Orlando Citrus Bowl Reconstruction moves on at swift pace!
The Orlando Citrus Bowl is currently being reconstructed and with the first game being due on 22nd November, we thought we’d wander along to a media day organized by City of Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer to take a look at the progress.
The original Citrus Bowl was demolished in January of this year and since then work has continued at a frantic pace to get the new stadium ready for the Florida Blue Florida Classic. June 4th saw the midpoint of the project and yesterday the first seat was installed at the new venue by Mayor Dyer (pictured above left).
The total capacity of the stadium when it is finished will be 65,000. Apart from the Florida Blue Florida Classic, the venue will be home to the Capital One Bowl, Russell Athletic Bowl, MEAC-SWAC Challenge, FHSAA State Championships, Cure Bowl, Monster Jam, and the inaugural MLS season for Orlando City Soccer.
The rebuild has been an enormous task and some 5 million pounds of debris was initially removed and recycled from the old stadium before 148 million pounds of concrete and reinforced steel was used to reconstruct the venue. 800 workers have been on site during the height of construction to ensure that a frantic pace is kept in order to meet the tight deadline.
The new stadium has a newly constructed lower bowl that gives each spectator an extra six inches of legroom and there is also a party deck of more than 15,000 square feet that is located at the north end zone. The stadium also has an improved disability seating area with much improved sight-lines. The venue will also see a new video display featuring more than 2.8 million led lights and they will cover more than 2,000 square feet of space.
The teams that play there will get brand new locker rooms and training rooms and the media will enjoy a completely renovated area overlooking the stadium.
The next deadline that will need to be met is the installation of the field and that work will begin in October. The stadium will then be game ready by 22nd November and the final completion of the project will be April 2015.
More photos at www.FloridaLeisurePhotography.com
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