Tenant: Seattle Mariners (AL)
Opening: July 1999
Style: Retractable roof
Surface: Grass
Capacity: 46,621 (baseball only); main bowl: 24,399; club level: 4,254; suite level: 936; upper bowl: 16,022; disabled seats: 1,010 (505 companion seats).
Architect: NBBJ (Seattle).
Construction: Stadium: Hunt-Kiewit (a joint venture between Huber, Hunt and Nichols, Inc. and (Peter) Kiewit Construction Company), Skilling Ward Magnusson Barkshire (Seattle); Roof: The Erection Company Inc. (Redmond).
Owner: Washington-King County stadium authority.
Cost: $415 million (includes $39 million roof).
Public financing: $340 million, or 82 percent, from a one-half-cent prepared food tax in King County and rental-car tax.
Private financing: $75 million, or 18 percent, from Mariners owners.
Location: The "Ackerley Lot," south of Royal Brougham Way from the Kingdome. Left field (N), Royal Brougham Way; third base (W), First Avenue South; first base (S), South Atlantic Street; right field (E), Third Avenue South.
Dimensions: Left field foul pole: 331 ft.; left field power alley: 390 ft.; center field: 407 ft.; right field power alley: 389 ft.; right field foul pole: 327 ft.
Seattle's new ballpark for the Mariners will resemble the great ballparks of yesteryear. It will be open-air and have real grass. It will also feature a retractable roof that will cover the ballpark, but will not enclose it. The roof will keep fans, 47% of whom come from outside the immediate Puget Sound area, protected from the wind and rain. 46,621 fans will be able to enjoy a ballgame from seats that are closer to the field and offer great sightlines. A team store, picnic area, kids play area, on-site restaurant and a baseball museum are just a few of the fan amenities that will make the ballpark a unique experience. There will also be more variety in concessions and many more bathrooms! A two-level modern press box will be located behind home plate. Groundbreaking ceremonies were held March 8, 1997, with the ballpark scheduled to open in 1999.
The Washington State Major League Baseball Public Facilities District (PFD) is the public body responsible for actual construction of the ballpark. The PFD is working with the Mariners on design and construction and will have oversight of the ballpark once it is built. On September 9, 1996 the Washington State Major League Baseball Stadium Public Facilities District (PFD) selected a site south of the Kingdome for Seattle's new ballpark. In December, 1996 the Seattle Mariners Baseball Club signed a 20-year lease keeping them in Seattle through at least the year 2019.
On June 4, 1998 the Mariners announced that the name of their new ballpark will be Safeco Field. For the right to have their name on the stadium, Safeco, a diversified financial services company whose roots in Seattle date back to 1923, will pay $1.8 million per year for the next 20 years.
Key construction dates:
December 1997 - Roof track supports complete
May 1998 - Roof track complere
August 1998 - Main concourse concrete, upper bowl structural steel complete
February 1999 - Seating installation complete
April 1999 - Playing field complete
June 1999 - Roof complete and operational
July 1999 - Ballpark opens!
Finances:
STATE CONTRIBUTION:
Sales tax credit: State authorized, county imposed .017% sales tax, which is offset against the sales tax now collected by the state in King County. (This results in no sales tax increase to the general public).
Proceeds from sale of baseball stadium commemorative license plates.
Proceeds from sale of two to four sports theme lottery scratch games ($3 million is guaranteed from this source).
LOCAL CONTRIBUTION:
Special stadium sales tax of .5% on restaurants, bars and taverns in King Co.
Special stadium sales tax of 2% on rental cars.
Admissions tax: County has authority to impose two admissions taxes on the new stadium of up to 5% each.
MARINERS CONTRIBUTION:
The Mariners will contribute $45 million.
Roof: Number of roof panels: 3; size: 8.75 acres; height above field: 215 ft.; weight of roof : 22,000,000 pounds; time to open/close: 20 minutes.
Miscellaneous: Elevators: 9; escalators: 11; restrooms: 76; light fixtures: 4,988; doors/gates: 1,231; scoreboard dimensions: 56 ft. x 60 ft.; number of piles in the foundation: 1400; miles of pipe for piling/foundation: 25.
