Dodgers Announce $500M Stadium Improvement Plan

Dodger Stadium, which opened in 1962, is the second-oldest facility in the National League, and when Yankee Stadium is torn down after the 2008 season, the Dodgers will have the third-oldest venue in all of baseball. The team says that since the stadium "was designed for a very different era," it is "bursting at the seams and unable to deliver many of the modern amenities and experiences that fans have come to enjoy and expect at ballparks." The changes in stadiums since the Dodger field was opened, "could not have been envisioned by architects five decades ago," the team says.

To be designed by the firms of Johnson Fain and HKS, the improvements at Dodger Stadium will include three elements called Dodger Way, Green Necklace and Top of the Park. Dodger Way will be a new tree-lined entrance leading to a landscaped grand plaza where fans can gather beyond center field. The plaza will connect to a promenade that features restaurants, shops and the Dodger Experience museum of team history.

Green Necklace will be a perimeter around the ballpark that will enable fans to walk around the park, outdoors yet inside the stadium gates. The Green Necklace will transform acres of parking lots into a landscaped outdoor walkway connecting the plaza and promenade to the rest of the ballpark. The Green Necklace will connect to Top of the Park, which will be a large outdoor plaza featuring views spanning the downtown skyline and Santa Monica Bay, the Santa Monica and San Gabriel Mountain, and the Dodger Stadium diamond.

Dodgers owner Frank McCourt says that the plan is designed to transform the stadium into a place where, especially on game days, families can go early and stay late. McCourt has already completed a number of improvements since taking over the ballpark in 2004. Nearly all of the seats in the stadium bowl have been replaced, a new playing field and upgraded warning track have been completed and the stadium concourses has been updated with new concessions.

As part of its green design, the renovation plan calls for planting trees around the stadium and a focus on conserving water as well as promoting recycling and other environmental initiatives. The Dodgers will use native or drought-resistant plants for landscaping and, where possible, energy efficient bulbs in all stadium and scoreboard lighting. Other environmental practices will include installing energy efficient appliances in all kitchen and concession facilities, and purchasing building materials and items used in concession kiosks that are made from recycled or quality, durable products.