Populous Plans for New Southend United Stadium Approved
Southend United F.C.’s plans for a new 21,000-capacity stadium designed by Populous have been approved by Southend-on-Sea Borough Council.
The planning approval unlocks the club’s long-held ambition to relocate to a new purpose-built stadium at Fossetts Farm in Southend-on-Sea, which will provide the improved capacity and calibre of player and spectator facilities required for Southend United F.C. to usher in a new era of success, both on and off the pitch.
The stadium is designed to be the catalyst for the creation of a whole new neighbourhood in Southend-on-Sea, with 1,114 new homes to be built as part of the Fossetts Farm development, including 333 affordable homes for local residents. The move will also pave the way for the regeneration of Roots Hall, Southend United F.C.’s existing but outdated stadium, which will be redeveloped to provide 502 new homes for rent.
Populous’ designs fulfil Southend United F.C.’s ambition to create a mixed-use stadium development and will deliver a range of assets generating economic activity throughout the week. A hotel and conference facility and mixture of retail and commercial spaces will sustain the residential development and promote continuous use of the stadium. Football training facilities will further encourage footfall and activity within the area.
By integrating an element of the residential accommodation within the stadium itself, the project sets a design precedent for a new development model. The North Stand will see the residential frontages combined with the stadium's conferencing and matchday hospitality spaces. The residential accommodation will be set within a groundscraper atop the stadium.
The stadium architecture wraps 360 degrees around the building below. The stands will be fully covered and fully enclosed, providing enhanced levels of comfort and enclosure for the fans. Populous’ approach to the stadium with the façade and roof broken down into shells separated by blue polycarbonate strips, reflects the club’s heritage and badge with its shrimper’s motif. The shell-like forms incorporated into roof structure extend beyond the front row of seating, providing spectators with cover and protection from the elements, while the design will also direct the roar of the crowd onto the pitch – creating a cauldron of noise and an intense matchday atmosphere.
In stadium-related residential development, the units are typically housed in independent buildings or free-standing corner buildings. However, the proposal for Southend F.C. allows the residential development to sit within the stadium itself, while allowing the scale of the stadium to remain intimate, compact and enclosed.
Phase one of the development, which is projected to be delivered by 2023, will involve the construction of the three-sided general admission parts of the new stadium, as well as Supporters Way – a tree-lined approach that will be used by the majority of fans on match days. Supporters Way opens into a large fan plaza, providing generous open space for people to meet and gather outside the stadium on both match days and non-match days, with a large video board acting as a focal point. The fan plaza will also be enlivened by the presence of the club shop, café and ticket office, which project into the plaza from the South Stand.
The second phase of the project will complete principal parts of the development and overall masterplan, including the stadium’s North Stand, indoor football domes and residential buildings.
Mike Trice, Senior Principal at Populous, said: With the council’s support of this application, we now have a clear path to the delivery of the club’s long-held ambition for a new stadium. We now look forward to delivering Southend United’s vision to integrate homes, business, leisure and sport together under one roof. This will prove to be a vibrant and active development and will deliver the very best new home for the fans and the club”.
Lord's Cricket Ground
Established in 1814, Lord’s Cricket Ground is internationally renowned as the Home of Cricket. Responding to an increasingly competitive sporting environment, the iconic venue is undergoing an upgrade as part of a wider masterplan, which aims to increase operational efficiency and enhance the overall spectator experience. Beginning with the first phase, which was to redevelopment of the Warner Stand in 2014, work is scheduled to continue until 2032.
The second phase of the masterplan has seen architects, WilkinsonEyre, complete the redevelopment of the Compton and Edrich stands, delivering two new, distinctive architectural structures at Lord's.
Read the full story in the latest issue of MONDO | STADIA.
https://issuu.com/mondiale/docs/mdst20_digitallr/28
ASM Global Partners with Nashville Superspeedway to Bring Concerts to Auto-Racing Venue
ASM Global and Nashville Superspeedway, Music City’s home for racing and live entertainment, have partnered to bring world-class content to Middle Tennessee and the region. It will be the first auto-racing venue in ASM’s extensive global network.
ASM will use its extensive experience in creating and delivering major live sports and music experiences including concerts, lifestyle festivals, and drive-thru and walk-thru exhibits in the expansive speedway complex. Nashville Superspeedway currently hosts events in NASCAR's top three series: the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The non-exclusive agreement began Sept. 28, 2021.
“As the world’s leading provider of live-event experiences, ASM Global is uniquely positioned to provide world-class entertainment opportunities for music and sports fans in Middle Tennessee and throughout the region,” said Chuck Steedman, ASM Global executive vice president for strategy and development. “We are tremendously excited to work with Erik Moses and the team at the Nashville Superspeedway and to have the Superspeedway as our first auto-racing venue. The team is very active in the desire to bring a multitude of events to the Superspeedway.”
“We are thrilled to partner with a global industry leader like ASM Global to continue the work we began a year ago to reopen, revitalize and reposition the Nashville Superspeedway as a beloved racetrack on the NASCAR circuit and a leading venue in Middle Tennessee for a diverse assortment of live events,” said Erik Moses, president, Nashville Superspeedway. “The enthusiastic response to our first NASCAR tripleheader race weekend, including the sold-out inaugural Ally 400 NASCAR Cup Series race on Father’s Day 2021, and the support we’ve seen for the other events hosted here in the last year has strengthened our confidence in our ability to curate, attract and host top-quality sports and entertainment events at the Nashville Superspeedway. We look forward to working with ASM Global to bring exciting entertainment to the residents, visitors and guests of Middle Tennessee.”
350 Glp Moving Heads Light up RTL Summer Games
Banijay Productions Germany GmbH recently produced a special kind of live two-day sports show on behalf of RTL. LD Arkin Atacan from atacan design, who was responsible for the lighting and media design of the location, based this technically demanding production largely on fixtures from GLP. Around 350 moving heads from the German manufacturer were used for various lighting purposes.
During the two days of the RTL Sommerspiele (RTL Summer Games), 32 celebrities from 15 nations competed against each other in various Olympic disciplines on an area measuring 110 x 60 metres. Since TV sporting events always bring with them special challenges, it was first necessary to find a location in advance that would meet the requirements of the production. Ultimately, the choice fell on the Quarterback Immobilien Arena in Leipzig, which, as a multifunctional hall, met all requirements.
“In addition to adhering to the budget, the most difficult part was the basic lighting design – specifically the balancing act between TV show and sports event,” says Arkin Atacan. “With these types of hybrid event there are some elements of personal lighting that have to be met, such as long camera optics, which in turn require more light, six-fold super slow motion (shutter frequencies / min. 1,000 lux), and a camera cable system for which the camera's projection field must be kept clear. Only when these requirements have been met can you even think about the look of the show.”
The designer finally created the lighting for the show with 350 GLP fixtures. For the basic light in the large sports area, he used 110 HIGHLANDER Washes, which with their enormous output ensured good, homogeneous illumination of the areas of activity from a great height.
150 GLP impression X4 L served as a tried-and-tested audience light. 60 impression X4 Bar 20 were installed in a tunnel during archery and six impression S350 Wash as keylights put the presenters in a camera-compatible light.
In live usage for the first time, Arkin also had 24 of the brand-new FUSION FS16 Z LED battens, which he had previously closely auditioned as part of a product preview. Four FS16 Z battens were installed vertically on top of each other on six towers, all of which were placed in the performance area of the athletes, where they created dynamic show light effects.
The FS16 Z battens have a motorised zoom, between 8° and 40°, and stand out thanks to a new type of halo ring around the front lens. This significantly increases the visibility of the individual pixels in TV applications from all camera angles, and also catches the eye as an independent style element. The fanless design ensures quiet operation and is thus highly relevant in the noise-sensitive TV area.
“First of all, I am very pleased that this batten has an internal zoom,” states Arkin. “Often you have to decide on a certain type of LED batten in the design – either narrow or wide, which determines the look very early on. If you use conventional LED battens as wall-washers, they often throw coloured stripes on the wall for the first 30 centimetres before the colour mix takes effect. The halo ring of the FS16 Z finally eliminates this problem.
“The FS16 Z is really ideal for television productions. I liked it a lot at the RTL Sommerspiele, so I can soon imagine it on The Masked Singer,” says the designer, looking ahead.
But where does this affinity with GLP come from? Arkin laughs: "When I met [GLP key account manager] Oliver Schwendke, after the third coffee we started to philosophise about what is good about certain devices and where there is still room for improvement. The great thing about GLP is that constructive criticism is taken seriously, and often – where technically possible – also implemented. And then there is the matter of service, which GLP is pursuing in an unprecedented way. If I have questions about existing products on a project – for example how bright the X4 Bar 20 is at 10 metres with a 60% zoom, using only the white LED – it takes less than two days for a technician to send the currently measured values. This cannot be done any better!"
The technical service provider for lighting, media and audio technology was PRG Germany. In addition to Arkin Atacan himself, the atacan design team consisted of Tobias Reinartz (show light operator), Paul Happ (media operator), Uwe Schröder (content creator), Otto Schildknecht (head lighting technician) and Markus Ruhnke (keylight operator).
Harvard University Athletics Enhances Broadcast Audio with Studio Technologies
Over the last several years, Harvard University Athletics has grown its sports broadcasts significantly, doubling online viewership and establishing partnerships with ESPN and other national and regional networks. To help deliver excellent audio during these productions, Harvard turns to products from Studio Technologies, manufacturer of high-quality audio, video, and fiber-optic solutions. Units like the Model 204 and Model 230 Announcer’s Consoles, Model 45A Audio Interface, and Model 45DC Intercom Interface have enabled student-led production teams to run about 300 pro-level broadcasts across 42 teams each year, including football, basketball, skiing, rowing, fencing, and more.
“Studio Technologies has always checked all the boxes that I needed, and their products are more affordable than the alternatives,” said Imry Halevi, Assistant Director of Athletics at Harvard. “I’ll be looking for a solution and then they come out with something new, or they come out with a product I don’t need and then suddenly an application comes up.”
Imry specifically highlighted the Model 230 Announcer’s Console, which has been the “workhorse for all Harvard’s productions.” The tabletop unit serves as an audio control “hub” for announcers, commentators, and production personnel. Imry said games typically have two commentators who use Model 230 units while live on air, and to communicate with production personnel behind the scenes.
Harvard has also leveraged the Model 45A Audio Interface for additional flexibility with offsite audio sources. Imry cited broadcasts for skiing carnivals in New Hampshire and Vermont, when production personnel weren’t able to communicate with camera operators via a phone call or Zoom. Using the Model 45A, the control room established a connection with the operators in the field by tying their live stream setup into their offsite communication system. “It was as though they were sitting next to us, it was just that much easier,” added Imry .
Imry said the school recently started using the Dante® enabled Model 204 Announcer’s Console and Model 45DC Intercom Interface for “productions where running long analog XLR cables is not practical.” As an example, the Model 45DC is handling broadcast commentator audio from a soccer field that’s far from their control room but still in range of the campus IT network. “It’s allowing us to do many more flexible things using Dante,” said Imry. “We’ve produced 10 games so far with our Model 204s and 45DCs, including three broadcasts on linear TV (NESN).”
With a staff of 65 students, Imry also noted the value of Studio Technologies’ intuitive user interfaces and durable designs. “Students are not generally known as the most careful with equipment,” Imry joked. “Thankfully, we’ve never had a console break. Everything has always worked and sounded great.”
Daktronics Installs Audiovisual System for Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
Daktronics has partnered with the Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC to design, manufacture and install an audiovisual system at the newly constructed Weidner Field in Colorado. The project was completed in 2021 before the start of the season.
"Weidner Field selected Daktronics because they are the industry leader in stadium digital displays and service, proposed creative budget solutions, and encouraged audio design to consider future slap back from adjacent building facades under construction," stated Switchbacks FC President Nick Ragain.
At one end of Weidner Field sits the video display measuring 24 feet high by nearly 35 feet wide. It features a 13HD pixel layout to bring excellent image clarity and contrast to fans in every seat. The technology features industry-leading environmental protection to ensure it operates as expected in the outdoors of Colorado.
“We are honored that the Ragain family and the Switchbacks organization have put their trust in, and selected, Daktronics to provide and install the distributed sound system, large video display and pitch perimeter LED systems at the picturesque Weidner Field in downtown Colorado Springs,” said Eric Cain, Daktronics sales representative. “Now, we look forward to supporting the Switchbacks with world-class customer service and keeping all of their systems operating at the highest level possible for years to come.”
Circling the field, a pitch perimeter display was also installed at the stadium. This display features a 15HD pixel layout and measures approximately 2.5 feet high while stretching 341 feet wide. It offers the ability to highlight sponsors throughout events as well as sharing additional audience-engaging graphics and animations.
An integrated audio system was also installed at Weidner Field to bring full-range sound reproduction while delivering clear, intelligible speech to those in attendance. The powerful audio experience helps immerse fans in the action on the field and builds an exciting environment for everyone to enjoy.
Daktronics will also be including its powerful Show Control solution with this installation. This industry-leading system provides a combination of display control software, world-class video processing, data integration and playback hardware that forms a user-friendly production solution.
Oak View Group Expands Executive Team with Three New Hires at Coachella Valley Arena
Oak View Group (OVG) has appointed of three executives at Coachella Valley Arena. Joining OVG is JoAnn Armstrong as vice president of programming, Joyce Szudzik as vice president of marketing, Ruth Hill as vice president of finance. All will be based in Palm Desert and report to John Bolton, senior vice president of entertainment - facilities (OVG) & general manager, Coachella Valley Arena.
“As we continue to build a world-class arena in the Coachella Valley, we’re committed to hiring the best industry professionals to lead us forward,” said Bolton. “I am very pleased to officially welcome each of them to our team.”
As vice president of programming for Coachella Valley Arena, JoAnn, a lead industry veteran, will be responsible for strategic content programming of all concerts, family shows, and special events, as well as facilitating the AHL hockey schedules.
“I'm thrilled to join the inaugural OVG team for the Coachella Valley Arena under the guidance of SVP, GM John Bolton, working together to elevate the artist and fan experience for the Coachella Valley,” said JoAnn. “This already top destination will have an amazing new home for our touring artists around the world, as well as home to the AHL team of the Seattle Kraken, among the other diverse programming planned.”
JoAnn makes the move to OVG from the Honda Center in Anaheim, California after 28 years. During her tenure in Anaheim, she oversaw all programming for the arena bringing some of the biggest artists to the fans of Orange County as well as scheduling for the NHL home team Anaheim Ducks. Previously, JoAnn served as part of the management team at the Pacific Amphitheatre in Costa Mesa, CA, and Laff Stop Comedy Nite Club in Santa Ana, California.
Joyce joins OVG as vice president of marketing for Coachella Valley Arena from AEG Worldwide where she will oversee the planning and implementation of the arena marketing strategy including brand, ticket sales, media buying, partnership marketing, social and digital media. Additionally, she will act as a liaison and work in collaboration with OVG Los Angeles and other arena stakeholders to ensure brand alignment. A music industry veteran with more than two decades of leadership experience in harnessing and leveraging data to build long-lasting relationships with customers, Joyce is a digital native and social media strategist with extensive experience in marketing, on both the promoter side and the venue side.
“The opportunity to build an Arena in a pristine market, and with Oak View Group, so rarely happens, I knew it would align with my sustainability mindset,” said Joyce. “Coupled with the chance to work with John Bolton and with my dream to build the entire martech stack and marketing strategies from the ground up for an Arena, I knew it was the next challenge I wanted to take in my music career.”
Joyce started her career in PACE (Live Nation Entertainment) amphitheaters and quickly worked her way to national tour marketing at AEG Live, leading the marketing campaigns for award-winning artists including Bon Jovi, Justin Bieber, The Rolling Stones, Prince, Usher, Enrique Iglesias, Carrie Underwood, and dozens more before building the digital marketing team. A two-time Billboard Digital Power Player, Joyce most recently led AEG’s social media listening and strategy, consumer data governance programs.
With more than 20 years of entertainment and hospitality industry experience, Ruth joins OVG as vice president of finance. She will be responsible for establishing the financial infrastructure and compliance, develop budgets and monthly forecasts, assist with projecting event deals and P&L while overseeing the daily operations of all accounting and finance functions.
Ruth commented: “I'm thrilled for the opportunity to work for a company as successful as Oak View Group and specifically under the proven leadership of John Bolton. The Coachella Valley Arena is going to be a game-changer for quality entertainment and a positive impact for the surrounding Palm Springs area.”
Prior to joining OVG, Hill worked for NBA teams such as the Utah Jazz, Sacramento Kings, and San Antonio Spurs; the NHL’s Nashville Predators and Dallas Stars; and most recently the full-service marketing agency Mod Op. She also taught accounting at the University of San Francisco Masters Sports Program. She received a bachelor’s degree in accounting followed by an MBA from the University of Utah.
The three appointments come on the heels of OVG’s announcement earlier this month of Steve Fraser being named president of Coachella Valley Arena and it’s to be named AHL expansion team. Additional new hires include Frank Torres, formerly of the San Antonio Spurs, as director of sales and services; Samantha “Sam” Wright, formerly of Audacy (previously Entercom Communications) as Intergraded Account Manager; and Annika Heine as sales/preview center coordinator.
Located on 43.35 acres of land at I-10 and Cook Street, in Riverside County on land owned by the H.N. and Frances C. Berger Foundation, the arena will be more than 300,000 square feet and feature 11,000-plus seats, and include modern suites and premium hospitality clubs. It will be the home of the Seattle Kraken’s American Hockey League (AHL) team and will include an adjoining facility that will serve as a year-round community gathering space and the training center for the AHL team. The arena is projected to open in the last quarter of 2022.
Maaspoort Sports and Events
Built in 1982, Maaspoort Sports and Events, located in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands, is more than just an indoor arena, it’s a unique, multifunctional facility suited to host a wide array of events. The venue offers two meeting rooms, a sports bar, and a diverse and flexible arena area that can be used for a variety of events from sports to concerts.
The arena itself provides a seating capacity of 3,500 people for sports events and 4,000 people for concerts. Maaspoort is also home to the most successful basketball club in The Netherlands, the Heroes Den Bosch. As a member of the Dutch Basketball League, this championship record-breaking team regularly plays at this spectacular venue. This indoor sports facility also hosts different sport activities such as badminton, tennis and gymnastics.
In addition to the main arena, Maaspoort also offers two meeting rooms and a sports bar - all three areas can be opened up creating one large space or reconfigured to suit specific event needs. This flexibility meant the lighting and audio systems within the venue needed to be robust and flexible enough to support a variety of occasions.
As the audiovisual partner of record, Unlimited Vision and Sound, also located in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, understood what Maaspoort was working to achieve and knew they would develop the perfect solution with Bose Professional and Color Kinetics products.
“Unlimited Vision and Sound was already our main supply partner; they were our go-to resource if we needed to hire audio and related technology for a variety of different events,” said Remco van der Pot, Manager at Maaspoort Sports and Events. “We are always very satisfied with their support and partnership, so when we decided on a new audio and lighting solution to support all the different events, we naturally asked them to submit a proposal with their recommendations.”
After auditing the needs of the venue as a whole, and breaking down exact specifics of what was needed for each space and potential event, Pascal van Engelen, Owner of Unlimited Vision and Sound, identified the best audio solution would be a combination of the Bose Professional ArenaMatch AM10, AM20 and AM40 loudspeakers and the FreeSpace DS100SE loudspeakers, rounding out the system with the RoomMatch RMU208 loudspeakers and the MB210 compact subwoofer.
The system is powered by a PowerMatch PM8500N power amplifier and is configured and controlled by the ControlSpace EX-1280 digital signal processor. In addition to flexibility, the ArenaMatch-based solution also delivers speech intelligibility without compromising a true musical experience. Visitors now enjoy clear announcements made during the height of a game, during a concert or musical event.
Since the initial installation, the results have been exactly what the Maaspoort Sports and Events management was hoping for. Remco furthered: “We received a lot of compliments and positive reactions from our guests on the sound quality and intelligibility from the start. The fact that it meets our customers’ needs and provides the exact experience we envisioned is a win for everyone involved.”
The Maaspoort Sports and Events team is genuinely happy with the perfect audio coverage delivered by the Bose Professional solution, adding that: “Sound is extremely important, especially in a sport like basketball. Music plays a pivotal role in the creation of an experience. The collaboration with Unlimited Vision and Sound reinforced why they are a trusted partner who delivers with our needs in mind. As far as we are concerned, both the Bose system and Unlimited Vision and Sound are definitely recommended - we now have high-quality audio for every event and can offer the total experience.”
“The events here are very diverse - from a dance party to sports events to business meetings,” continued Remco. “So we wanted a flexible audio system that delivered the best quality sound, whether it was music, singing or sports announcements. The solution needed to be suitable for all those different moments and room configurations, and using Bose products means that we have definitely achieved that.”
Unlimited Vision and Sound worked on the lighting side of the project, too, supplying the venue with an upgrade from its previous use of 132 luminaires, each with five fluorescent lamps mounted 12–14-metres (39–46 ft) above the floor. These lights limited the arena in many ways. First, the fluorescent lamps were only producing 800 lux, but 1,000 lux was needed to illuminate the arena appropriately for television filming. Therefore, Remco’s visions was to install floodlights to bring the lighting up to par, which was taking a huge toll on the building’s electrical load. Another limitation was the regular maintenance which required the arena to shut down for repairs. As well as this, there was no coloured lighting and no control over the illumination levels within the building.
With all limitations in mind, a successful reputation for lighting large buildings and a strong portfolio of scene setting, Livingprojects and Manager of Operations Jurgen Bal created a lighting design and worked with Color Kinetics to light the arena. The team replaced all 132 fluorescent fixtures with an LED lighting solution. 30 ColorReach Compact Powercore luminaires (now specified with ReachElite) provided the building with 1,200 lux, more than needed for television filming. These luminaires were installed to give the arena the desired coloured lighting effects, which are dimmable for speeches, or bright and multi-coloured for sports games. These luminaires also provide Maaspoort with the ability to change the illumination levels for different events, which have all been programmed to pre-set levels for ease of use.
The LED lighting at Maaspoort was installed in just four short weeks. The new LED system reduced the electrical load by 58% from 38,000W to 16,000W. The building is now colourfully illuminated with easy-to-control, upgraded lighting and all previous limitations have been eliminated. Remco concluded: “Now, we can highlight the hall in different colours. During the most exciting parts of a competition, we can add an extra dimension to the show and change the colour schemes, adding a new new level to the fan experience.” With newly-improved, high-quality audiovisual capabilities, Maaspoort Sports and Events can provide a heightened fan experience, more dynamic events, and a venue that can operate to its full potential.
This article originally appeared in issue #19 of MONDO | STADIA which you can read here.
https://issuu.com/mondiale/docs/mdst19_digitallr/38
New Audiovisual Experience Added to Northern State University Stadium from Daktronics
When Northern State University (NSU) Wolves fans welcomed football to campus for the first time at the new Dacotah Bank Stadium in Aberdeen, South Dakota, they saw a new audiovisual system from Daktronics. The new video board and audio system was installed this spring before the football schedule kicked off.
“We’re excited to bring a whole new fan experience to the campus of Northern State University, and we’re proud to have South Dakota contractors, like Daktronics, help provide the equipment and resources that enhance our game-day experience,” said Justin Fraase, vice president of enrollment, communications and marketing at NSU.
The new video display measures 23 feet high by 59 feet wide bringing excellent image clarity and contrast to fans throughout the stadium. The display also features industry-leading environmental protection to ensure the display runs as expected on game days. The entire scoreboard structure will measure 42 feet high by 76 feet wide to bring fans all the video and scoring information they crave.
A Sportsound 2000HD audio system was integrated with the video and scoring system to provide full-range sound reproduction and intelligible speech. It will provide the powerful audio experience that fans, players and coaches expect at live sporting events.
“We’re honoured to help bring football to NSU’s campus for the first time in school history,” said Tony Mulder, Daktronics regional sales manager. “This installation will bring added excitement to every event and will complement the previous installations for the university’s technology Daktronics installed for soccer and basketball as well as the new scoreboard being installed at their softball field. They’ve been a fantastic partner and we’re looking forward to seeing many football games on campus for years to come.”
The video display is capable of variable content zoning which allows it to show one large image or multiple zones of digital content. It can share any combination of live video, instant replays, up-to-the-minute statistics and game information, graphics and animations, and sponsorship messages.
In addition to the equipment installation, Northern State will also receive a content package that will be produced and delivered by Daktronics Creative Services.
In 2019, Daktronics installed new LED video technology at NSU’s Barnett Center and Wachs Arena including the largest collegiate centerhung system in the state of South Dakota.
Daktronics has grown with the sports industry from the company’s beginnings in 1968. Today, the company has LED video display installations at hundreds of colleges and universities across the United States.
Spezia Calcio Reopens Alberto Picco Stadium After Recent Renovations
Spezia Calcio welcomed fans back at the Alberto Picco Stadium for the Serie A match against Udinese on Sunday after renovations to the "Curva Piscina" of the Alberto Picco were completed ahead of schedule.
Three months after taking over the club, US Investor Robert Platek – whose ownership group also acquired two other teams in Europe (Sonderjyske Foodbold in Denmark and Casa Pia AC in Portugal) – decided to renovate Spezia Calcio’s grounds, located near the Cinque Terre National Park in the Liguria region, with an investment of €15 Million. The investment in the stadium project is a clear sign of the family’s long term commitment to Spezia Calcio and its desire to keep the club in Italy’s top tier.
Renovation work began on June 21 and increased the Curva Piscina’s capacity to 3,176 seats, divided into two sections. The refurbished Curva Piscina has been approved by the Supervisory Committee and Lega Serie A, and starting from the home match against Udinese – scheduled for Sunday, September 12 at 3 p.m. CET – the Picco will hit the Serie A limelight, this time with the Aquilotti crowd in the stands.
The "Picco” – even at 50% capacity – will roar again and the Aquile will finally return to celebrating with their fans, who for too long have been away from their home.
Spezia Calcio owner Robert Platek said, "I want to say thanks to the mayor, the municipality, police and fire departments and everyone else in the city who supported us in this project. This herculean accomplishment would only be possible with the support of our great architects GAU Arena, the construction company CLARIN ITALIA TRIBUNE S.R.L, and of course, our amazing team lead by Riccardo Lazzini – it’s an amazing achievement! To the fans, I say: we did this for you, your support is vital to the team and inspires us all. We look forward to hearing the huge noise on Sunday to support the boys! Forza Spezia!"
The first phase of the three-year project firmly backed by the Platek family has now been successfully completed. The other two phases of stadium renovations will begin at the end of the 2021/22 season and the focus will shift to the Tribuna of the Viale Fieschi facility.
The mayor and the local authorities played key roles in the delivery of Phase One, but it also could not have been accomplished without the expertise of architect Gino Zavanella’s GAU Arena and the invaluable contribution of the work team coordinated by the head of infrastructure, Riccardo Lazzini.