The 49ers Thursday kicked off the move to Santa Clara with a "gold-and-scarlet-filled groundbreaking" for the team's new $1.2B stadium that "looked more like a Super Bowl halftime show than a traditional hardhat-and-shovel photo op," according to a front-page piece by Mike Rosenberg of the SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS. 49ers CEO Jed York told a "grandstand full of supporters -- many in gold-rush" style helmets, "Welcome to the site of your new home on Sundays." As the York family and city leaders "dug shovels into the 49ers logo on the ceremonial field," the team also announced the stadium's "first corporate sponsor, San Jose-based Brocade -- although the lucrative stadium naming rights deal is still up for grabs." Rosenberg writes the 49ers "went out of their way to make sure Thursday's ceremony had a hometown feel, complete with appearances by Santa Clara's mayor, local color guard" and Miss Santa Clara. City officials "hope the stadium will spark more activity in the area like new restaurants and shops." City officials and the visitor's bureau have been "trying for decades to create an entertainment area to bring tax dollars and a sense of identity to the city" (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 4/20). York said, "For everybody who worked so hard for such a long time to make this a reality, I think this is the culmination where it's been 'Is it going to happen?' I don't think there's any question any more that we're building a new football stadium" (CSNBAYAREA.com, 4/19). York "reiterated that the 49ers plan to bid on hosting the 50th (and) 51st Super Bowl that will be held" in '16 and '17. In Oakland, Cam Inman notes before putting a "ceremonial shovel into the ground," York called Thursday's "festivities 'surreal' and compared it to what it must be like after players win championships" (OAKLAND TRIBUNE, 4/20). In S.F., Gwen Knapp notes it was "impossible to watch the ceremony without some wonder, over the fact that the seemingly interminable task to replace [Candlestick Park] actually had happened and what the moment said about" S.F. (S.F. CHRONICLE, 4/20).
A NEW BRO-MANCE: In San Jose, Eli Segall reports as part of its deal with the 49ers to be a Founding Partner of the facility, Brocade will "provide the wireless technology backbone for the stadium." York did not provide specifics, but he said that Brocade "would make sure the 'backbone is in place' for in-stadium technology." The 49ers will have "in-stadium sponsorship, including some Brocade-branded areas of the 68,500-seat building." York said that he wants to build a "'complete mobile application' at the stadium that would let football fans use their smartphones and tablets 'the same way that you would in a normal setting, in a coffee shop'" (SILICON VALLEY/SAN JOSE BUSINESS JOURNAL, 4/20 issue).
GOING GREEN: In Sacramento, Matthew Barrows notes the stadium's signature feature is a 27,000-square-foot "energy-saving roof that will support a garden of native plants, which in turn will soak up rainwater and provide insulation for the tower of luxury suites it sits atop." The stadium also features "other green components." It will have the "most advanced plumbing fixtures and will use non-potable water for irrigation and for flushing in the restrooms." It will be "built with regional and recycled materials whenever possible." And there will be "bicycle parking, exclusive parking for car poolers and alternative-fuel vehicles, and a charging station for electric cars" (SACRAMENTO BEE, 4/20).
