What percentage of that $200 mil. is for the real estate and what percentage is for the actual stadium?
I believe $200 million is for the entire project. The stadium itself was supposed to be around $140 million but that price is going up. Daily Commercial News article
I don't care if we have the crown jewel stadium of the mls or not, and I don't think that's what we'll be getting on this budget. I want the basics, and I want it to be a design that can easliy be expanded/renovated in the future. We can add to it 10-15 years down the road to make it the crown jewel. Right now we just need a home.
As long as it's up close and personal. i don't want to be 10ft up in the air and 15 yards back from the pitch. It needs to have an intimate feeling where opposing teams can feel the Dynamo fans breathing down their neck.
I'm most looking forward to no longer seeing a gridiron/endzone on the field during Dynamo home games.
I'm actually going to miss that, kind of. It usually means playoff time. Gawd, why won't they just throw us another friggin bone?! This is the longest off season....EVER!
Yeah, thats my point, we can write him with our ideas no matter how expensive. At least he'll have an idea of what would make us happy. Something he didn't think of maybe. He might add/change something in his idea. This is our 1 chance to help build our house. oluck@houstondynamo.com
i know we've all been talking about this, but is there a poll here to show whats everyone number one priority in a stadium? lets say whatever they build, it fits the teams needs and they are 100% happy with everything what are the top things fans looking for? I would like something that would 1. amplify EB and TA noise levels 2. take into consideration Houston's Weather Factor 3. if we could build green (eco-friendly) that would rock. back to the outside design, i know this has been talked to death but i like the idea of merging Estadio Azteca and Commerzbank-Arena only smaller with 22,000 seats (and 8,000 standing room space?) also when talking about this we shouldn't be concerned with trying to up everyone else but setting the standard for everyone else...
I would like the fans close to the field, more or less like a basketball arena....also roof over seats only, in a stylish fashion....and access to the players after games like Robertson Stadium.
Can't say I've been to Robertson, so I can't talk. I'll probably go to UH next year though, so I'm sure I'll catch my first soccer game soon enough.
Ugliest POS stadium this side of Butler Stadium, but the experience is great as fans are really close to the pitch, there isn't a bad seat in the house and you are really on top of the players (and they can see/feel/hear it). Being behind the goal and causing sh*t for the keepers and CKers is great. Also, don't eat the food there unless its pizza. And watch out for rats Other than that, it's a great stadium
It's not that bad of a stadium all stadiums get old but the thing that looks the worst is there really are no Dynamo decorations or posters or anything. It is sad because you can tell that the Dynamo are a second tenant. If we get our own stadium I want the rails to be orange, I want the seats to be our color, I want Dynamo logo on the walls, and I want goalposts that stick in to the ground and are semi-permanent. Even though the team that plays there is crap I would love to see us have an SSS with a second deck:
Well it all depends on attendance and people loving the sport. But i say a stadium that can be located inside the city or 1 and half mile radius around the city is fine. so lets not do like Pizza Hut park or one in colorado that are too far from the city. KEEPING IT LOCALLY IS THE BEST WAY TO SEE GREAT ATTENDANCE!!!! EASY FOR FANS AND FIRST TIMERS!!!
I see Dynamo stuff around the stadium all the time. Each gate is in orange, there's Dynamo logos around the sides of the stadium, and the flag (as tiny as it may be). Where do you not see decorations?
For the record, there is at least one permanent sign for Dynamo in the stadium. It's on the new scoreboard AEG had built above the South End. And as far as the stadium looking like a POS, keep in mind the stadium is the oldest in the city of Houston. It was built back in the 40's for HISD, and is due for yet another renovation as soon as UH can find a sponsor for the planned addition to the stadium. In other words, it would look better if they had the money. Sadly, if they start on that addition before Dynamo leaves, TA/EB would have to relocate, as the addition will be on the North End.
I've always liked Robertson, for such an old stadium it's not really bad at all. I think I know what Dustcowpoke was talking about the signs and stuff, there's not a lot of Dynamo branding around the stadium once you get through the gates, and there's a lot of UH colors and signs. I suppose that's to be expected, but it's not what you would like to see when you come to a Dynamo game. And there's a lot of red paint in the seating areas, makes FCD feel at home. I like the big Dynamo banners outside up high on the stadium, remember how excited we were when those went up before we'd even played a game at the Rob? But then they're taken down before the first Cougar game and replaced with UH ones. But I have to say, outside the stadium, on game days, it's a lot more festive and Dynamo related than PHP before a game, I'm not sure you could even tell who was playing there before a game, or even that they're having a soccer game inside.
I believe that the original structure was a WPA project. I think there's still some sort of WPA marking in one of the interior walls, but I'd have to hunt around to find it again. The place is in pretty good shape for its age. The last multi-million dollar sets of renovations help a lot. It's a great stadium for soccer and football, with excellent sightlines all around.