Dive Brief:
- PCL Construction has reached substantial completion on the new $278.2 million Mosaic Stadium in Regina, Saskatchewan, according to CBC News.
- The new facility will serve as home base for the Saskatchewan Roughriders soccer team, as well as host concerts and other sporting and community events. The four-season stadium features a translucent roof, a general admission lounge, a concourse and a seating bowl with clear views of the field.
- The stadium is the first completed project detailed in Regina's $1 billion three-phase revitalization plan.
Dive Insight:
New stadium projects are increasingly becoming more than just a place to see a favorite team play. Communities in need of an economic boost are looking to the massive venues to bring fans, business development and investment to depressed neighborhoods. For example, D.C. United's new $300 million soccer stadium in the Buzzard Point neighborhood of Washington, DC, is expected to generate approximately 1,000 construction and permanent jobs and create a $1 billion boon for the neighborhood.
The same goes for the new $250 million Los Angeles Football Club Banc of California stadium. PCL Construction won the contract for the 22,000-seat soccer venue in May, and the project, stadium included, is expected to pump $350 million into its South Los Angeles neighborhood. The stadium — which will feature a soccer museum, restaurants, retail and office and conference space — will create 3,000 construction and permanent jobs, and 40% of the positions are set aside for local workers. The team also struck a project labor agreement with the Los Angeles and Orange County Building & Construction Trades Council to ensure union labor is included.
Of course, sports venues aren't all about the financial gains for the host community. Stadium designers also aim to focus on the fan experience. For example, the Texas Rangers are proposing to give fans what they've been begging for — an air-conditioned ballpark. The $1 billion retractable-roofed venue will also include a 7-acre, $200-million mixed-use development called Texas Live!
