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BC Place Re-design of
roof for soccer wins praise by Vancouver Whitecaps
Whitecaps president Bob Lenarduzzi
'blown away' with rendering, hopes Major League Soccer agrees
Ian Walker
Sun Friday, November, 07, 2008
It has history on its side. Ownership
is solid. And its club structure stands alone among its rivals in terms of developing
players and growing the game.
That said, the one big knock against
the Vancouver Whitecaps' bid to bring Major League Soccer to the city has been
the lack of a sport-specific stadium. It was a valid critique -- the key word
being was.
On Thursday, the Whitecaps and BC
Pavilion Corporation made public a snapshot of how BC Place Stadium -- with its
proposed new retractable roof -- might be configured in order to best accommodate
soccer events.
"I trust this will put to rest
any of those concerns," said Whitecaps president and general manager Bob
Lenarduzzi.
"I would question anybody to
suggest it's not a great venue. The way it's portrayed in the rendering, it's
a soccer-specific stadium."
Key features of the rendering include
a retractable roof and centrally hung, state-of-the-art electronic scoreboard,
floor-level seats and a flexible draping system. The upper deck draping looks
to seamlessly limit the capacity of the stadium to approximately 22,000 seats
from BC Place's maximum of 59,000. Additional planned soccer-specific renovations
include modular floor-level hospitality areas and a new synthetic FIFA-approved
pitch.
The rendering was part of Vancouver's
MLS bid book, which was submitted on Oct. 15.
"With the draping, the way it's
been done -- to allow for the view to the middle out to the clear blue sky and
the intimacy that provides to the lower bowl, the reconfiguration of the seats
so they are closer to the sidelines and behind both ends with the VIP area and
the South Siders supporters section -- it's as good as any venue in the league
right now," said Lenarduzzi. "I've had the benefit of seeing the renderings
for two or three months and when I saw them I was blown away. I expect others
will feel the same way."
The Whitecaps -- who currently play
in the second-tier United Soccer Leagues First Division, where they won its championship
this past season -- were one of seven groups to apply to MLS for an expansion
franchise, starting play in the 2011 season.
Montreal and Ottawa also submitted
bids, with the hope of joining Toronto FC in North American soccer's premier league.
Launched in 1996, MLS has grown from
a modest eight-team league that garnered little attention from the sports media
to a 14-team operation in 2008 which features one of the most famous athletes
on the planet, David Beckham. Seattle will join the league next season, followed
by Philadelphia in 2010.
The league is expected to make its
decision on the latest round of expansion sometime in the first quarter of 2009.
Earlier this year, the province announced
details of a two-phase renovation plan for BC Place. Phase 1 is now under way,
and will be completed before the 2010 Olympics.
The $65-million renovation plan for
Phase 1 includes improved access for the disabled and the redevelopment of all
common spaces, concessions, washrooms, exterior plazas, media facilities, dressing
rooms and general public areas.
The rendering involves Phase 2 of
the plan, which is scheduled to be completed in time for the start of the 2011
MLS season.
Lenarduzzi added no other stadiums
in MLS at this time have a retractable roof or centrally hung scoreboard system.
"We're confident that it eliminates
any concern of a venue here in Vancouver."
© The Vancouver
Sun 2008
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