Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta is being built for the big events -- that was the clear message from Falcons President & CEO Rich McKay during a presentation at the ’16 AXS Sports Facilities & Franchises conference on the new venue, which is set to open in the summer of ’17. The size, scale and flexibility of the building was noted time and again by McKay, who said, “Too often big events aren’t a focus. But we focused on big events, like the college football championship, the NCAA Final Four and the SEC Championship. We wanted to make sure the building could house all of them.” As an example of that type of thinking, he cited the fact that there is no fixed signage in the building save for the name partner, Mercedes-Benz. “We did that for the big events,” McKay said. “We didn’t want to be in the business of covering up signs.” Having fully dynamic signage will make it easier to host big events that could bring in a variety of different sponsors. He also stressed that the focus will be on all elements of the fan experience during design and development. “The last generation of stadiums focused on sightlines, not the fan experience,” he said. “Those designs were not driven toward the fan, but more about sightlines. But all of the new buildings being designed today are focused on the fan experience, done from the fan perspective.”
A FOCUS ON CONCESSIONS: McKay touched on the Falcons’ much-publicized “Fan First Menu Pricing” that was announced in May and includes $3 pizza, $5 cheeseburgers, $2 Coca-Cola refillable cups and $5 Bud Light draft beer. McKay cited some of the talk around the deal -- some suggesting the team was announcing low prices but would make it up by charging more for other things. “People kept suggesting there was an angle to this,” he said. “There is no angle to this. This was done for the right reasons and because the fans said it was the biggest thorn in their side, so we wanted to make a difference.” McKay noted that the low pricing will remain consistent regardless of the event, as outside, big events do not have the right to change pricing. Asked later by an attendee to detail the concession deal, McKay said, “We did a management fee deal, and we took on all the rest of it our ourselves. Levy Restaurants is the concessionaire and they are the manager. They will help us hire and train the staff. But we took on all the capital costs.”
QUICK HITS
* Outdoor plazas are a big trend for many new buildings and Mercedes-Benz Stadium is no different, as it features 111,000 square feet of outdoor space. “I don’t think any of us knew it was going to be that big,” McKay said. “It’s a lot of space. But it’s a great space. We can use it for a lot of activities and it will be very effective for big events. For Falcons games, we can envision a lot of people out in that space for halftime and pregame. We have plenty of spaces to entertain people, all within a secured interior."
* In terms of the roof being open, McKay said, “We plan to be open a lot for soccer. For football, we want it to be open for 8 games -- or get to 9 games, that would be great. But we don’t want it to be open only for 5 games.”
