Dan Meis

Dan Meis (born 1961) is an American architect based in Los Angeles best known for designing sports and entertainment facilities including LA’s STAPLES Center. His 25 years of experience began in Chicago with Helmut/Jahn and includes time at some of the most well-known sports architecture firms in addition to co-founding the sports and entertainment practice of NBBJ. Dan currently operates his own independent studio, MEIS, out of his office in Venice Beach, California.

While at Ellerbe Becket in 1992, Meis designed Europe's largest indoor arena, the Nynex Arena (now Manchester Evening News Arena) in Manchester, England. In 1995, Meis lead the design competition for the Nikken Sekkei and Ellerbe Becket team that won the $750 million Saitama Super Arena in Japan. Soon after winning the design competition, Meis left Ellerbe Becket to join established Seattle practice NBBJ, establishing NBBJ's sports division with Ron Turner. Meis and Turner designed sports, entertainment and convention facilities that were well-acclaimed including Staples Center in Los Angeles, the Dodge Theater (now Comerica Theatre) in Phoenix, Miller Park in Milwaukee, Safeco Field in Seattle, Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia and Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati. Paul Brown Stadium was the first NFL facility to win an AIA design award. NBBJ's design for Los Angeles' Staples Center has been heralded as the "greatest arena ever built", and in 2001 he appeared in Time magazine as one of their "100 Innovators in the World of Sports". His work has twice been awarded the prestigious Business Week/Architectural Record Award, recognizing the value of design to a client's business, and he is the only architect twice recognized as one of Sports Business Journal's "40 under 40 Most Influential Sports Executives". Meis' work has been featured in numerous publications and he is a frequent lecturer at architectural schools across the US.

Meis focuses on creating venues that, while considered iconic, are distinguished instead by the significant contribution to the client's bottom line. Additionally, Meis specializes in renovation, retrofitting and master planning of existing venues in need of significant upgrades and revenue generation. Ongoing projects being designed by Meis include one alternative for the NFL to return to Los Angeles with Los Angeles NFL Stadium, various undertakings for the United States Tennis Association, and Sports City Stadium for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Doha, Qatar. Meis is also currently leading the conceptual design effort for a new stadium for Italian club AS Roma.

Education

Meis studied environmental design and engineering at the University of Colorado in Boulder, and later received a Bachelors of Architecture from the University of Illinois at Chicago.^[1]

Professional recognition

Meis was named a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects and, in 2001, he was recognized as one of the Top 100 innovators in his field by Time magazine.

In 2007, two of Meis' designs, Safeco Field and Paul Brown Stadium, were included in the American Institute of Architects' list of "America's Favorite Architecture". Meis also has the distinction of twice being named one of Sports Business Journal's "40 Under 40"” Most Influential People in the world of sports.

Meis is a member of the Los Angeles chapter of the American Institute of Architects. His work has been showcased in several of publications, including Architectural Record, Metropolis, I.D., L.A. Architect, Stadium & Arena Management and SPACE magazine.

Sample projects designed by Meis

• Los Angeles NFL Stadium
• Sports City Stadium bid book design. Qatar
• Staples Center at NBBJ
• USTA National Tennis Center concept design
• Miller Park at NBBJ
• Paul Brown Stadium at NBBJ
• Safeco Field at NBBJ
• Saitama Super Arena competition scheme at Ellerbe Becket with Nikken Sekkei
• Lincoln Financial Field at NBBJ
• Dalian Soccer Stadium Competition
• @Bahrain Master Plan and Auto Club
• Mazda Stadium with EDI Architecture
• Dodger Stadium Renovation
• Thunderbay Motor Speedway
• Columbus Crew Stadium at NBBJ
• LA Coliseum Renovation Study at NBBJ
• Qualcomm Stadium Renovation
• Beijing Olympic Master Plan Competition at NBBJ
• Qwest Convention Center and Arena at NBBJ
• Asia World Exhibition Center at NBBJ
• The Dodge Theater at NBBJ
• RFK Stadium Renovation at NBBJ
• The Meadowlands Renovation Study at NBBJ
• LG Twins Seoul Dome Competition at NBBJ
• Guangdong Olympic Stadium Competition at NBBJ
• Cintas Center at Xavier University
• Al McGuire Center at Marquette University
• Dalian Sports Center Competition at NBBJ

Personal life

Meis currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two children.

References

1. List item "The Man with the Tatlin’s Tower Tattoo.", UIC Alumni Magazine (2012)

External links

• MEIS Architects and Dan Meis, FAIA official web site