Rows of spectator seats shielded from the climate by vaulted, umbrellalike canopies. Views of the sports activities subject from a public plaza. Pedestrians strolling previous, catching glimpses of the motion from an elevated pathway.
These had been among the many pictures of a redeveloped Memorial Stadium that Seattle leaders noticed in creative renderings final 12 months earlier than they determined to hunt out a non-public accomplice to demolish, rebuild and function the getting older Seattle Public Faculties-owned venue at Seattle Middle for as a lot as $250 million. SPS and Metropolis Corridor are bringing as a lot as $110 million to the desk however need an outdoor entity to cowl any extra prices and to handle the undertaking.
The conceptual design, put collectively by the structure agency Populous, is emphatically “not the final phrase on what we would like” out of a brand new Memorial Stadium, cautioned Marshall Foster, interim director for Seattle Middle, a city-owned campus. It stays to be seen whether or not a deluxe venue can appropriately serve college students and different makes use of, added Fred Podesta, interim deputy superintendent at SPS, saying nothing is ready in stone.
Nonetheless, SPS and metropolis leaders appreciated the $127,000 “imaginative and prescient and feasibility examine” by Populous sufficient to maneuver forward in 2022 with discussions a couple of public-private undertaking, so the examine is a window into what they’ve been considering.
Final week, these ideas and discussions led them to launch a joint request for proposals (RFP) — and to counsel {that a} new stadium may host live shows, cultural occasions, 2026 World Cup coaching and maybe skilled soccer and rugby, along with highschool sports activities and commencement ceremonies.
“While you begin to get severe about taking a step” like releasing an RFP, “you actually need to know that you’ve got a viable idea,” Foster stated. “That doesn’t imply you need to grasp plan it or design it, however you need to be sure to can match the items collectively … That’s what Populous did.”
It didn’t damage that Populous, a worldwide skilled in stadium structure, designed the current renovation of Seattle Middle’s KeyArena, which reopened as Local weather Pledge Enviornment in 2021. Local weather Pledge Enviornment’s developer and operator, Oak View Group, is anticipated to submit a Memorial Stadium proposal.
Previous research
The concept of redeveloping Memorial Stadium is a long time previous, with a number of different research previous the idea that Populous got here up with final 12 months.
In 2008, a Seattle Middle grasp plan known as for a brand new stadium to be constructed with grandstands on the east facet of a north-south athletic subject and imagined that the grandstands might be transformed right into a stage for live shows. The plan additionally known as for a “inexperienced lid” between the Worldwide Fountain and the stadium.
A 2017 examine for SPS additionally contemplated a brand new stadium, plus the development of a brand new highschool east of the venue, on an current car parking zone.
SPS didn’t embrace funds for Memorial Stadium in a 2019 property-tax levy however did subsequently embrace $66.5 million for the venue’s redevelopment in a levy that voters accepted final 12 months, drawing on extra research.
A 2019 examine for Metropolis Corridor and the Seattle Parks Basis included a number of redevelopment ideas, together with a north-south athletic subject and a multipurpose constructing on the present car parking zone, whereas a 2021 examine for SPS, forward of the 2022 levy, contemplated a fundamental stadium rebuild.
Populous idea
That fundamental rebuild is what the town requested Populous to broaden on, inviting the agency to evaluate what a extra bold undertaking may seem like and “develop participating visuals that talk the imaginative and prescient and help fundraising.”
Whereas the college district’s base funds may construct a brand new stadium with 4,500 seats, Populous was instructed to evaluate the viability of a brand new venue with 8,000 to 12,000 seats that might serve “a wide range of year-round makes use of,” together with SPS sports activities, cultural occasions, live shows and “skilled soccer and/or rugby matches.” As with prior research, Metropolis Corridor requested a design that may higher join a brand new stadium with the Worldwide Fountain.
The end result, which Populous introduced to civic leaders in June 2022, confirmed a 9,400-seat stadium with room for 1,000 extra spectators in premium containers. With a tough, estimated price ticket of $200 million to $250 million, the idea included expanded locker rooms and warmup areas, back-of-house live performance areas, a brand new SPS athletics administration workplace, a pedestrian and bike connector alongside the north facet of the stadium, roof canopies with photo voltaic panels and an open-space lid between the stadium and the Worldwide Fountain.
Populous drew inspiration from venues like The Highline in New York Metropolis, and the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids, Mich., and from stadiums in Aguascalientes, Mexico; Pärnu, Estonia; and Ger, France. For price benchmarks, the examine checked out stadiums constructed by a small college in Texas and by Main League Soccer golf equipment in Tennessee and Minnesota.
“Think about a stadium in an city park that creates higher alternatives and experiences for college kids for generations,” the presentation stated, mentioning the OL Reign of the Nationwide Ladies’s Soccer League and the Seattle Seawolves of Main League Rugby as potential companions and traders. “Ask your self … Do you imagine within the imaginative and prescient? Is that this proper for the individuals of Seattle? Would you be proud to ship this and for this to be a part of your legacy?”
Final November, Mayor Bruce Harrell and the Metropolis Council allotted $21 million for a Memorial Stadium undertaking and promised so as to add $19 million later.
Actual world
Whereas the work that Populous did was helpful “to get some concepts about what is likely to be attainable on the location” and whereas the renderings had been “lovely,” the June 2022 idea received’t dictate what occurs at Memorial Stadium, stated Podesta, the SPS chief. Final week’s RFP is the doc that’s really setting the preliminary parameters for the potential undertaking, he stated.
“This RFP is way extra essential,” as a result of legit proposals should meet the college district’s wants and make sense financially, Podesta stated.
The RFP doesn’t embrace a desired price ticket or price vary for the undertaking however says a brand new stadium must seat at the very least 8,000 individuals. It says SPS would get precedence scheduling from Sept. 1 by means of June 30 and says the town would get precedence scheduling for main festivals. Nonstudent makes use of would probably be concentrated throughout summers, Podesta stated. Town is fascinated with inventive ways in which Seattle Middle’s arts and cultural organizations may use the brand new venue, Foster added.
Theoretically, there might be a triple win for SPS, Seattle Middle and a non-public accomplice, Podesta stated, with SPS saving cash on stadium operations, college students getting a greater venue for his or her sports activities and occasions, Seattle Middle gaining an aesthetic asset and a accomplice making some cash. SPS will solely settle for a proposal that works properly for college kids, nonetheless, and if no proposal does that, then SPS will transfer forward with a fundamental rebuild, Podesta stated.
SPS doesn’t want a 9,400-seat stadium for its personal functions, as a result of pupil sports activities don’t entice that many spectators, Podesta stated. But SPS doesn’t need to promote the location, as a result of that may imply letting go of a conveniently situated venue for pupil sports activities and a public asset for Seattle Middle, he stated.
“The district is dedicated to investing in Memorial Stadium,” Podesta added. “Whether or not a partnership goes ahead or doesn’t … a brand new facility is coming. The purpose of the RFP is to resolve what number of entities are going to be concerned and what sort of facility it’s going to be.”
