Toyota Park (Bridgeview)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Toyota Park | |
|---|---|
| Bridgeview | |
 |
|
| Location | 7000 S. Harlem Avenue, Bridgeview, Illinois 60455 |
| Broke ground | 30 November 2004 |
| Opened | 11 June 2006 |
| Owner | Village of Bridgeview |
| Operator | Anschutz Entertainment Group |
| Surface | Grass |
| Construction cost | $98 million US |
| Architect | Rossetti Associates Architects |
| Former names | |
| Bridgeview Stadium | |
| Tenants | |
| Chicago Fire (MLS) (2006-Present) Chicago Machine (MLL) (2007-Present) |
|
| Capacity | |
| 20000 (soccer) 28000 (concerts) |
|
Toyota Park is the home stadium for the Chicago Fire Soccer Club, members of Major League Soccer. Located at 71st Street and Harlem Avenue in Bridgeview, Illinois, it is a soccer-specific stadium and concert venue developed at a cost of more than $100 million. The facility opened June 11, 2006.
Designed to incorporate traditional stadium features from both American and European facilities, Toyota Park includes mostly covered seating, a brick façade and stone entry archway, and first rows that are less than three yards from the field. It also includes 42 executive suites, 6 larger party suites, the Illinois Soccer Hall of Fame, and the Fire club offices in the stadium as well as a large stadium club facility measuring some 9,000 square feet.
The Village of Bridgeview recently approved development on 8 acres of the stadium site near the corner of 71st and Harlem for a new midrange hotel, indoor water park, four to six restaurants, and other retail to begin construction in late 2007. [1]
Contents |
[edit] Sports
A practice facility with two fields (one natural grass, one turf) for the Fire club and its youth programs is adjacent to the stadium. In addition to the approximately 20,000 permanent seats. According to statements by Fire President John Guppy, the stadium is designed so that it could be expanded. He noted that 10,000 permanent seats could be added to the stadium with no serious renovation issues. Permanent capacity expansion of the stadium is achievable by adding a second tier on the northern end. While no stadium expansion plans are currently being considered, the stadium has the planned-in ability for expansion without great cost in anticipation of future attendance growth.
The natural grass stadium field includes a a $1.7 million turf management system including full heating, drainage, and aeration capabilities and measures 120 yards long by 75 yards wide.
[edit] Concerts
A permanent stage was incorporated into the stadium design to not only facilitate hosting concerts but also to be able to quickly change from stage configuration to soccer configuration and vice-versa. A typical conversion takes less than 18 hours to complete, and an additional 8000 chairback seats can be accommodated on the field for concerts and other stage events.
[edit] Naming Rights
Stadium naming rights were reportedly agreed upon as early as Summer 2005 with Bridgeview Bank Group to name the facility Bridgeview Bank Stadium, but talks repeatedly broke down and subsequently reopened. In 2006, Toyota announced that it had entered into a 10-year naming rights agreement with the Village of Bridgeview, as the stadium was renamed Toyota Park.[2]
[edit] Events
- On August 5, 2006, Toyota Park hosted the 2006 MLS All-Star Game, in which an all-star team of MLS players defeated English champion Chelsea F.C. 1-0.
- On December 18, 2006, the Chicago Machine of Major League Lacrosse announced that they will play at Toyota Park for the coming 2007 season.
- The 2007 Crossroads Guitar Festival presented by Eric Clapton will be held at Toyota Park on July 28, 2007.
- The Dave Matthews Band will be performing at Toyota Park on July 8, 2007
[edit] References
- ^ First came the Fire, next comes the water. dailysouthtown.com. Retrieved on January 3, 2007.
- ^ Toyota Purchases Naming Rights For Stadium. mlsnet.com. Retrieved on June 9, 2006.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Soldier Field 2003-2005 |
Home of Chicago Fire 2006-present |
Succeeded by current home |
| Current Stadiums in Major League Lacrosse |
||
| Eastern Conference | Western Conference | |
|---|---|---|
| Georgetown Multi-Sport Field | Harvard Stadium | Mitchel Athletic Complex PAETEC Park | Villanova Stadium | Yurcak Field |
The Home Depot Center | INVESCO Field at Mile High | Kezar Stadium | Toyota Park |
|
| Current Stadiums in the USL PDL Great Lakes Division |
||
| Toyota Park (Chicago Fire Premier) | Coughlin Field (Cleveland Internationals) | Hefner Soccer Complex (Fort Wayne Fever) | Indiana Invaders Soccer Complex (Indiana Invaders) | Hurley Field (Michigan Bucks) | Centennial Park Stadium (Toronto Lynx) | Forest Hills Central HS Stadium (West Michigan Edge) | ||
