SOUND CHECK: RFK Stadium officials said that the
stadium "is structurally sound," a day after "chunks of
concrete peeled off the underside of the stadium's upper
deck and struck empty seats below" during an MLS game. But
D.C. Sports & Entertainment Commission Chair John Richardson
said he did not want to "minimize the significance" of the
incident. Richardson added that "he was told that staff
engineers make regular visual inspections of the facility"
and he was "satisfied" (WASHINGTON POST, 8/27).
RISKY BUSINESS? In San Antonio, Tom Bower reports that
local business leaders are "calling on the city and county
to work out a deal to jointly manage" a new Spurs arena and
the Alamodome. Former Mayor Nelson Wolff says that many
leaders "have major concerns over the risk of building a
facility on county land near Freeman Coliseum that would
directly compete" with the Alamodome (EXPRESS-NEWS, 8/27).
LET'S GO TARGETING: In Philadelphia, Christopher Hepp
reports that the Phillies have "set a new target date --
October -- for completing plans to build a new stadium,
preferably at Broad and Spring Garden Streets." Phillies
Chair Bill Giles: "We have a goal of getting everything in
place by October" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 8/27).
READY TO ROAR: Lions COO Chuck Schmidt said that the
team "probably will try to break ground for their new
downtown stadium within the next four months." Stadium
plans "are still being finalized, but to open the stadium
date by the target date of 2002, the Lions would have to
break ground this year" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 8/27).
LET GO OF MY TECO: In Naples, Greg Hardwig reports that
the ECHL Everblades announced a 20-year, $7M naming rights
agreement with Tampa-based TECO Energy for Everblades Arena.
The company name "will be on the arena, at center ice, and
virtually everywhere else the Everblades Arena name appears"
(NAPLES DAILY NEWS, 8/27).
MORE NOTES: John McEnroe, on the Arthur Ashe Stadium at
the National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadow, N.Y., which
hosts the U.S. Open: "The stadium is way to big. I don't
know why they built it that big. ... It holds, what, 22,500
people? And way too often, there are too many empty seats"
(BOSTON GLOBE, 8/27)....Speedway Motorsports will add 13,000
seats to the 134,000-seat Bristol Motor Speedway. The
addition will be completed for the facility's 2000 spring
Winston Cup weekend (SMI)....In Las Vegas, Mark Anderson
wrote that "for the first time since" '72, grass "was on Sam
Boyd Stadium's playing surface Wednesday." The turf is part
of a $18M renovation to the stadium that includes a new
press box with suites and club seats (REVIEW-JOURNAL,
8/26)....In Nashville, Larry Woody reported that the city's
new $125M, 50,000-seat racetrack will be called Nashville
Superspeedway. Dover Downs Entertainment President Denis
McGlynn: "We wanted a name that would convey to fans all
around the country where the track is located" (Nashville
TENNESSEAN, 8/26)....Little League Baseball "kicked off a
campaign" to raise $15M to "complement" $5M "already in the
bank" for projects, including a stadium alongside
Williamsport (PA)-based Lamade Stadium (USA TODAY, 8/27).