Mosaic Stadium

Mosaic Stadium is an open-air stadium in Regina, Saskatchewan. Announced on July 12, 2012, the stadium replaced Mosaic Stadium at Taylor Field as the home field of the Canadian Football League's Saskatchewan Roughriders. It was designed by HKS, Inc., in joint venture with B+H, the architects of record. Preliminary construction on the new stadium began in early 2014, and it was declared "substantially complete" on August 31, 2016. The stadium is owned by the city of Regina and operated by the Regina Exhibition Association Ltd. (REAL).

The stadium held its inaugural sporting event, a university football game between the Regina Rams and the Saskatchewan Huskies, on October 1, 2016. The Roughriders moved into the stadium for the 2017 CFL season.

History
On July 12, 2012 during a pre-game ceremony, Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall and Regina mayor Pat Fiacco ceremoniously announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding for the funding of a new stadium to house the Saskatchewan Roughriders, to replace Mosaic Stadium at Taylor Field. The stadium was slated for construction at Evraz Place, Regina's exhibition grounds, sharing its site with Regina's indoor arena Brandt Centre. The project was officially approved by the Regina City Council in January 2013.

The new stadium serves as an aspect of the Regina Revitalization Initiative, a redevelopment project which will also see the former site of Taylor Field redeveloped into a residential area, and the re-location of the Canadian Pacific Railway's downtown yard to the Global Transportation Hub project on the west end of Regina to allow for further downtown development.

On March 14, 2014, it was announced that PCL Construction had won the bid to lead the construction of the new stadium, and that it would be designed by HKS, Inc.—a firm recently known for their work on AT&T Stadium and Lucas Oil Stadium. The official design of the new stadium was unveiled on May 22, 2014. as also announced that The Mosaic Company, which held naming rights to the previous stadium, would renew its naming rights to cover the new stadium under a 20-year deal. As such, the new stadium will also be known as Mosaic Stadium.

Preliminary excavation of the stadium site began in April 2014, and an official groundbreaking ceremony was held on June 16, 2014. The new stadium was scheduled to be completed by August 2016, and the Roughriders were to officially move into the facility for the 2017 season. Installation of the stadium's FieldTurf Revolution 360 playing surface began in July 2016; it is the first CFL stadium to feature this iteration of FieldTurf. On August 31, 2016, officials declared Mosaic Stadium to be "substantially complete", with furniture, concessions, and other fixtures still being finished.

The city stated that at least three test events would be held at Mosaic Stadium before the Roughriders' inaugural season at the facility; the first was a Regina Rams/Saskatchewan Huskies university football game on October 1, 2016. Only the lower bowl was utilized, capping capacity at 16,500. The second test event, Regina Rocks Mosaic Stadium, was held on May 27, 2017, headlined by Bryan Adams. The stadium was capped at 75% of its capacity for this event. The Riders hosted their first game at the new Mosaic Stadium, a pre-season game against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, on June 10, 2017.

Design
The stadium is intended to provide a more modern fan experience in comparison to Taylor Field, utilizing a sunken bowl with a partial roof around much of its rim, designed to shield spectators. The rim's curved design is meant to prevent snow from accumulating on the roof. The stadium was built to support the construction of a full roof in the future. The south end zone is not covered by the roof. To protect spectators from wind, the lower bowl is situated 10 meters (33 ft) below ground level. Thirty-eight corporate suites and two levels of luxury seating are also provided. The stadium features an open concourse, circling the entire facility.

Budget
Mosaic Stadium was estimated to cost around $278 million to build. Funding would be provided by multiple sources; the government of Saskatchewan provided a grant of $80 million, and a $100 million loan being paid off through a $12 surcharges on all Roughriders tickets. The city provided $73 million in funding, which will be subsidized through property tax increases. The remainder of the budget was covered by the Roughriders themselves, primarily through naming rights. In May 2018, the Regina Exhibition Association's president disclosed that additional surcharges may be introduced for concert tickets in the future.

Accessibility and transportation


Regina Transit offers free shuttle bus and parking service to and from Mosaic Stadium for Roughriders games and other major events, with drop-off points including Northgate Mall, Southland Mall, Victoria Square Mall, and two downtown locations. In 2018, Normanview Crossing dropped out of the program, as its businesses objected to the site's parking lots being wasted by its users. The site was replaced by a third downtown pickup location near the former Sears outlet store on Broad Street, which was criticized for removing coverage of the service from the city's northwest neighbourhoods.

Concerts

 * On May 27, 2017, the stadium hosted its second major test event, Regina Rocks Mosaic Stadium, a concert headlined by Bryan Adams.
 * Guns N' Roses played Mosaic Stadium on August 27, 2017.
 * The Eagles played Mosaic Stadium on May 17, 2018, as part of their North American tour, scheduled as part of festivities for the 2018 Memorial Cup (hosted by the Regina Pats at nearby Brandt Centre).

Hockey

 * As part of the Regina Pats' centennial season and lead-up to the 2018 Memorial Cup, Mosaic Stadium was to host an outdoor Western Hockey League game against the Moose Jaw Warriors on February 18, 2018, along with an alumni game. However, due to slow ticket sales and weather concerns, the outdoor games were cancelled and moved back to Brandt Centre.

Soccer

 * On May 9, 2017, it was announced that Valencia CF of La Liga and the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League would host an international friendly at Mosaic Stadium on July 22, 2017. The match was played as part of an event branded as Soccer Day in Saskatchewan, which also included a women's match featuring the University of Regina Cougars hosting the University of Saskatchewan Huskies.
 * In 2017, Mosaic Stadium was listed as one of nine possible Canadian venues in United 2026, a joint U.S.-led bid to hold portions of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada and Mexico. However, Regina did not make the shortlist of 32.