Edward Jones Dome
| Edward Jones Dome | |
|---|---|
|
"The TWA Dome" "Dome at America's Center" | |
 | |
 | |
| Former names |
Trans World Dome (1995–2001) Dome at America's Center (2001–2002) Russell Athletic Field at Edward Jones Dome (December 11, 2006) |
| Location |
701 Convention Plaza St. Louis, Missouri, United States 63101 |
| Coordinates | 38°37′58″N 90°11′19″W / 38.63278°N 90.18861°WCoordinates: 38°37′58″N 90°11′19″W / 38.63278°N 90.18861°W |
| Broke ground | July 13, 1992[1] |
| Opened | November 12, 1995 |
| Owner | St. Louis Regional Sports Authority |
| Operator | St. Louis Convention/Visitors Bureau |
| Surface |
AstroTurf GameDay Grass 3D (2010–present) FieldTurf (2005–2010) AstroTurf (1995–2004) |
| Construction cost |
$280 million ($429 million in 2014 dollars[ 1]) |
| Architect |
Populous (formerly HOK Sport) Kennedy Associates/Architects, Inc.[2] |
| Project manager | J.S. Alberici Construction |
| Structural engineer | EDM Incorporated[3] |
| Services engineer | Design Consulting Engineering Inc.[4] |
| General contractor | M.A. Mortenson Company[5] |
| Capacity | 66,000 |
| Executive suites | 120 |
| Tenants | |
|
St. Louis Rams (NFL) (1995–present) FIRST Robotics World Championship (2011–2013) COGIC International Holy Convocation (2009-present) | |
The Edward Jones Dome (more formally known as the Edward Jones Dome at America's Center, and previously known as The Trans World Dome (from 1995–2001) is a multi-purpose stadium in St. Louis, Missouri, and home of the St. Louis Rams of the NFL. It was constructed largely to lure an NFL team back to St. Louis, and to serve as a convention center. The Dome provides multiple stadium configurations that can seat up to 70,000 people. Seating levels include: a private luxury suite level with 120 suites, a private club seat and luxury suite level with 6,400 club seats, a concourse level (lower bowl) and terrace level (upper bowl).[6] The dome was completed in 1995.
The dome is part of the America's Center convention center. The convention portion has a much bigger footprint adjoins to the west of the Dome, Cole Street to the north, Broadway to the east and Convention Plaza to the south. It is accessible off Interstate 70 eastbound at the Convention Center/Broadway/Busch Stadium exit, I-70 westbound from Illinois at the Martin Luther King Jr./Veterans Memorial Bridge, and Interstate 55 southbound at the Gateway Arch/Busch Stadium exit. The stadium is also serviced by the Convention Center Metrolink rail station.
Naming rights
From its construction to mid-fall 1995, the dome was known as the "Dome at America's Center". Then the dome was known as the Trans World Dome, after Trans World Airlines, until 2001, when TWA was acquired by American Airlines (American already has its name on two NBA/NHL venues in Dallas and Miami). The facility then briefly went back known as the Dome at America's Center until the naming rights were acquired on January 25, 2002 by Edward Jones Investments, a brokerage house based in St. Louis.
As part of a deal to sell the naming rights to Rams Park (now the Russell Athletic Training Center), the Rams' training facility in Earth City, Missouri, to sportswear manufacturer Russell Athletic, the Rams agreed to rename the Edward Jones Dome to Russell Athletic Field for the Rams' Monday Night Football game against the Chicago Bears on December 11, 2006. The renaming was for the one night only.
NFL Playoff Football
The dome has hosted five NFC playoff games, including the 1999 and 2001 NFC Championship games, both of which the Rams won.
Concerts
On November 8, 1997, U2 performed at the Dome during their PopMart Tour.
On December 12, 1997, The Rolling Stones recorded a memorable show from their Bridges To Babylon Tour. The show was later released on VHS/DVD.
On July 2, 2001, 'N Sync performed at the Dome during their Pop Odyssey Tour.
Metallica's 2003 Summer Sanitarium Tour made a stop at The Edward Jones Dome on July 25, 2003. The tour featured headliner Metallica, with bands Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, Deftones and Mudvayne.
Professional Soccer
The dome hosted a soccer match on August 10, 2013, when Real Madrid and Internazionale played a friendly game in front of 54,184 fans, a record attendance for a soccer match in St. Louis.[7]
College Basketball
In April 2005, the Edward Jones Dome hosted the 2005 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Final Four. Louisville, Illinois, Michigan State and North Carolina met, with North Carolina winning the title game against Illinois.
The Dome has hosted an NCAA Men's Basketball Regional four times. In 2004, the St. Louis Regional saw Georgia Tech defeat Kansas in a final that required overtime, Tech have previously defeated Nevada while KU became the first team (and the only one to date) to score 100 points in a college basketball game in the building in its regional semifinal win over UAB. The Dome also hosted the 2007 Midwest Regional, where Florida, en route to winning its second consecutive national championship, defeated Butler and then Oregon, who had defeated UNLV in the other regional semifinal. In 2010, Michigan State eliminated Northern Iowa, and Tennessee knocked off Ohio State, before MSU beat UT to move on to the Final Four. In 2012, North Carolina beat Ohio University and Kansas defeated NC State University. In the regional final, KU defeated UNC to advance to the Final Four.
College Football
The Edward Jones Dome hosted the first Big 12 Conference football championship game in 1996 (Nebraska versus Texas). The third game, in 1998, was also held in the dome (Kansas State versus Texas A&M). The dome has also been a neutral site for regular-season college football matchups between the University of Illinois and the University of Missouri, promoted locally as the "Arch Rivalry". Missouri has won all six games (2002, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2009 & 2010).
MSHSAA Show Me Bowl
Since 1996 the Dome has held the annual Missouri State High School Activities Association football championship games. The Show-Me Bowl had previously been contested at Faurot Field in Columbia, Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City and Busch Memorial Stadium.
Religious conferences
The Dome became the site of the biggest indoor gathering in United States history, January 27, 1999 when Pope John Paul II held mass in the stadium. Over 104,000 people attended the service.
In 1999 the Rev. Billy Graham held The Greater St. Louis Billy Graham Crusade with well over 200,000 people attending in its four days. Michael W. Smith and Kirk Franklin were among the musical artists that performed.
Edward Jones Dome hosted the 2005 General Conference Sessions of Seventh-day Adventists.
The dome was also host to Nazarene Youth Conference "Water Fire Wind" in July 2007. The conference was noted for renovating 35 public schools in the St. Louis area, saving the school system over $150,000 in labor costs. The conference also built two homes in one week in conjunction with Habitat for Humanity, sponsored over 1,500 children in third-world areas (in partnership with Nazarene Compassionate Ministries and World Vision), and fed over 10,000 families in the St. Louis area for one week.
Since the year 2009, the Edward Jones Dome has been the host of the International Holy Convocation of the Church of God in Christ. Every year in November, the members of the COGIC meet in the Edward Jones Dome for the official Sunday morning service of their Holy Convocation.
The Edward Jones Dome at Americas Center hosted the 85th annual General Conference of The United Pentecostal Church International on September 30 – October 4, 2009.
Starting in 2006, Edward Jones Dome has become the home of the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship Urbana missions conference which takes place every 3 years. The event had outgrown its former home on the University of Illinois campus in Urbana, Illinois (about 17,000 attendees in 2009).
Other events
From 2011 through at least 2013, the Dome will host the World Championship of the FIRST Robotics Competition. Over 400 teams from around the world qualify annually to compete in the championship held in mid-April. The FIRST LEGO League World Festival and FIRST Tech Challenge Championship occur at the same time, in different areas of the Dome.
The Edward Jones Dome also hosts a round of the AMA Supercross Championship.
The Edward Jones Dome also host a Monster Jam events every year as well as a round of the Stadium Super Truck series. [8]
The Edward Jones Dome will also host Nerium International's Spring Conference in April 2014. This home business in under two years has outgrown every major hotel capacity in the country and now must turn to larger venues such as the EJD. The last conference held in July 2013 at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center had over 10,000 present. With the Bravo Growth Award from DSN of 3900% growth (http://hassanjohnson1.nowsender.com/e/vd?22ay4x), Nerium is anticipating 20,000 present in St. Louis.
The Edward Jones Dome hosts the Music for All Bands of America St. Louis Super-Regional championships every October.
Renovations
For the 2010 season, The Edward Jones Dome received a new permanent turf surface. The surface manufactured by AstroTurf, will be AstroTurf’s Magic Carpet II Conversion System, which features its GameDay 3D Synthetic Turf System. This system is similar to the original turf system that was in the dome from 1995–2004 whereas it can be rolled up and stored underground in a pit at the dome. The dome used a FieldTurf brand surface from 2005–2009.
The Edward Jones Dome also received a $30 million renovation in 2009, which replaced the scoreboards with LED video displays (one large in north endzone and one smaller in south endzone) and LED fascia boards around the bowl of the dome. The renovations also added new premium areas (Bud Light Zone and Clarkson Jewelers Club). Some of the paint work in the dome was lightened as well and painted in Rams colors (Blue, Gold, and White). In 2010, the Rams locker room was re-built and switched ends (from north endzone to south endzone). For 2011, New HD monitors were installed throughout the dome in place of the older screens at concession stands and other areas.
Future
Under the terms of the lease that the Rams signed, the Edward Jones Dome is required to be ranked in the top tier of NFL stadiums through the 2015 season. If it is not, the Rams are free to break the lease and either relocate without penalty or continue to lease the dome on a year to year basis.[9]
In May 2012 the Dome was ranked by Time Magazine as the #7th worst major sports stadium in the United States.[10] In 2008 St. Louis fans ranked it in a Sports Illustrated poll the worst of any NFL stadium with particularly low marks for tailgating, affordability and atmosphere.[11]
The Convention and Visitor Center and the Rams negotiated throughout 2012 and agreed to go into arbitration in 2013 if a deal was not worked out in which 3 arbitrators mutually agreed on from the American Arbitration Association to arbitrate the case in 2013.[12]
In January 2012 the CVC proposed $48 million in improvements including a new 947 vehicle garage all funded publicly with the Rams keeping the garage game day revenue.[12]
After the Rams rejected the $48 million deal the CVC proposed $124 million in renovations including a new 3-story structure on Baer Plaza on the east side facing the Mississippi River for a main entrance as well as new suites. The Rams would have picked up $64 million of that project.[12]
The Rams countered with a $700 million proposal that called for much of the stadium to be rebuilt including a sliding roof panel and a new four sided center scoreboard. No details on how to pay for the renovations were made.[12]
The sides did not hammer out an agreement in 2012 and the matter went into arbitration hearings in January 2013. Officials note that even if the arbitrators decide on implementing a more expensive plan and the CVC was unable to fund it the Rams could still be able to break the lease.[13]
With no agreement there has been considerable speculation on the future of the Rams and the stadium with some suggesting the Rams might return to Los Angeles.
There has also been speculation that a whole new stadium could be built in the St. Louis suburbs possibly at either the intersection of Missouri Route 141 and the Missouri River in Maryland Heights, Missouri or on the site of the demolished Chrysler Saint Louis Assembly plant in Fenton, Missouri. Officials note that the Rams do not own the parking at the Edward Jones Dome. Further revenue from tailgating flows to private parking areas around the Dome. They also note that Rams owner Stan Kroenke owns the venues for his other teams including the Pepsi Center in Denver for the Denver Nuggets and Colorado Avalanche as well as the Emirates Stadium for the Arsenal F.C..[13]
Bonds for construction of the Dome are still being paid through 2021 with Missouri paying $12 million/year and St. Louis City and St. Louis County paying $6 million/year each.[14]
On February 1, 2013, the arbitrators ruled in favor of the Rams' $700 million proposal to tear down half the Dome and replace it as the only way to bring the Dome up to first tier status. Various city and county officials said it was unlikely the public funding would be found for such a project. Officials noted the Rams are contractually obligated to play in the Dome until March 15, 2015 and there is no "buy out" provision to permit the Rams to move before then. City and county officials have said they are considering all options including construction of a new stadium elsewhere in the St. Louis area. Rams officials have indicated their preference to stay in St. Louis.[15]
The St. Louis Regional Convention and Sports Complex Authority in February 2013 hired Goldman Sachs "to keep the Rams in the Dome, or, if that’s not possible, to maintain a National League Football team in St. Louis." An attorney for St. Louis noted that Goldman had "financed or advised on the financing of every NFL stadium recently built."[16] In April 2013, it was reported by the Wall Street Journal that the Securities and Exchange Commission as it notes new Dodd-Frank rules restrict firms from offering financial advice to municipalities where it also underwrites its municipal bond transactions.[17]
On July 2, 2013, the CVC announced that they were rejecting the Rams' renovation proposal.[18] Missouri governor Jay Nixon has been negotiating with owner Stan Kroenke since the decision has been made.[19] If nothing is resolved the earliest the Rams could break the lease on the Edward Jones Dome would be following the 2014 season.
St. Louis Football Ring of Fame
Former St.Louis football Cardinals and former Rams football players are included in the Ring Of Fame in the Edward Jones Dome.
| FORMER RAMS | ||||
| No. | Player | Years Played | Year Inducted | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Bob Waterfield | 1945–1952 | 1999 | |
| 25 | Norm Van Brocklin | 1949–1957 | 1999 | |
| 28 | Marshall Faulk | 1999–2006 | 2011 | |
| 29 | Eric Dickerson | 1983–1987 | 1999 | |
| 40 | Elroy "Crazylegs" Hirsch | 1949–1957 | 1999 | |
| 48 | Les Richter | 1954–1962 | 2011 | |
| 55 | Tom Fears | 1948–1956 | 1999 | |
| 65 | Tom Mack | 1966–1978 | 1999 | |
| 74 | Merlin Olsen | 1962–1976 | 1999 | |
| 75 | David Deacon Jones | 1961–1971 | 1999 | |
| 78 | Jackie Slater | 1976–1995 | 2001 | |
| 84 | Jack Snow | 1964–1975, Broadcaster | 2006 | |
| 85 | Jack Youngblood | 1971–1984 | 2001 | |
| FORMER CARDINALS | ||||
| No. | Player | Years Played | Year Inducted | |
| 8 | Larry Wilson | 1960–1972 | 1999 | |
| 22 | Roger Wehrli | 1969–1982 | 2007 | |
| 72 | Dan Dierdorf | 1971–1983 | 1999 | |
| 81 | Jackie Smith | 1963–1977 | 1999 | |
| COACHES AND EXECUTIVES | ||||
| Name | Years | Year Inducted | ||
| Head Coach | Dick Vermeil | 1997–1999 | 2008 | |
| Owner | Dan Reeves | 1941–1971 | 2008 | |
| Owner | Carroll Rosenbloom | 1972–1979 | 2008 | |
| Owner | Georgia Frontiere | 1979–2007 | 2008 | |
References
- ↑ Mark S., Rosentraub (1999). Major League Losers: The Real Cost Of Sports And Who's Paying For It. New York: Basic Books. p. 220. ISBN 0-465-07143-0.
- ↑ Edward Jones Dome - KAI Design/Build
- ↑ EDWARD JONES DOME - Edm Inc
- ↑ DCE Inc - Educational/Recreational
- ↑ Mortenson Construction - Edward Jones Dome
- ↑ Edward Jones Dome: Seating
- ↑ Sports Illustrated, Real Madrid dominates Inter to close American tour, August 10, 2013, http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/20130810/real-madrid-inter.ap/?sct=sc_t2_a4
- ↑ "Schedule". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
- ↑ "Edward Jones Dome listed as one of 10 worst stadiums". KTRS (St. Louis). May 11, 2012. Archived from the original on June 29, 2013. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
- ↑ Carbone, Nick (May 10, 2012). "7. Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis | Top 10 Worst Stadiums in the U.S.". Time. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
- ↑ "NFL Stadium Rankings". Sports Illustrated. 2008. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 Hathaway, Matthew (June 15, 2012). "CVC Enters Arbitration With Rams; Deadline is Dec. 31". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Hunn, David (July 23, 2012). "A New Stadium for the St. Louis Rams?". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
- ↑ Rathbone, Michael (February 2, 2012). "Dough for the Dome". Show-Me Daily. Retrieved February 11, 2013.
- ↑ Hunn, David (May 14, 2012). "Will Rams Leave St. Louis? 'Take a Deep Breath,' Official Says". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved February 11, 2013.
- ↑ Hunn, David (February 11, 2013). "St. Louis Agency Hires Goldman Sachs to Keep Rams in Dome". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved February 11, 2013.
- ↑ "Regulators Scrutinizing Dome Deal, Report Says". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. April 9, 2013. Retrieved April 9, 2013.
- ↑ Associated Press (July 5, 2013). "Edward Jones Dome Won't Get $700M in Upgrades". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved July 9, 2013.
- ↑ http://www.dailynews.com/sports/20131214/is-la-the-place-for-the-nfl-its-hard-to-tell
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Edward Jones Dome. |
| Events and tenants | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Busch Stadium |
Home of the St. Louis Rams November 12, 1995 – present |
Succeeded by current |
| Preceded by Alamodome |
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Finals Venue 2005 |
Succeeded by RCA Dome |
| Preceded by Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Giants Stadium |
Host of NFC Championship Game 2000 2002 |
Succeeded by Giants Stadium Veterans Stadium |
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