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Devil Rays Proposed Stadium


emirate25

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First hurricane and this thing is toast though, might have to rethink that design.

I'm thinking they already have thought this through--especially since Tampa Bay has seen more action from the Gulf more recently than Houston--or any other locale except maybe Mobile and Panama City.

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Very cool looking stadium. I'm sure you couldn't get away with building something like this in Tampa Bay without engineering to withstand hurricanes.

I would be surprised however if the Dynamo stadium had a design this dynamic.

PS. they changed the name to the "Rays" didn't they?

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I'm curious as to when we'll see the renderings for the Dynamo stadium. Hoping for something cool and unusual.

Don't mean to be Barry the Bad News Bearer, but this is Houston. My guess is that we count on a Jiffy Lube with a soccer field on the inside. Cause that's all that's "needed" and "practical". That's how this town seems to operate more often than not.

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Don't mean to be Barry the Bad News Bearer, but this is Houston. My guess is that we count on a Jiffy Lube with a soccer field on the inside. Cause that's all that's "needed" and "practical". That's how this town seems to operate more often than not.

This may be different, though. With the Dynamo forking over the construction cost, you never know....

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It's a great looking stadium but I don't quite get it.

Tampa is a warm and muggy climate. Sure, the tent-like roof will keep the rain off, but it will also reduce the sea breeze and trap the heat in. I certainly wouldn't want to be sitting in that thing on a warm July night with a packed house! Talk about still air...

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Don't mean to be Barry the Bad News Bearer, but this is Houston. My guess is that we count on a Jiffy Lube with a soccer field on the inside. Cause that's all that's "needed" and "practical". That's how this town seems to operate more often than not.

I can see where a statement like this is coming from. There is certainly no shortage of bland buildings in Houston. But all of the stadiums built in Houston over the last 10 years (Reliant, Minute Maid, and Toyota) have all opened to positive reviews and were well received by the public and press. I think Reliant is a pretty cool looking building, and although Minute Maid is not exactly my favorite style building, the inside is pretty dramatic and the outside seems to make some kind of statement. I think the professional sports stadiums in Houston have gone beyond what was simply 'needed' and practical'. After all, how practical was it to build retractable roofs when they are almost always closed? Practical, would be something like what the Tennessee Titans play in.

Sure, there are a lot of uninteresting structures in Houston, but as far as stadiums are concerned, I don't see why hoping for something above average is such an impossible dream, IMO. The Dynamo may not build something as 'cutting edge' as the Rays new stadium, but I hope they at least consider the 'competition' of other sports venues around Houston, and realize the impact (or at least appreciate the value) that this new stadium (given this awesome location) will do for this emerging league.

I've learned not to get my hopes up on a lot of things, but it would be pretty tragic if the Dynamo and the MSL don't make the most of this opportunity.

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I agree that Houston's stadiums are nice enough, especially Minute Maid Park, but for the most part I would have to agree with GovernorAggie that Houston's public architecture is frequently mundane at best. Exhibit 1: the new cathedral. I'm not getting my hopes up for the Dynamo stadium.

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I can see where a statement like this is coming from. There is certainly no shortage of bland buildings in Houston. But all of the stadiums built in Houston over the last 10 years (Reliant, Minute Maid, and Toyota) have all opened to positive reviews and were well received by the public and press. I think Reliant is a pretty cool looking building, and although Minute Maid is not exactly my favorite style building, the inside is pretty dramatic and the outside seems to make some kind of statement. I think the professional sports stadiums in Houston have gone beyond what was simply 'needed' and practical'. After all, how practical was it to build retractable roofs when they are almost always closed? Practical, would be something like what the Tennessee Titans play in.

Sure, there are a lot of uninteresting structures in Houston, but as far as stadiums are concerned, I don't see why hoping for something above average is such an impossible dream, IMO. The Dynamo may not build something as 'cutting edge' as the Rays new stadium, but I hope they at least consider the 'competition' of other sports venues around Houston, and realize the impact (or at least appreciate the value) that this new stadium (given this awesome location) will do for this emerging league.

I've learned not to get my hopes up on a lot of things, but it would be pretty tragic if the Dynamo and the MSL don't make the most of this opportunity.

Minute Maid is an outstanding facility, been there many many times. There is not a bad seat in the house. They fact that they managed to keep some of the Union Station Theme and build a first class facility is really nice. It's one of the best if not the best in the MLB.

I am not a fan of Reliant, it's just not for me and that's my opinion only.

Mister X, I have attended probably close to 100 games at Minute maid, and I would have to say 80% of the time it open. Unless it's raining, from what I've seen it's open. Now during the peak of Mosquito season they will close it, but hey what wrong with that. If you ever set through a game a Colt 45 or Old Buff Stadium during that time you'd be grateful. The Mosquitoes would carry you away.

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I agree Mark, I love the roof, the AC, and the absence of mosquitos. I haven't been to MMP enough to really know how often the roof is closed. I only assumed it was most of the time, because I've only ever been in it when it was closed. My only real point is that the stadiums in Houston were NOT just built to satisfy only the basic requirements that are necessary to get folks to come see a game. If the Dynamo build one like that, it will be the first unimpressive major league stadium built in Houston since I've been alive.

Some of the architecture around here maybe questionable and not up to everybody's standards, but I think Houston truly does have a legacy of building great stadiums. In addition to all the new stadiums, the Astrodome really set the world on fire when it opened and I never really heard anyone complaining about the Summit back in the 70's (everyone must have still had a contact buzz from the immortal Kiss concerts).

We have an image to maintain. If the Dynamo build something mundane, then I would say that all this hoopla surrounding the location of this new stadium, not to mention the possible re-routing of light rail, will be a total let down and completely un-Houston (remember I'm talking stadiums, NOT necessarily great architecture). It's all so subjective anyway.

However, no matter what they build, bringing all these new people downtown can only be a good thing if you want to see downtown Houston turn into an established fun-filled, non-work related, destination one day.

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Last season it seemed like Minute Maid's roof was closed from pretty much mid-May until mid-September. I did seem like in previous years they would crack it open in about the 4th inning every night well into late June. Last year, I don't remember any games where the roof started closed and opened mid-game. Is there a new policy?

I love open day games in April and May and open night games in early June. I also love Sunday day games in the dead of July or August when a big thunderstorm rolls through outside. MMP is just as spectacular as a living room as it is a backyard.

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Mister X, I have attended probably close to 100 games at Minute maid, and I would have to say 80% of the time it open.

Respectfully, this estimate is not even close. When MMP first opened, because of its unique appeal, the roof was opened as much as possible. Initial estimates were that it would be open 60% of the time.

http://www.ballparks.com/baseball/national/bpkaus.htm

As the years have passed, the newness has worn off, and, perhaps because of the uproar over Reliant's roof being open on hot days, the roof closes earlier in the season, and stays closed later in the season. Whereas iniatially, the roof was open until mid-June, now it closes as early as mid-May, not to reopen until about mid-September. It is probably open no more than 40% of the home games. It is definitely closed for most of June, and all of July and August, as well as the forst 10 days to two weeks of September.

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It's a great looking stadium but I don't quite get it.

Tampa is a warm and muggy climate. Sure, the tent-like roof will keep the rain off, but it will also reduce the sea breeze and trap the heat in. I certainly wouldn't want to be sitting in that thing on a warm July night with a packed house! Talk about still air...

I'm not sure that the problems you mention would materialize. Clearly, shade is cooler than direct sunlight. And, a white roof will reflect sunlight. Since hot air rises, the design of the roof would seem to allow hot air to rise up the sloped portion of the roof to escape at the highest point. Additionally, the roof is high enough to allow breezes to come in from the sides, potentially creating a cross flow across the stands.

One thing is for sure. An open air stadium in that area of the country (or in Houston) BETTER be engineered to maximize airflow patterns, because if your concerns materialize, attendance will plummet.

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I'm not sure that the problems you mention would materialize. Clearly, shade is cooler than direct sunlight. And, a white roof will reflect sunlight. Since hot air rises, the design of the roof would seem to allow hot air to rise up the sloped portion of the roof to escape at the highest point. Additionally, the roof is high enough to allow breezes to come in from the sides, potentially creating a cross flow across the stands.

One thing is for sure. An open air stadium in that area of the country (or in Houston) BETTER be engineered to maximize airflow patterns, because if your concerns materialize, attendance will plummet.

The Devil Rays rarely play day games, even inside the original Juice Box (Tropicana). I can't imagine that a partially open air venue would see too many day games which is why I don't quite get the shade roof. In the summer months, it is much more pleasant to be in the open air at night than it is to be partially covered.

I bet they have some major fans/venting going on to make it more pleasant but my initial thought was that I wouldn't want to be sitting there swatting bugs under a tent.

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