Paul Brown Stadium

Paul Brown Stadium
"The Jungle" "P.B.S."
Location	1 Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-3418
Coordinates	39°5′43.60″N 84°30′57.74″W / 39.0954444°N 84.5160389°W / 39.0954444; -84.5160389Coordinates: 39°5′43.60″N 84°30′57.74″W / 39.0954444°N 84.5160389°W / 39.0954444; -84.5160389
Broke ground	April 25, 1998[1]
Opened	August 19, 2000
Owner	Hamilton County
Operator	Cincinnati Bengals
Surface	UBU-Speed Series-S5-M Synthetic Turf (2012–present) FieldTurf 2004–2012 Grass 2000–2003
Construction cost	$455 million ($617 million in 2014 dollars[ 1])
Architect	NBBJ[2] Glaser Associates Inc.[2] Moody/Nolan Ltd. Inc.[2] Stallworth Architecture Inc.[2]
Project manager	Getz Ventures[3]
Structural engineer	Ove Arup/Graham, Obermeyer[2]
Services engineer	Flack & Kurtz, Inc.[2]
General contractor	TBMD Joint Venture (Turner/Barton Malow/D.A.G.)[2]
Capacity	65,535
Executive suites	114
Tenants
Cincinnati Bengals (NFL) (2000–present) Cincinnati Bearcats (NCAA) (2014)

Paul Brown Stadium is an American sports stadium located in Cincinnati, Ohio. It is the home venue of the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League. It opened on August 19, 2000. The stadium was named after Bengals' founder Paul Brown. The stadium is located on approximately 22 acres (8.9 ha) of land and has a listed capacity of 65,535. Paul Brown Stadium is nicknamed "The Jungle", an allusion not only to the namesake Bengal tiger's natural habitat, but the Guns N' Roses song "Welcome to the Jungle".

History

In 1996, Hamilton County voters passed a one-half percent sales tax increase to fund the building of two new home venues for both the Bengals and the Major League Baseball Cincinnati Reds.^[4] Previously, the Bengals and the Reds shared tenancy of Riverfront Stadium/Cinergy Field, but both teams complained that the aging multipurpose facility lacked modern amenities and other things necessary for small market teams to survive. Paul Brown Stadium was built first. After the Bengals moved into Paul Brown Stadium, Cinergy Field was partially demolished to allow construction of what became Great American Ball Park and the field was sodded with natural grass. On December 29, 2002, Cinergy Field was demolished.^[5] The stadium has also hosted two playoff games since it opened, both of which the Bengals lost.

For the first four years, the field was natural Kentucky Bluegrass, but problems arose in maintaining it. At one point, the field was rated as the third-worst field in the league.^[6] Hamilton County explored other options and chose the FieldTurf system.^[7] FieldTurf looks and feels like real grass, and since the field markings are actually sewn into the fabric, repainting between games is unnecessary. The reduced maintenance saves the county approximately $100,000 annually^{[citation needed]}. Additionally, it opens Paul Brown Stadium to other uses without worry of damage to the turf. The FieldTurf was installed for the 2004 season. The field is one of only two stadiums in the NFL to have "five miles of piping running under the field to keep the rubber inlays heated.^[8]

Two light emitting diode (LED) video displays at either endzone, installed in 2000, ensure that every spectator has a good view of the on-field action. Over 200 feet of ribbon display was also installed along the fascia of the stadium.^[9]

The University of Cincinnati Bearcats and the eventual national champion Ohio State University Buckeyes played the first college football game at Paul Brown Stadium on September 21, 2002 before a sold-out crowd of 66,319 fans.^[10] On September 5, 2009, the Kentucky Wildcats and the Miami Redhawks played their opening games there.^[11] The University of Cincinnati also played Oklahoma in 2010 at Paul Brown Stadium. The Sooners won the game 31-29 with 58,253 fans in attendance.^[12] In 2011, the Bearcats played Big East Conference opponents Louisville Cardinals and West Virginia Mountaineers.^[13] The Bearcats will return to Paul Brown Stadium for the 2014 football season as renovations occur at Nippert Stadium.

Additionally, the Macy's Music Festival (formerly the Cincinnati Jazz Festival) is held there every year.^[14]

Unusual for a venue the size of Paul Brown Stadium, in the spring, it hosts the annual Queen City Classic Chess Tournament.^[15]

On Monday, November 14, 2011, Cincinnati country radio station B-105 (WUBE) hosts Chris Carr & Co. announced that Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw would host their "Brothers of the Sun" summer 2012 tour at Paul Brown Stadium on Sunday, July 1, 2012. This marked the first time a major concert had taken place at PBS.^[16] Chesney and McGraw were also joined by Grace Potter and the Nocturnals and superstar Jake Owen.

Features

Paul Brown Stadium also houses the Bengals' administrative offices and training and practice facilities. The game field in Paul Brown Stadium is UBU Sports Speed S5-M synthetic turf system. There are three smaller practice fields nearby. Two are sodded with natural grass while the third is equipped with AstroTurf.^[17]

As a convenience for fans, for a nominal fee, several local busing companies offer round trip transportation to Paul Brown Stadium from designated locations throughout the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area. One such example is the Cincinnati Metro's Jungle-to-Jungle Express, which originates at Jungle Jim's International Market in Fairfield, a suburb of Cincinnati.

Fans enjoy premium seating options in the 114 private suites and 7,600 club seats. Amenities include in-seat food and beverage service and access to the club lounges for fine dining options. There are also several CPR units located throughout the stadium.^[17]

On-site retail merchandise sales are available in the Bengals pro shop, located on the plaza level on the north end of the stadium. There are fifty-six concession stands and eight stores.^[17]

Architecture

The stadium was designed by architectural firm NBBJ. The architect was Dan Meis. It was the first NFL facility to win an AIA design award.^[18]

Paul Brown Stadium is the only football stadium to make a list of "America's favorite 150 buildings and structures", according to a Harris Interactive survey. Paul Brown Stadium ranked 101st on the list, whose range included all manner of major structures — skyscrapers, museums, churches, hotels, bridges, national memorials and more. No other football stadium was voted among the top 150, and among all sports venues, only Wrigley Field (31) and Yankee Stadium (84) ranked higher than Paul Brown Stadium.^[17]

Logo

The stadium's logo was designed by John Winger, then student of graphic design at the University of Cincinnati. The design was selected as the winner of a branding contest held by the Cincinnati Bengals organization.^[19]

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Paul Brown Stadium.

• Official Paul Brown Stadium website

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