Quote:
Originally Posted by Domer2019
I think it has the potential to serve as a stadium analogue to Wintrust Arena in the multi-use sense. Especially being empty in the winter/USL off-season.
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I don't see it. Wintrust Arena itself has a shaky business case, but it doesn't matter since it's funded through McPier (tax dollars, etc). This is presumably a totally private venture by Sterling Bay.
However... now that I think about it, maybe it's possible to use air-supported technology (i.e. a golf dome) to enclose the stadium cheaply. Setup and takedown would be a project, but it could just be done for November-March when soccer games are not being played. The max span on a golf dome is around 360' while a FIFA soccer field is only 240' wide, so that still leaves 120' or approximately 40-45 rows of seats. With some endzone seating, it wouldn't be difficult to fit 20,000 seats. Getting people in and out while maintaining air pressure would be the biggest challenge, especially at the end fo events when everyone is leaving (or during an emergency evacuation).