Texas A&M University's Kyle Field Developments

[wxman]

If I'm not mistaken, the 2014 season will be at the largest capacity the stadium will ever be (until any future expansions 20/30 years down the line) at 109,000 people. Once the westside stands come down and the suites are added, the capacity will be reduced to the final 102,500. 

 

I hope that they do some power washing or something to the east side stands. With all the new concrete and steel, the second and third decks look grungy and old. 

 

If you look at the renderings, are they going to paint and or install maroon seating or is that just a rendering with it full of people in maroon shirts?

[jt16]

If I'm not mistaken, the 2014 season will be at the largest capacity the stadium will ever be (until any future expansions 20/30 years down the line) at 109,000 people. Once the westside stands come down and the suites are added, the capacity will be reduced to the final 102,500.

I hope that they do some power washing or something to the east side stands. With all the new concrete and steel, the second and third decks look grungy and old.

If you look at the renderings, are they going to paint and or install maroon seating or is that just a rendering with it full of people in maroon shirts?

I think 2014 is 106,000 and 2015 is 102,500. As far as power washing the stands. You can't see most of the stadium when people are sitting in seats.

[Nate99]

one from the Aggie Athletics facebook feed...

 

[Nate99]

They have added a few more supports to the highest portions SEZ upper deck, including the sections that appear to have stubs for mounting the new Gigantortron that will go in the center. 

 

 

[Scotch]

Taken 5/4/2014:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Nate99]

Once again, great pics Scotch. Thanks. 

[cloud713]

I stepped away from this thread for too long, thanks mods for cleaning up the mess.

 

 

 

 

oh no! those prefabbed brick sections look terrible...

[Nate99]

oh no! those prefabbed brick sections look terrible...

 

They're not perfect with the big seams, but the decorative whatever around stadiums doesn't concern me much one way or another. 

 

I am coming around to the idea that a pure steel and concrete "Death Star" type approach would have been kind of cool. 

[Scotch]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Nate99]

Thanks again, Scotch. 

[Nate99]

College students being what they are, this looks like a bit of Corps related redassery. 

 

[IronTiger]

The South End is HUGE! It used to be not much more than bleachers, now it's the tallest part of the stadium!

[Scotch]

Nate, the flags were put up there in celebration of the topping out of the construction by the work crew. Anyone else doing it would not have been redass, it would have been dumbass.

[Nate99]

Nate, the flags were put up there in celebration of the topping out of the construction by the work crew. Anyone else doing it would not have been redass, it would have been dumbass.

 

Good to hear, and I agree, except that dumbass and redass were not mutually exclusive in my experience. It is certainly not something I would have attempted or encouraged at any point in my life, but I know of plenty that would have relished the opportunity. 

 

My assumption of redassery would have been through the lens of such a hypothetical college student. I checked the camera somewhat late the day before and did not see the flag and made the assumption that it was placed there overnight surreptitiously, I was wrong and gladly so.  Had they pulled it off, I would have respected the effort, but certainly not worth the risk.

[Nate99]

The South End is HUGE! It used to be not much more than bleachers, now it's the tallest part of the stadium!

 

Apart from the gigantic video board, I gathered from the renderings that it will be about the same height as the Zone. 

 

The speed of this project is astounding. 

 

The first home game is just short of four months away, I screen grabbed this from yesterday:

 

 

This is what it looked like just short of four months ago:

 

[Scotch]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Nate99]

Looks like they designed the outermost cantilever support beams to start right above the roof of the Bright building and hang to hang as much of the upper deck over it as possible. That is tight. 

 

That would have been a variable in the project that set a lot of other parameters. They are moving the playing field something like 18 feet (correct me if that's not the actual number) to the south, effectively lengthening the entire stadium to take up every available inch. 

 

Awesome pictures Scotch. 

[Scotch]

You got it right, 18 feet.

 

It is a pretty amazing project. If you have a chance,travel to A&M to see and hear the sights and sounds of construction for yourself, I'd highly recommend it, it is intense just to be in the area.

[IronTiger]

The whole east side looks completely different from what used to be there (Read Building and a large white wall)

[Nate99]

The whole east side looks completely different from what used to be there (Read Building and a large white wall)

 

The nine big pillars that the canopy/pressbox rises from necessitated gutting the back side there, but it needed to be gutted in any case. I have not been on the concourses over there since the late 90's (as a student), but I understand that they had not received much attention since, and they were in pretty bad shape with potholed asphalt surface and very little ventilation (because Read sealed in the concourse). 

 

The stadium will have a completely different look, hopefully the feel is the same on gameday. 

[IronTiger]

Read Building from what I read was in bad shape, there was a ton of mold that required A/C to be on to prevent it from getting out of hand (again, this is second hand). Luckily I got pictures of it before its demise.

[Nate99]

another drone cam:

 

[Scotch]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Nate99]

Interesting how they somewhat disguised the seams in the prefab brick panels. It looks good. 

[H-Town Man]

Interesting how they somewhat disguised the seams in the prefab brick panels. It looks good. 

 

Do you mean the white caulk-looking stuff?

[Nate99]

Do you mean the white caulk-looking stuff?

 

I was referring to the bands of slightly offset from the facade/vertically placed "bricks" (as in the pic below). Maybe they were there all along, but I thought I remembered seeing more seams before. 

 

[H-Town Man]

Yeah, that does look good. Although if they're just stuck onto the façade and not joined in, I wonder how durable they'll be?

 

[mollusk]

Prolly no less durable than any other veneer facade system.  IIRC, the baseball stadium in San Francisco is built with these so that it can look like a brick building but not have the unreinforced masonry come tumbling off during an earthquake as would happen with a standard brick veneer.

[H-Town Man]

Prolly no less durable than any other veneer facade system.  IIRC, the baseball stadium in San Francisco is built with these so that it can look like a brick building but not have the unreinforced masonry come tumbling off during an earthquake as would happen with a standard brick veneer.

 

How can a brick stuck on the outside of the veneer with nothing above or below it be as durable as a brick within the veneer?  Is there something holding it on besides just mortar on the inner face?  I'm not commenting on the durability of the whole "façade system," just the durability of those bricks themselves.

[Nate99]

How can a brick stuck on the outside of the veneer with nothing above or below it be as durable as a brick within the veneer?  Is there something holding it on besides just mortar on the inner face?  I'm not commenting on the durability of the whole "façade system," just the durability of those bricks themselves.

Just speculating, but I'd imagine there are all manner of adhesives at their disposal, if they are not bolted on somehow. 

 

It would look awful if they started falling off.