More on sports stadiums

This is from a 2005 blog entry, Tale of Two (or more) Cities.

It quotes from work by architecture professor and stadium architect Philip Bess:

EIGHT IMPERATIVES FOR TRADITIONAL NEIGHBORHOOD BASEBALL PARKS

■ Think always of ballpark design in the context of urban design;
■ Think always in terms of neighborhood rather than zone or district;
■ Let site more than program drive the ballpark design---not exclusively, but more…;
■ Treat the ballpark as a civic building;
■ Make cars adapt to the culture and physical form of the neighborhood instead of the neighborhood adapting to the cars;
■ Maximize the use of pre-existing on- and off-street parking, and distribute rather than concentrate any new required parking;
■ Create development opportunities for a variety of activities in the vicinity of the ballpark, including housing and shopping;
■ Locate non-ballpark specific program functions in buildings located adjacent to rather than within the ballpark itself.

In closing he tells us that "it is possible to make new ballparks that are neighborhood friendly and generate equivalent revenues as current industry standard stadia, for about 2/3 the cost...."