In an interview with Cool Cleveland a few years ago, Cleveland State University Dean of the College of Urban Affairs Mark Rosentraub, an academic expert in the role of sports in urban economic development, had this to say on whether investing in new stadiums is worth the public dollar:

The stadiums have definitely been worth it for Cleveland. Through making this public investment, the city has been able to reap additional taxes and come out ahead. There were very high levels of private sector investment around the stadiums during the 1990s, at a time when the economy was decentralizing, and this was good for Cleveland.

Between 1991 to 2004, 25 of the National Football League's 32 teams "moved into new or gussied-up stadiums," according to The Wall St. Journal. In the future, there could be as many as eight new stadiums.

Like many businesses, the big sports enterprises try to minimize risk, and, in NFL stadiums, two of the many risks include poor performance by the team and inclement weather. These have driven stadium design. To circumvent the team-standing risk, stadium boosters organize with a range of local sports teams across the spectrum and beyond: conventions, concerts, dining and shopping, among other multiple uses that stadium owners can rely on for rent.

For instance, the forthcoming Lucas Oil Stadium that will replace the RCA Dome, which has been home to the NFL's Colts since their arrival in Indianapolis over 23 years ago, will expand the downtown convention center significantly. Lucas Oil Stadium will be a three-deck, seven-level multi-use building with a retractable roof that will seat 63,000 for football and 70,000 or more for NCAA basketball, concerts and other special events.

Of course, we can't control the weather. In fact, weather seems more prone to wild swings than is team performance. To minimize this risk — considering each team's tens of thousands of football fans, not to mention highly insured players — many new stadiums rely on sliding roofs to protect the fans and players from rain and, in some regions, from snow and sleet.

Let's take a look at the design of the future home for the Dallas Cowboys:

• The 14,100-ton structural steel domed roof is supported by two 17-foot-wide by 35-foot-deep arch box trusses spanning 1,225 feet.
• The 660,800-square-foot retractable roof will feature a 256-foot-wide by 410-foot-long roof opening.
• A rack-and-pinion drive system will open and close the two bi-parting mechanized roof panels in less than 12 minutes.
• Both end zones will feature 180-foot-wide by 120-foot-high glass-operable doors that will open in 18 minutes, making them the tallest glass retractable doors in the world.
• One 50-foot-tall by 180-foot-long video screen weighing 600 tons will be positioned along the long axis of the stadium, and two 27-foot-tall by 48-foot-long video screens will face each end zone of the stadium for the fans' viewing pleasure.

Additional technical features: a canted exterior wall, with an 86-foot high glass, curtain-wall surface; and 40- to 60-foot soil nails weighing 670 tons (together) that anchor the retaining wall of the facility.

Credit: Dallas Cowboys / HKS

The stadium will be one of the largest domed roofs in the world. "When this new 80,000-seat home of NFL's Dallas Cowboys opens in 2009, the world's longest single-span roof will be part of the 2.3-million-square-foot stadium," according to Walter P. Moore.

(To view anticipated imagery of how the structure will appear, visit Arlington's site or the Dallas Cowboy's site.)

The Colt's future home and the new Cowboys stadium are two of six sports stadiums with retractable roofs designed by Walter P. Moore, according to a July interview with John Aniol, the lead structural engineer for the new Cowboys Stadium project. According to Arlington.org, other such stadiums include Minute Park in Houston (Astros, MLB), Reliant Stadium (Texans, NFL); currently under design, the new Florida Marlins ballpark (MLB); and the new Arizona Cardinals Stadium (NFL). (See: Gridiron Gumption and Top 10 Creative Global Constructs)

Others cities around the globe are also building high-capacity football stadiums.

In England, the new 90,000-seat Wembley Stadium is the second-largest football (meaning "soccer") stadium in the world (after Barcelona, Spain's Camp Nou). The new 6,350-ton roof covers an area of more than 45,000 square meters (11 acres), four acres of which are movable and rise to 52 m (170 ft.) above the field. With a span of 317 m (1040 ft), the arch is currently the longest single-span roof structure in the world and is 134 m (440 ft) above the level of the external concourse, which is designed not to cast a shadow on the field. [Source: Wembley National Stadium]

Late last month, the New York Giants defeated the Miami Dolphins in the new Wembley stadium — the first time a regular season NFL match has been staged outside North America.

Earlier:

Gridiron Gumption

Top 10 Creative Global Constructs

Resources

Stadiums of the NFL: Future Stadiums

NFL Stadium Guide

Dallas Cowboys New Stadium

Walter P. Moore

HKS Inc.

Q&A with John Aniol
by Kristi Scales
Arlington.org, July 2007

Urban Affairs Dean Has Lesson Plan for Cleveland
by Lee Chilcote
CoolCleveland.com

Wembley Stadium

Additional:

Cowboys Build for the Future by Honoring the Past
DallasCowboys.com

Cowboys Stadium Steel Arch Goes Up
by Eric Aasen
DallasNews.com, July 10, 2007