Most observers driving by the Dynamo Stadium site this week – even if it’s just a quick fly-by on U.S. Highway 59 – have noticed angled white beams emerging from the stadium’s southwest corner.
Those steel tubes are the first of many that will connect the stadium concrete with the tessellated aluminum skin that will form the exterior of the facility. While the tubes and skin will be installed over the next three months, the geometrically-designed tubes are already starting to give the stadium its own identity.
“I think the whole thing looks modern,” Dynamo Stadium general manager Doug Hall said. “When the skin goes on, I think it’ll look really modern and futuristic. It’s going to be very distinct and different than anything else you see in Houston.”
Designed to reflect the industrial heritage of the surrounding neighborhood, the skin is one of the most unique features of the new stadium and is expected to be completed by the end of the year. The tubes serve to give the stadium exterior some of its shape and definition.
“It’s backup steel for the skin, but it also provides the most aesthetic part of the stadium look,” said Liz Cox, ICON Venue Group project director. “The skin will follow right after it, and they both should be concluded before Christmas.”
Construction crews continue to work on installing pre-cast risers throughout the stadium, erecting steel framework in the north end zone, and beginning work on the south end zone facilities that will host locker rooms and office space. Cranes have also begun to hoist and place the first steel trusses of the roof canopy on the west side of the stadium.
“With the risers on the west side almost finished, there’s really some definition for the VIP Club, and you can see how close the club and all the seats are to the pitch,” Hall said. “The first steel truss for the roof is a big deal. Soon we’ll see how much that covers the seating section, and you’re going to start getting a good idea of what the finished product is going to look like.”
