage over the years: unpreparedness for ice and snow storms, a recent highway collapse and subsequent shutdown from a fire, and chronic traffic and public transportation woes.
Now, the city’s new $1.5 billion stadium — touted as a state-of-theart facility that can help transform downtown — is facing construction setbacks with its key feature, a retractable roof that will open and close like a camera lens.
Stadium officials gave The Associated Press a recent tour for an exclusive story on MercedesBenz Stadium. Even though it’s behind schedule, officials and some residents hope the stadium can turn around Atlanta’s history o f pu b l i c mis fo r t u n e s in infrastructure and projects. It will be home to the Atlanta Falcons and United, the city’s professional football and soccer teams. It will also host SEC championship football games for the next 11 years along with the College Football Playoff National Championship next year, 2019’s Super Bowl and the NCAA men’s Final Four in 2020.
The stadium was originally set to open in March, but that’s been pushed back three times: first to June 1, then July 30, and now August. Stadium general manager Scott Jenkins says that will be in time for the Falcons to host the Arizona Cardinals in the first preseason game at home on Aug. 26.
The building is more than 90 percent done, Jenkins said. The city committed to providing $200 million from hotel tax revenue, with the team picking up the rest.
Rapper and Atlanta native T.I. also took the tour, along with his 12-year-old son. T.I. says the stadium could “help breathe new life into the city,” and he was “amazed by the architecture, the interior design, and the intricate details of artwork and LED screens.”
Here are some of the stadium’s key features:
The roof
Th e ch a l l e n g e wi t h the r et r actable r oof has been installing the eight triangular steel petals that would enable it to retract and open like a camera lens. Water-tight seals are being installed on the petals, then it’ll take eight weeks to place fluorinebased plastic (ETFE) on them, a spokeswoman said. In early June, workers will bring the petals together for proper alignment with the help of a gigantic crawler crane.
The front porch
This area is just outside the stadium’s doors, with food trucks, live music and a fan vehicle experience on game days. A huge stainless steel sculpture of a falcon — 73,000 pounds and with a 70-foot wingspan — is perched on a bronze-colored football.
The backyard
After the Falcons’ former home the Georgia Dome is demolished at the end of summer, team owner Arthur Blank wants to replace the 24-year-old stadium with a 13-acre park. The greenspace would be used on game days as a tailgating area and parking lot for about 850 cars, according to Mike Gomes, who’s in charge of “fan experience” at the Arthur M. Blank Group. Gomes said the area will host concerts and festivals: “We don’t want this to be just blacktop asphalt for 365 days.” A 35- foot high mirrored sculpture of a soccer ball that will sit by the north entrance can be viewed from the greenspace area.