In Green Bay, Charles Davis notes thousands of Packers fans on Thursday "attended the unveiling of about 7,000 new seats in the renovated south end zone section at Lambeau Field." Packers President & CEO Mark Murphy "took part in a ribbon-cutting ceremony." Of the 7,000 new seats, about "5,400 are general spots and the other 1,600 are premium seats for season-ticket members and sponsor partners." Packers officials said that they "wanted to preserve the iconic feeling of the stadium and build upon it." Fans said that the renovations were "seamless as they walked around the stadium to check out the upgrades." They "gushed over the 14 viewing platforms, which allow fans to stand while watching the game" (GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE, 7/19).
BALL'S IN YOUR COURT: Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon during a luncheon featuring St. Louis-area business leaders said that he is waiting on Rams Owner Stan Kroenke to "propose improvements" to Edward Jones Dome and "perhaps other ways for the team to make money off a stadium and surrounding properties." In St. Louis, Tim Logan noted Nixon has "emerged as an apparently key figure in the stadium talks" after the St. Louis Convention & Visitors Committee "formally rejected the team's proposal for an estimated $700 million in stadium upgrades earlier this month" (STLTODAY.com, 7/18).
UNDER REVIEW: STYLE WEEKLY's Edwin Slipek noted the new $10.8M Redskins training center was "designed by 3north Architects, with the Timmons Group as civil engineer and landscaper, and Hourigan Construction as the contractor." It is a "low-slung and sprawling new two-story, unabashedly modernistic building." The first floor "reads as a podium for the glass-enclosed floor above." Its "dark beige, concrete-block outer walls are given a hint of rustication by the intermittent injection of lighter-colored blocks." The second floor, the "glory of the handsome building, is a thing of expansive and beautiful transparency." Its high outer walls are "lined with double-paned glass." Three "designated areas await future tenants." Two open balconies on the building's west side "overlook a drill and twin practice fields" (STYLEWEEKLY.com, 7/16).
