The Atlanta Falcons and the Georgia World Congress Center Authority have negotiated a deal with a Kansas City-based architecture firm to design Atlanta’s new retractable-roof stadium.
The agreement with 360 Architecture is subject to the approval of the GWCCA board, which will vote on it Tuesday. If the board approves the deal, the contract will be signed immediately, GWCCA executive director Frank Poe said.
The firm, which designed the stadium shared by New York’s two NFL teams, was selected two weeks ago by Falcons and GWCCA officials as their top choice from five finalists to be the lead architect of the Atlanta stadium. That selection set in motion negotiations with the firm on terms.
On Monday, after hearing a presentation from 360 Architecture senior principal Bill Johnson, the GWCCA board’s stadium development committee voted unanimously to recommend to the full board that it approve the hiring of the firm.
The committee was not provided terms of the contract before casting its vote. Those terms, including the fee, will be provided to the full board before Tuesday’s vote, Poe said. The GWCCA would not release the proposed agreement Monday.
The stadium, slated to open in time for the Falcons’ 2017 season, will be built near the Georgia Dome, which will be demolished after the new facility opens.
Johnson said the stadium should be different than any other, from its roof design to its use of technology to the fan experience it will provide.
“We have really a watershed moment” in stadium design, he told the committee.
Although stressing that the actual design work has not begun, Johnson showed two creative exercises that were part of his firm’s pitch for the job during the interview process.
One, which Johnson called “Pantheon,” showed an oval-shaped roof opening directly above the football field that would retract in panels in seven to 10 minutes. Another, which Johnson likened to a “solarium” effect, showed a larger roof opening and no upper-level seating in the end zones, enabling the stadium to open in 10 to 12 minutes to reveal a dramatic view of the Atlanta skyline.
Johnson said one of the project’s biggest challenges will be to “re-imagine the whole game-day experience because, quite frankly, it’s really easy to stay home and watch games.”
The firm has designed sports facilities around the world. Its highest profile project is the 82,000-seat MetLife Stadium, which opened in 2010 in East Rutherford, N.J., as the home of the Giants and Jets. The firm also has designed facilities ranging from a basketball arena at Auburn University to soccer stadiums in Iraq. It currently is working on the design for a major redo of the Miami Dolphins stadium.
Johnson is no stranger to Atlanta. While working with a different architecture firm, he was involved in the design of the 1996 Olympic stadium and its transition to Turner Field. He lived here for about a year during that project.
“I am absolutely the happiest guy in the room to be here,” Johnson said Monday.
Meanwhile, the Falcons have started the process of hiring a general contractor to build the stadium, as called for in the agreement between the team and the GWCCA. The team’s selection is then subject to GWCCA approval rights.
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