Inter&Co Stadium

{{Infobox stadium | name = Orlando City Stadium | nickname = Lions Den | logo_image =[[File:Renderings_of_the_new_stadium-_I_did_take_these_at_the_board_meeting_couple_of_weeks_ago-_2014-07-20_01-06.png|thumbnail|| logo_caption = | image = rendering of new stadium

| caption = | fullname = | former names = | location = Terry Street and Church Street, Orlando, Florida | coordinates = 28.540855°N 81.387931°W / 28.540855; -81.387931 | broke_ground = 2014 | built = | opened = 2016 | renovated = | expanded = | closed = | demolished = | owner = City of Orlando | operator = Orlando City SC | surface = Grass | scoreboard = | cost = $84 million | architect = Populous | project_manager = ICON Venue Group | structural engineer = | services engineer = | general_contractor = Barton Malow | main_contractors = | capacity = 19,500 | suites = 38 | record_attendance = | dimensions = | acreage = 8 | volume = | tenants = Orlando City Soccer Club (MLS) (2016-future) | embedded = | website = | publictransit = SunRail Church Street Station }} Orlando City Stadium is a proposed soccer-specific stadium in Orlando, Florida. It is the planned home venue for the Orlando City Soccer Club, who will enter Major League Soccer (MLS) as an expansion franchise in 2015. It will be located in Downtown Orlando and is expected to cost $110 million. It is proposed to open in 2016. Orlando City will play at the Citrus Bowl until its completion.

History

In April 2013, the City of Orlando purchased downtown land for $8.2 million to be used towards the construction of a $110 million MLS soccer stadium. However, in May, the Florida House of Representatives failed to vote on a bill that had passed the Senate that would have provided up to $30 million in state funds towards the stadium project. Rawlins responded by expressing his intent to find alternative funding and keep seeking MLS expansion.

The Orlando downtown soccer stadium moved closer to securing funding on August 8, 2013, when Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs and Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer reached an agreement on a deal to provide financial support for a variety of Orlando projects including the new MLS soccer stadium. The last piece in stadium funding was an October 2013 vote on using an existing tourism tax to fund the final quarter of the $80 million stadium project. On October 22, 2013, the Orange County Board of Commissioners voted 5-2 to approve the use of $20 million in tourist development tax funds to build an $84 million multi-purpose soccer stadium in downtown Orlando.

Orlando City Stadium is scheduled to be completed for the 2016 season. The club will play their home matches at Citrus Bowl in 2015.

Design

On December 11, 2012, the team released artistic renderings of the stadium. On September 30, 2013, the architectural firm Woods Bagot released their drawings of the stadium on their website. The team announced that these drawings were released without their knowledge or input, and that they had not selected an architect yet. Woods Bagot proceed to remove the images from their website. The design phase began on January 7, 2014, when Mayor Buddy Dyer and some of the Orlando City SC staff traveled to Kansas City to begin working with the design firm Populous.

The stadium will reportedly have 18,000 seats and include 2,500 club seats. It’ll also have 300 seats in specialty suites. The stadium’s square footage will be about 290,000 square feet, with 120,000 square feet devoted to the bowl. It is also supposedly going to have bars, retail shops, and restaurants.

On June 10, 2014, renderings of the stadium as well as more information about it were released. The stadium will have an open plaza, where those passing by can see inside, since the field will be 10-12 feet below street level. It will have a seating capacity of 19,500, with the structural ability to expand to 25,000 in the future. The field will be grass, with canopies over fans to protect them from the elements and to increase noise levels. A large lion sculpture will overlook the entrance. Just before a game begins, the lion will rotate 180 degrees to "watch" the action. A festival plaza lined with palm trees on the south end of the plaza, just outside the main entrance at Church Street and Terry Avenue is planned (the streets will be closed to vehicles during events). A balcony-style bar just below the video scoreboard with a 360-degree view is planned as well. A seating section on the north end will be dedicated to members of supporters' clubs. As proposed — and if building codes allow — it would have no seats, but rails and extra room for "safe standing." The supporters' section would also have its own "pub-style" area.

External links

• City of Orlando Venues: MLS Soccer Stadium