Stadium Updates

[rdavies]

Caretaker's Update from Tim Hortons Field
The Caretaker, Bob Young, checks in from the site of Tim Hortons Field June 11, 2014

[AngeloV]

Caretaker's Update from Tim Hortons Field
The Caretaker, Bob Young, checks in from the site of Tim Hortons Field June 11, 2014

I wish we had a Bob Young.

[Argocister]

I wish we had a Bob Young.

What's nice with Bob Young is his character .... And he fills the Caretaker role perfectly.

MLSE.... If that ever happens.... Not so much of a character.

We'll just have to keep Pinball!

[rdavies]

I really hope with the new stadium the Cats prosper and Bob can put some coin back in his pocket.

[argos1873]

I wish we had a Bob Young.

Like seriously, there isn't a single Toronto based multimillionaire who wishes to step up to the plate, and buy the Argos? That's pretty sad.

[gilthethrill]

What's nice with Bob Young is his character .... And he fills the Caretaker role perfectly.

MLSE.... If that ever happens.... Not so much of a character.

We'll just have to keep Pinball!

Pinball is not as visible as he once was.

[ArgoRavi]

Pinball is not as visible as he once was.

Pinball is more of a team ambassador for the Argos than anything else. I doubt that he is involved in any organizational decisions and probably spends most of his time these days working with his charitable foundation.

[rdavies]

Tks to Patrick Barry at ticats.ca

Tim Hortons Field June 15/2014

[1argoholic]

When's it supposed to be finished?

I agree with argos1873. I've mentioned that many times. It is sad.

[rdavies]

When's it supposed to be finished? I agree with argos1873. I've mentioned that many times. It is sad.

THF will be occupation ready for the July 26 opening.

Does that mean everything will be completed on that day? No, but there will be some wicked penalties if certain conditions are not met. Missing a Ticat game will cost the builders a cool million, let's start with that. So I don't think anyone is trying to stretch out the project to get a bigger payday.

The last statement that came from the builders was that it could take up to eight weeks after July 26 to be totally complete. That doesn't mean eight weeks after, it could be two weeks, or one week. According to IO they have made up a lot of time recently and they are confident they will be occupation ready by the opening game. And if I have yet to see anything (from any source) to the contrary.

My favourite gauge is Hamilton city councilor Lloyd Ferguson (a builder) who raised holy hell when he found out the stadium was behind schedule months ago. He was later convinced they did a lot of catching up and he hasn't made any statements since so he seems content.

Yes, it will be close, but since most of us here aren't builders and have no clue, I'll take my information from the people that have the experience. And for those who keep wanting to compare to IGF that was a different kettle of fish altogether.

Hopefully artificial turf and seats will be mostly complete by the end of the month and that strong visual in itself should make the uninformed feel better about the project.

Tim Hortons Field June 16/2014




TD Place Ottawa June 10/2014

[rdavies]

TD Place Ottawa June 16/2014

It's getting close

[ArgoRavi]

Wow! That Ottawa stadium looks like a far cry from old Frank Clair Stadium.

[Wobbler]

Agreed. Not only are the stands nicer, getting rid of all the green netting and those soccer nets was a good move.

[Neely2005]

Why would you make that comparison when Ottawa already had a stand ready to be refurbished and already started refurbing before Hamilton even got started. This project has been plagued by haters and conspiracy wingnuts since day one. Still don't know why because if you follow modern stadium construction (and planning for the future) it is way ahead of the curve.

It may not be fully completed by July 26, you may have to drink your beer from a bottle poured to a cup and you may have a long lineup to take a leak in one of the possibly few finished cans, but you'll have a seat and watch players playing on their new FieldTurf Revolution field.

Just commenting on the 2 pictures. Ottawa looks much further along.

Also it's been my experience that renovating something usually takes longer than tearing it down and starting from scratch. So I'm not sure that Ottawa had any advantage over Hamilton in that regard.

[ArgoGabe22]

Also it's been my experience that renovating something usually takes longer than tearing it down and starting from scratch. So I'm not sure that Ottawa had any advantage over Hamilton in that regard.

Hamilton started from scratch. They decided to rotate the endzones ever since their star signing, Sandro DeAngelis couldn't hit a FG.

[Argo]

I wish we had a Bob Young.

I agree wholeheartedly, and at the risk of conflating this thread with a second theme, it's fair to state that in some sense Toronto doesn't deserve the Argonauts; however, there's nowhere to relocate.

[shayman]

Like seriously, there isn't a single Toronto based multimillionaire who wishes to step up to the plate, and buy the Argos? That's pretty sad.

Bob Young is based in North Carolina, btw.

[rdavies]

Tks to Migs at skyscraperpage

Mosaic Stadium Regina, Canada
Size - 33,000 permanent seats
Completion - Under construction
Client - HKS Sports & Entertainment Group
Collaboration - B+H is Architect of Record; HKS Sports & Entertainment Group is Lead Design and Sports Architect

B+H is the Architect of Record for the new Mosaic Stadium at Evraz Place, the iconic keystone project of the city’s Regina Revitalization Initiative and new home of the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders.

With a standard capacity of 33,000 spectators which is expandable to 40,000, the flexible design will allow the stadium to host a variety of events.

An exceptional user experience will be provided with a translucent spectator roof and open south end zone connecting the stadium to the community and create a feeling of spaciousness, a general admission lounge accessible to all users and 68 per cent of seats located in a sunken lower bowl.

The Stadium’s base will be clad in native stone to reflect the region’s geology.

Substantial completion is expected in August 2016, with the first game being played in the stadium in June 2017. The project team, led by PCL, also includes HKS Sports & Entertainment Group as Lead Design and Sports Architect.

[rdavies]

Tim Hortons Field June 21/2014

[rdavies]

Ticats will play in unfinished stadium for most of the season
Samantha Craggs, CBC News Jun 24, 2014

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats will be playing in an incomplete stadium for nearly the whole season, as construction is now acknowledged to be more than three months behind schedule.

But officials say none of the a outstanding work will be a "show stopper," and fans will still have a good time.

But on opening day, fans at the new Tim Horton’s Field will have to do so without a scoreboard and the full complement of washrooms.

The new stadium will still be a construction site when fans file in for their first glimpse at the Hamilton Tiger-Cats home opener on July 26. Its new "substantial completion date" is in early October, a few weeks before the end of the CFL season.

The original substantial completion date was June 30. But officials said Tuesday that weather and the bankruptcy of a subcontractor caused the delay.

"In order to play a game, we need a field, we need seats, we need lights and we need an occupancy permit, a temporary one," said Glenn Gibson, presidents of the Ticats. "And that implies the premises is safe to conduct a game. I don’t see any show stoppers here unless some trucks get held up at the border with our turf on them.”

Tuesday's announcement was the latest in a series of acknowledgements the project was falling behind schedule, dating back to January. At that time, the stadium was said to be two weeks behind. By the end of March, the project was said to be at most six weeks behind schedule.

No scoreboard

Opening day will be missing a scoreboard and a full set of washrooms. Outdoor landscaping won't be finished, and there may be incomplete air conditioning and concession stands.

Gibson and city officials gave an update on the progress at a media conference at city hall Tuesday morning, assuring people there will be football in Hamilton on July 26.

It will still technically be a construction site on that date, said Gerry Davis, the city’s director of public works.

"It will be a temporary use. Get the game in there, get out and the contractor goes back in," he said. "The finishings won't all be there but the guts of it…are very critical."

Ontario Sports Solutions, the consortium building the $145-million stadium, doesn’t anticipate any issues when it applies for an occupancy permit on July 15, said John McKendrick, executive vice-president at Infrastructure Ontario.

Cost effective

If all goes well, the city will grant the permit by July 21. McKendrick couldn’t recall a time when one of his projects wasn’t granted a permit.

The stadium will be "cost effective" and "high quality," McKendrick said.

"Most fans won’t notice it," he said of the unfinished parts. "The difference might be that getting beer in cans instead of beer from the tap. It’s going to be a safe, quality site."

The Ticats have a contingency plan if they can’t play in the stadium, Gibson said. But he’s not saying what it is because he’s confident the team won’t need it.