Photos of Ryan Field Demolition/Construction
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See what's left of Northwestern's Ryan Field - Evanston RoundTable
Evanston resident Bob Rowley documents the demolition of Ryan Field through a series of photos. Check back regularly for updates.
evanstonroundtable.com
They cut the cables to the (stripped bare skeleton) press box sometime last week. I’m guessing the demolition will be essentially complete in a few days.
Of course the press box comes down while I'm out of town. I missed the most excited part of the whole demolition. With that process nearly complete the preparation for construction is ramping up. There's basically a parade of dump trucks to/from the site as they're doing the excavation. As @Max_Power said, the area they're excavating extends well into the East Lot. Does anyone know where exactly the stadium will sit within the footprint? I can imagine they'd want to move it East from Ashland, but they probably want to preserve as much parking as possible too.
Rich (BB code):
West parking seems unchanged. Rotating and so east parking looks new.
This takes a while to load - but go to pg 5
https://www.cityofevanston.org/home/showpublisheddocument/91395/638283138218470000
Nice renderings here: https://www.cityofevanston.org/home/showpublisheddocument/91399/638283141099500000
Slightly confusing thing about this plan drawing is that the Proposed Stadium label is inside the dotted footprint of old stadium.
West parking seems unchanged. Rotating and so east parking looks new.
This takes a while to load - but go to pg 5
https://www.cityofevanston.org/home/showpublisheddocument/91395/638283138218470000
Nice renderings here: https://www.cityofevanston.org/home/showpublisheddocument/91399/638283141099500000
Slightly confusing thing about this plan drawing is that the Proposed Stadium label is inside the dotted footprint of old stadium.
Looks like it butts right up to WRA.
Of course the press box comes down while I'm out of town. I missed the most excited part of the whole demolition. With that process nearly complete the preparation for construction is ramping up. There's basically a parade of dump trucks to/from the site as they're doing the excavation. As @Max_Power said, the area they're excavating extends well into the East Lot. Does anyone know where exactly the stadium will sit within the footprint? I can imagine they'd want to move it East from Ashland, but they probably want to preserve as much parking as possible too.
Rich (BB code):
Some videos for you.
West parking seems unchanged. Rotating and so east parking looks new.
This takes a while to load - but go to pg 5
https://www.cityofevanston.org/home/showpublisheddocument/91395/638283138218470000
Nice renderings here: https://www.cityofevanston.org/home/showpublisheddocument/91399/638283141099500000
Slightly confusing thing about this plan drawing is that the Proposed Stadium label is inside the dotted footprint of old stadium.
Great info! There's a lot of renderings in the pdf I hadn't seen. Thanks for posting it! It's going to be really different going by the new stadium, but as I'm learning with the demolition of the old stadium it doesn't take long to adjust.
I had been thinking the new stadium would be rotated from the existing footprint and this confirms it. I think moving the stadium off the corner of Central and Ashland will work out well. Also, the new East Lot will be narrower but will extend alongside the softball stadium (eliminating the old practice field/Wildcat Alley). The field between softball and baseball will converted from a grass field used for auxiliary football parking into a permanent parking lot. It seems like the total number of spaces could be about the same in the future.
Thank you for this. I would recommend to all to follow the provided links and take a minute to look at the plans and the layout for the stadium itself. This link is to the best level by level drawings of the stadium showing seating, bars, locker rooms, clubs, boxes, etc. that I have found included in the group: Stadium DesignWest parking seems unchanged. Rotating and so east parking looks new.
This takes a while to load - but go to pg 5
https://www.cityofevanston.org/home/showpublisheddocument/91395/638283138218470000
Nice renderings here: https://www.cityofevanston.org/home/showpublisheddocument/91399/638283141099500000
Slightly confusing thing about this plan drawing is that the Proposed Stadium label is inside the dotted footprint of old stadium.
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This stadium is truly incredible. Love the amount of suites and premium seating. And the recruit lounge!
It's interesting that the orientation is different from Dyche--I wonder if this is because of sun lines or just fitting it on the lot?
Considering the shadow of the roof, would the new orientation be better in late afternoon fall games?
I think the sun for the most part will not be a factor for the players. Enclosed, more vertical, roof overhang. I am not sure grass would grow so great even if NU wanted a natural turf field. The field was skewed IMO to solve some geometry with now a completely enclosed stadium with seating all around, decrease the perception of mass along Central and create a plaza area along Ashland.
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The plans show 301 parking spaces in the new East lot, 176 in the North lot, and 875 spaces in the West lot (which does not appear to be reduced by the new construction). Does anybody know how many spaces were previously available?
Looking at the footprint of the football field inside the stadium, makes me wonder if regulation soccer and rugby pitches will fit in the design. These other sports would provide other possible uses of the stadium
The length of the field does not appear to be a problem, but football fields are 160' wide and international soccer/rugby pitches are 68-70meters or about 225' wide
The length of the field does not appear to be a problem, but football fields are 160' wide and international soccer/rugby pitches are 68-70meters or about 225' wide
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My impression is that NU has been silent on those details, referring simply to being able to host soccer games. What that means, who knows? Eyeballing it - not worth much - it looks like corner kicks might be abbreviated and/or face plants in walls might be a thing. I do think the designers could make provisions in the construction details to easily accommodate reconfiguration if NU and the budget allow.
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Yep, and I recall reading that various events could be hosted including soccer games but not sure that came from NU. In googling around the only event I see NU referring to is concerts. I don't know. I wonder if commencement is a concert? Not important.
Doc, do soccer and/or rugby allow for a smaller field as one works down the competition/age levels or is a pitch in soccer a pitch?
I think if I was detailing out the construction of the seating I would make provision for enlarging the field if the client allowed. Why not?
Not sure about that. This may be as close as we can get you: https://imgartists.com/roster/360-allstars/
The only soccer and rugby games that would need a medium capacity stadium are international games. These pitches are 68-70 meters wide. I guess teams could agree to play on narrower pitches for "friendlies" but not for competition
USA rugby plays Scotland in DC at Audi Field, capacity 20,000. Audi is the home of DC United. This is the type of summer game that the new Ryan could have hosted
I can't believe that NU is building a -1 billion dollar stadium whose footprint will not allow it to host other sports that require slightly larger playing surfaces. If that is true the University and architect have made a mistake
I disagree. NU has no need for a 35,000 seat soccer stadium. The school teams draw flies and I think is it highly unlikely Evanston would permit professional events. There is already a 25,000 seat purpose-built soccer facility in Chicago. Make the new Ryan Field optimal for American football and leave it at that. Which is what they did.
Totally agree. The IMG soccer portfolio is too attractive not to accommodate future opportunities: https://www.img.com/portfolio/sports/football
My thought was for State high school and perhaps NCAA national level competitions. 35k might be too much for high school but for national level lacrosse and soccer it might be ideal. Plus the one off event such as a rugby match as Doc suggests. Of course if only six events are allowed, probably better to focus on summer musical events.
Again, if NU wants to make provision for a wider field they can do it by designing in removable/movable seating now.
Why are people concerned if it sits idle 350 days a year? It’s paid for with private funding. Big deal.
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