HKS Architect for Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium Mark Williams leads LA Stadium

Story Courtesy of USA Today

Scenes from SoFi Stadium, the new home for the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers. The open-air stadium is the first indoor-outdoor stadium to be constructed and seats 70,000, expandable up to 100,000. The stadium is about 80 percent complete and is scheduled to open July 2020.

The sleek, sloping roof is in full view. Man-made canyons are coming to life. The one-of-a-kind scoreboard is taking shape.

Approximately 3,200 workers are on the site every day, six days a week, with the construction deadline eight months away.

The stadium, built atop the old Hollywood Park Racetrack, will officially open July 25 when Taylor Swift, the Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter, is scheduled to hold her “Lover Fest West” concert.

It is estimated that $5 billion dollars will be spent on the 298-acre sports-and-entertainment complex that, according to the Los Angeles Times, is about 31/2 times larger than Disneyland.

A 360-degree, two-sided, wraparound video board with 4K technology will rise as high as 31/2 stories.

Approximately 3,200 workers are on the site every day, six days a week, with the construction deadline eight months away.

The first touchdown will be scored 100 feet below the surface. That’s because approximately 8 million cubic yards of dirt were excavated from the stadium bowl alone.

The dirt digging was required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) because the stadium sits in the flight path of Los Angeles International Airport. To adhere to FAA height restrictions for buildings, the digging commenced and the playing field was lowered to 100 feet beneath ground level.

“Construction wise, it’s been going incredibly smooth for as complicated as it is,” said Mark Williams of HKS Architects, which designed the building for Rams owner Stan Kroenke. “And we’re getting to where we’re almost on the fourth turn heading for home.”