The Stadium March 30 Dome's new look geared for the fans By KEVIN WELLS of The Tampa Tribune Originally published March 30, 1998 ST. PETERSBURG - Nearly obsolete from the start, Tropicana Field has undergone a $70 million facelift that will carry it into the 21st century. It was a sad procession. Bill Murray and Katy Feeney, representatives of Major League Baseball, toured the ThunderDome, shook their heads and scratched quick notes in their pads. Their guide, prospective baseball owner Vince Naimoli, was nervous. Very nervous. We've come so far, will this place be our doom? Naimoli was put in an awkward position. Here, at the culmination of his marathon struggle to bring baseball to the Tampa Bay area, he was showcasing one of world's most unattractive domed stadiums - the same one former baseball commissioner Peter Ueberroth once warned St. Petersburg not to build. Very little was in the Patterson, N.J., native's favor - he was courting MLB by trying to showcase an ill-configured, outdated mausoleum. Florida's tourism board would do as well flaunting Yeehaw Junction. But Naimoli had no other option. Love it or hate it, St. Petersburg's cathedral to baseball (cough) was where his team would perform. He told MLB's evaluation team he would oblige their critiques, provide the necessary modifications and vowed the dome be completed by Opening Day. ... If in fact there would be an Opening Day here. Baseball bit. After nauseating years of watching franchise opportunities atrophy at the last moment, the 19-year odyssey was over. Tampa Bay was awarded a franchise on March 9, 1995 - just days after Naimoli's promises of a dome transfusion. Alas, the city of St. Petersburg, Naimoli and his skeleton staff, partied. The day after, they turned to the hangover off I-275. Baseball said the dome needed Ruthian modifications. It needed wider concourses, additional points of purchase and greater vertical circulation. AstroTurf, clay, clubhouses, dugouts and additional suites, restrooms, elevators, escalators and administrative offices had yet to be installed. And it was unlovable. Ugly. It blended the warmth of a cockroach with the elegance of a rhinoceros. Tourists could have mistaken it for a cinder block factory. ``The dome was functionally and economically obsolete,'' Lescher and Mahoney chief architect Stan Meradith said. ``People would have been ticked off if it opened as it was. ... It may have worked for one game. ``There was a whole plethora of inadequacies. It was the last in the era of concrete domes without a retractable roof. The unfortunate thing is that [the dome] was [like] buying the last year of a model run of car with the same body design that started 20-some years ago.'' Originally called the Florida Suncoast Dome, it was hurriedly and controversially erected in 1988 in a mad-dash attempt to lure an existing or expansion baseball team to Florida's west coast. But a team never came - the Twins, Rangers, White Sox, Mariners and Giants each sniffed at St. Petersburg - and the dome was never completed. So it sat on a former landfill in an obscure section of town, obtrusive, jilted and incomplete. When the Tampa-based architectural firm of Lescher and Mahoney won the bid to redevelop the dome - it was selected over HOK, Heery and other leading nationwide firms - it had its work cut out. Naimoli was asking the firm to pull personality from an embalming room. ``This was the most difficult project our group has done. We spent months preparing just to get the bid,'' Meradith said. ``The past two years, Vince and I have averaged a phone call or fax every day. There was so much to do. ``But you have to have passion, and we have a team of passionate architects who cared about working on this job. I believe in my heart that we were the best company to do it. ``The contrast from where the dome was 10 years ago is dramatic.'' From the outset, Naimoli, Meradith and his corps of architects had a clear vision: They wanted to convert the dome into a living, breathing ballpark that masqueraded the best of past stadiums into a cutting-edge facility for today. Naimoli adored the colorful vision the Tampa-based architectural firm planned for what was renamed Tropicana Field. He also craved the city-scape element it proposed, complete with dozens of amenities within the dome. Because there are only a smattering of bars, restaurants and shops in proximity to Tropicana Field, Naimoli wanted to build a quasi-downtown within the stadium. The result is Center Field Street. ``[Lescher and Mahoney] was able to blend modern conveniences with baseball's glorious past, which is exactly what we wanted,'' Naimoli said. ``Fans will find this ballpark to be what it was intended for - a baseball stadium made for the 21st century, where people can relax and have a lot of fun. The dome will be alive.'' More than $70 million in state, city, county and Devil Rays dollars have been poured into Tropicana Field since it was originally taxpayer-built for $135 million. After realizing outside funds wouldn't cover the cost of the revitalization project, Naimoli convinced his partners to kick in an additional $35 million. ``We had time to make the dome what we wanted,'' Naimoli said of the 16-month renovation. ``And that is a dome that radiates life.'' Life should be comfortable. Because of 310,000 square feet added to the outside rim of the dome, a steady stream of 40,000-plus fans should be able to move freely about the concourse. Although additional walking space was probably the least sexy of the renovations, it was the most crucial. Tampa Bay Lightning hockey fans were vexed over the lack of maneuverability during intermissions and long lines at concession stands. Naimoli more than tripled points of purchase (about 290 total), added several restrooms, seven escalators, nine elevators and gave the dome one of the widest stadium concourses in the world. ``Now fans can grab a drink and a hot dog without missing an out,'' Naimoli said. The Devil Rays want fans to enjoy the game, of course, but don't mind whether they're planted in their seats watching or getting their shoes shined, shopping at Eckerd or tasting wine. Naimoli wants fans to mill about, dine, consult a travel agent, puff a cigar, sip a margarita. Mindful of the tourist volume, he said there is something for everyone, and vows the 2,000 tons of additional air conditioning will provide ultimate comfort. Traditionalists assuredly will curse baseball being played in an enclosed stadium, but Rays General Manger Chuck LaMar said an indoor facility was a necessity. ``In the state of Florida, it's the only way to go. You'd rather play in 72-degree temperature every day than fight thunderstorms and 98-degree humidity,'' LaMar said. ``Fans can drive an hour and a half and know there will be a ballgame played. The dome suits our needs and the fans' needs to a tee.'' South Florida's abrupt late-afternoon thunderstorms canceled countless batting practices and interrupted or canceled dozens of games since the Florida Marlins began play in 1993. A main reason Marlins owner Wayne Huizenga went on a salary-dumping spree this winter was because of a lack of patronage. He said heat, humidity and rainstorms kept thousands of fans away from Pro Player Stadium. ``Fans coming to games from a 20-, 30-, 40-, 50-mile radius will appreciate the fact that they know they're going to get a game,'' said Rick Nafe, Rays vice president of stadium operations. ``And the people coming down from Boston, New York or Toronto will also know they'll see games played.'' In an attempt to soothe the outdoorsy set, Lescher and Mahoney and the Devil Rays have collaborated to give the dome an alfresco touch. For starters, a daily sunset will be celebrated on DiamondVision. Palm trees and a variety of plantings will be abundant throughout the dome, providing glimpses of Florida's landscape. ``The Beach,'' Devil Rays officials have echoed, may evolve into Tropicana Field's trademark, in the same manner Fenway Park is known for its Green Monster and Orioles Park at Camden Yards for its warehouse. ``The Beach,'' catering to spring breakers and baseball's rapidly diminishing 20-something crowd, is located in the cantilevered section of seats beyond the left field wall, and features a tiki bar, frozen drinks, palm trees and island music. Ushers, who will be dressed in beach gear, may refer to you as ``Dude.'' Construction workers punched out a section of the exterior and added windows and skylights to allow natural light to reach areas of the The Beach concourse, stands and playing field. Most of the concourse level will be enclosed with green-tinted non-reflective glass. ``The Taste of Tampa Bay,'' a food court featuring a selection of some of Florida's finest fare, should be the main stopping point of the dome's signature amenity - Center Field Street. The Columbia Restaurant, Outback Steakhouse, Bongo's Beach Bar and Grill, Cafe Creole, Cafe Beignet, Arigato Japanese Steakhouse, Mrs. B's and Atwaters will be open for dining year-round. ``I don't think you'll be able to find a food that we don't have,'' Naimoli said. Following dinner, if fans have time to spare before the first pitch, they may visit a variety of shops, including a cigar bar, newsstand, drug store, barber shop, post office, bank, team merchandise store, travel agency, a three-story interactive family entertainment center, an auto showcase and a climbing wall, all located within Center Field Street - an impressive spinoff of Camden Yard's Eutaw Street. The Brew Pub and the three-tiered, 350-seat Batter's Eye restaurant also will draw a gathering. With non-reflective glass on the playing-field side of the fence, Batter's Eye patrons will be able to watch the game from ground level just beyond the center-field wall. Quinton McCracken could be inches from your beer mug making a catch at the wall, and never know it. The 8,800-square-foot restaurant will feature what Naimoli describes as ``an upscale eating area with a `Flori-bian' theme,'' along with popular dishes from the city of that night's visiting team. Nearly 250 of the seats will have a view of the field and be sold as game tickets, as will 80 adjacent seats in the outfield section. At the Brew Pub, a 220-seat ground-level sports bar and grill, patrons can order a specially-brewed Devil Rays ale and regionalized cuisine. The Pub, which will feature brewery artifacts, will be open year-round. ``I can't wait to see people's faces when they see the transformation,'' Nafe said. ``This place will surprise a lot of people.'' Naimoli and Meradith thought it was important to transform the predominantly gray color on the exterior of the dome to bright colors reflective of Florida's landscape. ``Shell coral, varying shades of green and white are the colors we thought were most indigenous to the classic turn-of-the-century architecture in the Tampa Bay area,'' Meradith said. ``So that's what we went with.'' Vast amounts of exterior glass were added to various sections of the dome, making it seem more vibrant from the outside. ``People can look through [the glass] and see energy and life inside,'' Naimoli said. Inside, baseball murals depicting different eras of the game will greet fans near concession stands. With the existing parking layout, approximately 70 percent of patrons will walk up to the dome from the east, so Meradith designed a large rotunda entrance - almost an exact replica of the rotunda at Brooklyn's old Ebbets Field - on the east side of the dome. A rotunda entrance opens into a plaza lined with palm tress and an elaborate mosaic. Upon entrance through the rotunda, Center Field Street is directly to the right. Perhaps the greatest task for Meradith was transforming the dome's ``cookie-cutter'' dimensions into an asymmetrical ballpark, complete with field-geometry idiosyncrasies and character. To accomplish this, Meradith worked closely with Robert Adair, a physics professor at Yale University and expert in the physics of baseball. Adair was asked to determine the ``right'' home run distance from the plate to the outfield wall. He took into account altitude, relative humidity, air currents within the dome and ambient air temperature. The results of his findings, he said, put Tropicana Field in the 50 percentile of MLB home run production. Don't expect the dome to play like Denver's cozy Coors Field, but don't expect Atlanta's cavernous Turner Field either. Adair said the height of the outfield fence should be 9 feet, 6 inches - so balls bouncing on the warning track will be kept in the park while also providing the potential for dramatic over-the-fence catches by outfielders. Naimoli wanted an asymmetrical outfield, much like Ebbets Field, Shibe Park and Fenway. Meradith obliged, nearly replicating Yankee Stadium's dimensions. ``As a student of the game, you want your outfield fence to play like no other. You want your guys to play the outfield wall like a fiddle,'' Meradith said. ``And then the other guys have a disadvantage. The outfield wall will obviously be to the advantage of the Devil Rays.'' Meradith's team greatly increased the intimacy of the seating, making only a 50-foot distance from home plate to the backstop - one of the shortest in baseball. He also added hundreds of premium seats down the lines, decreasing foul territory to bring fans closer to the game. Red Tennessee clay - specially selected to match the color of the warning track - and spongy Kelly green AstroTurf 12 will give Tropicana Field a look no other domed stadium has - enhanced by the only all-dirt basepaths in a domed stadium. The warning track is 20 feet wide, rather the customary 15, in an attempt to keep more balls in the park. Our video partners