Mercedes-Benz Stadium

Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Location	Atlanta, Georgia
Broke ground	May 19, 2014
Opened	August 26, 2017
Owner	Georgia World Congress Center Authority
Operator	AMB Sports and Entertainment Group
Surface	FieldTurf CORE
Construction cost	$1.6 billion (projected)
Architect	HOK tvsdesign Goode Van Syke Stanley Beaman & Sears
Project Manager	ICON Venue Group
Structural engineer	Buro Happold/Hoberman
Services engineer	WSP
General Contractor	HHRM JV (Comprising Hunt Construction Group, Holder Construction, H. J. Russell & Co. & C. D. Moody Construction Co.)
Tenants	Atlanta Falcons (NFL) (2017–present) Atlanta United FC (MLS) (2017–present) Peach Bowl (NCAA) (2017–present) SEC Championship Game (NCAA) (2017–present) Celebration Bowl (NCAA) (2017-present) Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game (NCAA) (2017-present)
Capacity	American Football: 71,000 (expandable to 75,000) Soccer: 42,500 (expandable to 71,000, standing room at least 73,019)

Mercedes-Benz Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Atlanta, Georgia that serves as the home of the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) and the Atlanta United FC of Major League Soccer. The idea of a new stadium for the team to replace the Georgia Dome, the team's home since 1992, was first reported in May 2010. The total cost was estimated as high as $1.6 billion.

Proposal timeline

2010

In May 2010, it was reported by multiple news outlets that the Atlanta Falcons were interested in demolishing the Georgia Dome and replacing it with a newly constructed open-air stadium. The team was first pursuing a new stadium because of both the team's desire to play outdoors, and Falcons' team owner Arthur Blank's interest in hosting another Super Bowl. The stadium was also pursued as a possible bid for a venue of an upcoming FIFA World Cup.

2011

Kansas City-based architectural firm Populous released comprehensive plans for the proposed stadium in February 2011. Populous' early cost estimate for the project was $700 million. According to the master plan, the stadium would have a maximum capacity of 71,000, but can expand to 75,000 for special events such as the Super Bowl. It will also feature multiple club levels, suites and exhibition area.

2012

In April 2012, Populous released a new price estimate of $947.7 million, which was significantly higher than the previous proposal of $700 million. In April 2012, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that if a deal is reached, the new stadium's construction would be expected to begin in 2014, with the Falcons to begin regular-season play in 2017. The proposed location of the new stadium is a large parking lot in Atlanta's Vine City neighborhood, which is less than a mile north of the Georgia Dome's current location. Once construction is complete, the Georgia Dome would subsequently be demolished.

On August 24, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that an official deal could be reached on the construction of a new stadium by the end of 2012. They also reported on September 10 that Atlanta mayor Kasim Reed said site improvements could likely bump the total cost to $1.2 billion; however, that does not increase the actual building cost, which still remains at an estimated $948 million.

On December 10, the Georgia World Congress Center Authority approved, in a unanimous decision, the blueprint and most of the agreement terms for the new stadium plans. According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution article, the term sheet is non-binding and changes could be made at anytime in regards to the stadium's construction. Stadium location, however, is yet to be worked out; proposed locations being reported are both within walking distance of the Georgia Dome, with one site being located one-half mile north, and the other being one block directly south, at the one of the stadium's existing parking lots. The project made national headlines for the first time in 2012 on December 15, with team owner Arthur Blank stating in the New York Times that he would rather a new stadium be constructed than a "remodeling job" of the Georgia Dome.

2013

During a January 10, 2013 press conference, Atlanta mayor Kasim Reed expressed his optimism and confidence in the construction of the new stadium; he also mentioned the possibility of the new stadium helping the city compete for its first Major League Soccer team.

The new stadium will be built in the area in front of where Georgia Dome currently stands.

On March 7, 2013, the Atlanta Falcons and the city of Atlanta agreed to build the new downtown stadium. The maximum public contribution for the project is $200 million, coming from the hotel-motel tax in Atlanta and unincorporated Fulton County. The Atlanta City Council officially approved the stadium on March 19, 2013. The council voted 11-4 in favor of the use of city hotel-motel taxes to pay $200 million toward construction costs and potentially several times that toward costs of financing, maintaining and operating the stadium through 2050. On May 21, 2013, the NFL approved a $200 million loan to the Falcons organization for the purpose of building the stadium.

On June 18, 2013, it was announced that the Falcons have completed a full conceptual design of the proposed new stadium, and that they have secured the initial approval to proceed with the schematic design phase. According to Doug Farrar's Shutdown Corner, "The stadium will seat approximately 70,000 people, with 180 luxury suites and 7,500 club seats." The main agency involved will be 360 Architecture, partnered with three other architectural firms. The estimated cost of the facility is $1 billion.

2014

Arthur Blank indicated the groundbreaking of the New Falcons stadium would be conducted the last week of March 2014. Just after Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive was closed permanently, the Mount Vernon Baptist Church held its last Sunday service on March 9 before the historic church was demolished. Due to legal issues surrounding the issuing of bonds, the stadium did not break ground in March 2014. Instead the ground was officially broken in a ceremony led by Mayor Reed on May 19, 2014.

Design

The pinwheel-shaped roof can open and close based on weather conditions.

The winning design, submitted by 360 Architecture (since acquired by HOK), featured an eight-panel retractable roof that resembles a pinwheel, and a glass wall that opens with the roof, to allow in fresh air.

The Falcons new stadium will feature 8 triangular translucent panels, that when open will create the illusion of a birds wings extended. Surrounding the opening of the roof will be a halo video board that will enclose the playing surface, stretching from one of the 10 yard lines to the other and then curving around the end zones to complete the oval.

In January 2015, the Falcons announced the hiring of Daktronics, a South Dakota-based firm, to build the stadium's electronics display. The announced features include a circular 58-foot-by-1,100-foot circular LED board that would ring the opining of the stadium's roof, and would be "three times as large as the current largest single display board in the NFL" installed at EverBank Field in Jacksonville (also built by Daktronics). In addition, the company plans to install more than 20,000 square feet of other LED boards, including field-level advertising boards for soccer games.

The venue will include a 100-yard bar that will stretch the length of the football field in the upper concourse, along with a fantasy football lounge and premium club seating at field level, behind the teams benches.

The mechanical curtains close off the upper bowl from the rest of the stadium.

Architect Bill Johnson said the circular opening in the roof was inspired by the Roman Pantheon ("Pantheon" was also the working name for the building design). The roof was designed to be made of a clear, lightweight polymer material that can adjust its opacity to control light, and much of the exterior will be clear polymer or glass to allow views to the outside. The middle concourse and upper bowl were eliminated in the east end zone to allow for an unobstructed view of the Atlanta skyline.

Atlanta MLS team General Manager Jim Smith said the design had "soccer in mind from the very beginning", pointing to the retracting lower bowl seats to widen the field, and mechanized curtains that limits the capacity to about 29,000 and makes the stadium feel more intimate.

Costs and funding

In December 2014, the Georgia World Congress Center's board of governors approved a resolution to raise the cost of the stadium to $1.2 billion. The stadium was initially slated to cost $1 billion, then rose to $1.2 billion in October 2013.

The city has agreed to contribute $200 million in stadium bonds, but with additional tax revenues and with the state of Georgia contributing $40 million for parking expansion, public spending is expected to reach near $600 million.

In January 2015, the Falcons announced the sale of personal seat licenses (PSL) costing up to $45,000 per seat, depending on the section of the stadium. The most expensive tickets will be priced at $385 per game, in addition to one-time PSL fees, for the first three years.

Major events

• In April 2014, the Peach Bowl, one of the six rotating semifinal sites for the College Football Playoff, announced it would bid to host the national championship game upon the stadium's completion.

• On November 15, 2014, the NCAA announced New Atlanta Stadium will hold the men's college basketball Final Four in 2020.

External links

• Official website
• Construction cam
• New Stadium Project (NSP)
• Master Plan Phase III – New Open Air NFL Stadium