Defining A Sense Of Place

Defining a Sense of Place

by

David Ostendarp

Its been a long time since sports franchises were on the periphery of civic life. Remember those tightly organized, but sweetly informal, bands of athletes and executives who gathered in the gloaming and gave their all for the love of the game? Franchises of that era were vitally important to a committed segment of the populace the fans but strictly atmospheric to metro movers and shakers, politicos and patrons, moms and management-types.

Not now. Today, sports franchises are big chips in the high-stakes holdem tournament of city development. Sports franchises have joined the gotta-have list with green space, magnet schools, public transit and museum districts in determining a communitys livability. As they compete for immigration, relocations and adoration, cities around the world wear sports franchises like jeweled crowns. Sure, a city might win a new Toyota plant with tax increment financing and bond issues, but will that get the worlds attention on ESPN?

And, of course, stadia are the most visible, most durable evidence of this phenomenon. Architects, developers and exhibit designers scramble to secure the swoopiest sight lines, the sexiest light-towers, the most digitally dexterous scoreboards. New stadia are reviewed like arts centers, and the reviews might not even appear on the sports page. Stadia and, in the larger sense, sports franchises, have transcended their class. Perhaps only visually, in most cases certainly just seasonally, they have nonetheless become something more.

The best of them are gathering places beyond home and work, distinctive, informal settings where people can meet to relax, nourish relationships and be sociable instead of isolated. Impressive works of architecture, they are vast cities of interconnected halls and passageways, ramps and concourses. But they can be yet more than that a kind of spiritual intersection for a broad spectrum of society, where you can become immersed in the ebb and flow of humanity. They are social centers, too, not clubs for the privileged few, but buildings for everyone. All touch and are touched by them. Such places contribute greatly to creating a sense of community.

Yet this does not happen inevitably or without careful planning and attraction design. It is not simply a matter of dedicating a high-profile site, pouring enough concrete, navigating the many turf options, and throwing open the doors. To succeed in creating a sense of community, sports franchises/stadia must first create a sense of place.

The romantic auras of some stadia are direct byproducts of their histories. Lambeau Field, Wembley, Churchill Downs, Aztec Stadium, Fenway Park, the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Nrburgring (though none measures up to Romes Circus Maximus, longer than six modern football fields and more than three times as wide, with its chariot races, wild beasts and 350,000 spectators).

These are sports great edifices and, like certain campuses, clock towers and train stations, they positively exhale place. And why not? They were emanating a powerful sense of place long before the phrase was ever coined. Of course, thats not to say that the place they exhale cant be enhanced (more on that later).

But most sports franchises dont have the advantage of built-in heritage. Not everyones been around since the dawn of sport. And even if they have, theyve doubtless moved into new digs a few times. The old stadia come tumbling down; owners cite neighborhood decay, absence of corporate boxes, fan flight to the suburbs. And in their places come the new sports temples. No complaints about their comfort padded seats and cupholders their convenience subterranean parking, plenty of toilets or their construction love that brick, those awnings, the civic consciousness of it all. But all are challenged to create their own sense of place.

Any sports fan can tell you that place is a combination of many things, some ephemeral and/or beyond our control weather, proximity of a lake or river, pre and post-game hangouts and traditions. But smart planning and attraction design can take advantage of things like these a sundeck, a notch or two in the stadium walls to provide glimpses of light on the water beyond, locating in a real neighborhood not some ersatz approximation. Todays leading stadium architects and developers are astute at recognizing and capitalizing on these opportunities.

But like a great film or an unforgettable vacation, the atmosphere surrounding a stadium or the franchise it houses is the subtle sum of countless cohesions and synchronicities. Color, form, shadow and light. Playing field meets public spaces. Nothing is out of place. Nothing is lacking; nor is anything too much. The details are pleasing, the overall impression is perfection.

Bob Harness of Jack Rouse & Associates is the author of this article about defining place in the world of sports. This article goes into the details of how

attraction design

and

exhibit designers

impact the sporting experience.

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Defining a Sense of Place