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From mud to Mosaic 2.0 | Gallery
Construction continues toward 2017 opening
By Emma Graney, Leader-Post August 11, 2014 8:32 AM
From mud to Mosaic 2.0 | Gallery
Mike Zurowski, design build manager of the stadium project, stands in front of construction on the new stadium in Regina, SK, on Friday, August 8, 2014.
Photograph by: TROY FLEECE , Regina Leader-Post
In 2017, the Roughriders will run out on to the artificial turf of their new home ground.
Right now, though, that space is nothing but dirt, mud, and a big old hole - 20 feet deep - with a couple of sump pumps in it.
Around the ridge of the hole, excavators scrape dirt into trucks to the clanking hum of heavy equipment.
Most of the piles have already been poured on the east side, steel sticking out into the air where eventually a grandstand will be.
On the west side of the lot, chunks of concrete, pipes and tumbleweed-like twists of rebar sit by the fence, remnants of what has been pulled from the dirt.
To PCL design/build manager Mike Zurowski, being on the project is a pretty big deal.
A Regina lad himself, he understands the unique roll the Riders play in Saskatchewan life.
"There's a lot of history and pride there," he says, nodding to the east where Mosaic Stadium looms through the trees.
"When the old one comes down, I think there will be some mixed feelings.
"I wouldn't say we're looking forward to seeing it disappear, but I will say it's going to be pretty cool to be in the new stadium."
Around 70 people are working on the stadium construction right now, but as it ramps up, so too will the number of workers.
When word got out that PCL got the job, the company got emails from across North America from people keen to be involved.
The result, Zurowski says, is a workforce where "a lot of them are passionate, because a lot of them are football fans."
"We're treating this like a legacy project, like it's going to be here for the next 100 years," he says.
As Zurowski watches the 33,000-capacity stadium project coming along, the City of Regina documents progress of the $278.5-million stadium as well.
Some locals also wanted to see what it was all about; up until recently, a good number were stopping by the site to try and stick their heads in and see how things were progressing.
So far, the site hasn't provided any surprises - no buffalo bones, no weird artifacts.
Between the four towering piling rigs, the 30 rumbling trucks, the four trackhoes, the cranes and the scurrying bobcats, work at the site will continue - snow or sunshine - from around 7:15 a.m. until 5 p.m., Monday to Friday, until the work is done.
And while the storms that have been rolling through the city of late can put work on hold for a couple of hours, the project is still on-schedule for that first 2017 kickoff.
egraney@leaderpost.com
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