NewsNight Maryland; 310

The new football season is about to kick off then with a brand new stadium in Maryland Plus a look at new improvements at one year old Jack Kent Cooke St.. Good evening. Welcome to a special edition of NEWSNIGHT Marilyn the long wait is just about over. Sunday afternoon at 1:00 o'clock the Baltimore Ravens new stadium will host its first ever regular season professional football game. The 200 million dollar facility has been getting great reviews during their exhibition season but now the rehearsals are over and the real test is set to begin. NEWSNIGHT is Camilla Carr shows us what we can expect. If you build it they will com and they did get your program for your program. Thousands of Ravens fans for their first look at the football team's new industrial strength stadium.

Oh I think it's wonderful We're delighted to be here and can't wait to find out for the game to start making for the game to the Ravens we got faith in you this year we got it all the way. But clearly the Ravens new home was the star. Great It looks like everybody has a great view and there they jump. Fantastic. I think it's very pretty anywhere impressed. What's impressed you about it. And colorful it is over 68000 purple seats plus two massive state of the art scoreboard slate by computer to a sound system that any rock star would envy. I think the scoreboard is the thing that is going to be talked about both nationally and internationally. It is the only type of the scoreboard in the world in any sports. We surveyed our fans before it was Bill said what do you want. And the first thing they wanted was lots and lots of ads. Second thing they wanted was extensive corridors wide corridor so they can move around so the concourses here are huge You're sixty four feet across.

Another thing they want is Friday and they want to cup holders at their seats. So all those things they asked for we were able to put in and make happen and it seems like we're getting a great response from the fans. But great sightlines coupled with Star Wars sports technology do not come cheaply. Ravens officials say ticket prices range from 35 to $300 per game with season tickets ranging into the thousands of dollars. But fans don't seem to mind. After all this is their football team's new home. Five. You know what you thought it would be. Absolutely and the facilities were already tested. Nice to have something in Baltimore that state of the art. You know I wouldn't think I know what the football accommodations are and we're excited. But with of Dwyane Camilla joins us live now with more on the big preview

Camilla. Hi Bob and all that noise you just heard. We're going to be hearing that again at 1:00 o'clock on Sunday I'm here live at the Ravens new stadium for touchdown Baltimore basically what this is this is a weekend long event series of events leading up to the big game on Sunday. And in those events there will be there's been musical musical entertainment here. There was also an open house for the public earlier today and we have in Petey has a booth here so people may want to come and check that out tomorrow because all of this is going to be repeated again on Saturday and then they have a few events leading up to the game on Sunday. Joining me now though is a very important person to this whole stadium. This is Heidi Edwards she is the project manager. Heidi did you ever think you were going to get to this point. Not really. And actually when course we always knew we would get to this point but it's very satisfying to be standing here with you looking out as we put the final touches on the field and knowing that we're paid playing a very important game on Sunday. When you say you're putting the final touches on the field

they're still painting out there we're just painting the Logos you can see. And just the the name in the end zone and it's it's just typical you kind of you that the last minute in case it rains or you don't want it to be sitting out there fading in the sun so what. Everything's working right now everything is absolutely working we had people in today from 11 to 2 we also have an open house tomorrow from 9:00 to 12:00. We are very ready for everybody ready for the Steelers and hoping for a win. So are we one quick question about the architecture. A lot of people have given this the architectural design rave reviews. Well we obviously had a had a big challenge in front of us when the design team started this project with oil park so close by. As you know has been noted as one of the best if not the best baseball park in the country so it's ok with architects ahead of a big challenge in front of them when they set out to design the stadium. And to date the responses have been positive and a lot of people worked a lot of time to put in a lot of energy to to get to this

point so. Oh my goodness that you can't see this but we just had their super duper sports screen smart vision it's on and it's our replay now I guess of the band that was here you know with a little band. Why that is. I've been on hold but this my visions will definitely be me and full force on Sunday both both end zones on the 24 feet tall by 96 feet long. They're the largest boys of their kind in the country and we're going to put on a great show for the fans on Sunday. OK thank you very much and I'll be on one of the big problems of course is getting here or at least it has been you've heard a lot of don't drive take public transportation and we're going to find out just how good public transportation is going to meet all the fans needs by having Anthony Brown from the MTA join us Anthony thank you for being there even it's a pleasure to be here how are you doing. I'm fine the question is how are you doing in terms of getting people here on Sunday. We're excited. We're looking forward to Sunday but even before Sunday we're looking forward to bringing people down for the NFL festival a light rail system is operating will

continue operating through this evening and also operate through tomorrow with a stop right here at Raven Stadium. Fans can hop on light rail between Cromwell station Glen Burnie and Hunt Valley and come down to Raven Stadium then on Sunday they can choose a light rail or wave and fans can choose express buses from nine convenient locations across the region. About 300 buses a capacity for about 14000 people on our bus system so we're looking forward to Sunday. Well Anthony one of the things people are wondering about out there is you know it was pretty much a nightmare for the for the first pre-season game and people waited. An hour two hours for light rail they were crammed in like sardines. And are you going to really be able to handle the crowd. Oh and indeed on August 24th we corrected the problems that we saw on August 8th. We opened two additional park and ride lot said she won road Hunt Valley and Polly Weston house cool those parking lots are located directly along on light rail system so they alleviated the stress on that system.

We had a smoother night on August 24th and we're looking forward to Sunday when we plan to bring everybody here conveniently and safely. Well we are too and thank you very much Anthony Brown from the MTA. Now earlier I talked to another important person a big part of the stadium John most of the stadium Maryland stadium authority and I asked him I said well John is it time to shut up or put up. It's it is shut up or put up time I didn't think we'd get to this point and I'm still not going to believe we're at that point so that ball is kicked off on Sunday to tell you the truth. Dress rehearsal tonight. Yeah it just hasn't quite hit home yet. I mean it's it's such an important event for the city it is something we waited a long time for. It's not just about football it's really about the city having something that it was committed to being patient being dedicated going through a lot of trial and tribulation and then finally winning. And it's really this Sunday that we

went. It's interesting you would say it's really about the city. There are a lot of people like you know Western Maryland really weren't pleased about the stadium because it was paid for with tax money. Well it's it's really not paid for with taxpayer dollars it's paid for by people who play the lottery scratch off lottery. And those people who choose to play those games that money goes to the stadiums. And then it's the bonding money so if you're interested in buying bonds you know that is really what pays for it as well as the fans who pay and emissions tax which also goes to pay for the building. You know I understand that a lot of big projects are controversial the Bay Bridge was controversial Arbor Place was controversial and so was Auriol park in the end I think this is a huge plus not only for the city but for the state. And the bottom line is we know today that that is indeed the case that the economic development impact that we're counting now that we know is one hundred seventy three million

dollars a year and about seventeen eighteen hundred jobs in the state of Maryland are we just talking about City. Well that's a state I mean for instance the brick work on this building comes from western Maryland. There's a lot of people up in western Maryland I think that are real proud of the break that's on not only this building but Auriol park as well. What about the operating table now that the team does team picks up all of that so actually what will have at the end of the year is in that surplus for the state after debt service because we split half of the profits in this building out of non NFL events that go on on the field so when a college team comes into play the stadium authority gets half of those profits the state gets half of those profits. Then when we rent out our rooms on the club level we keep 100 percent of that profit so this will actually be one of the few stadiums in the country that will operate at a profit margin every year after debt service for the state.

How does this stadium is bringing him here to a stadium from other cities. B the stadiums that are being built today and they're being built all over the country are very profitable buildings. They are in a lot of money for the teams that play in them. But they also have resulted in a tremendous economic impact. If they're building cities usually for those cities and states that have stepped up to the plate and kind of bit the ball on the side to do it because what it does is regenerate your downtown. We see that today with the NFL experience it's thousands of people milling around downtown that have come onto the property here to see what the NFL Experience is. They'll go to Harbor place and they'll spend their dollars there in the Science Center and the aquarium. So it's really an attraction that keeps the city alive. Well in terms of spending dollars that would be thieves. Do you have any idea of whether that right money you city or how much. Sure I mean it's we haven't calculated it yet. And I guess you could do an extrapolation based on what the Department of Business and Economic Development has already

done. But the fact remains that this building and it's a big building was full of people and they were all spending money and they were all downtown all day long. I mean it was an exciting place to be those for those two games this city's cooking. Yet there are people out there critics who say that these projections are overstated that really don't have that many jobs it's not going to bring in that that much money and a lot of the jobs you're talking about are really part time. Well you know they they said that about Oriel Park as well and they were wrong. They said it about our initial projections on economic development which were conservative which were one hundred ten million dollars. We know that those were 75 percent too low. And in terms of the jobs again the calculation on jobs is a full climb in annual equivalent job. So there's a lot there's a lot more than the seventeen hundred eighteen hundred jobs or maybe 3000 or something like that so there's part time in there but you know

any jobs a good job. What's your biggest concern right now is whether they're going to win and that's a real big concern I guess is the key game that Gates brings a big game right and starting out with Pittsburgh. It is tough because they they need this game and it's important. You know other concerns other than that I mean I'm just I'm real real excited and this is going to be a wonderful day for Baltimore. John thanks a lot. Thanks for your good being here. Now really quickly John Bogle mentioned something called the NFL experience what that is is a series of football activities hands on activities for fans for people that come down here. There is a nominal fee for that but you can you can pass you can catch and you can kick into all the other like football kinds of activities. And when we come back on NEWSNIGHT Marilyn We're going straight to the top. We'll be talking to the executive vice president of the Ravens. Then we're going to take you south on 95 and visit Jack Kent Cooke Stadium where fans and

players are set to begin their second season. We'll be right back. This month history is best on PBS. Stories of a country struggle for life. And quest for adventure. Portraits of those whose beliefs influenced a nation and whose ideas became a symbol of our culture. From across the seas a royal tour through England's past. This month. History's best on PBS. Sometimes. You know the man the fabulous fall. Gotta keep those. I do not feel that the slaveholding States should be treated just. To be

tied to the earth or stick to the. Guys in. Building the main. Artillery and. Weisel shots just said. Trolls are the last thing your Friends star. Voices Tuesday night at 10:00 and be too. We're back here live at the Raven state new stadium and joining me is the executive vice president of the Ravens Dave Modelo.

Hi how are you. I'm doing fine good. Did you think it was ever going to happen. Oh absolutely. All the way along. Never in doubt. I'm a NRA member and out of it seriously of when there are moments in time and it's and it's interesting because I can remember this that we were just just concrete sticks and I'm not a construction guy so that I call him sticks. So other people can correct me but big company six where we were standing and this was a big money that there were four big tower cranes in here. And when you when you're standing here then it was really hard to conceptualize just how great this place was going to be but now I can look back and I can see all of that and it's neat to to have seen the evolution of this beautiful child. Is it what you thought it would be I mean it's one thing to see something on paper and it's one thing to another thing to go over the plans but when it's finally build with what some 60 What sixty nine thousand purple seats. RA Yes absolutely. Well I think it's kind of like the anticipation of having a child you know you anticipate how beautiful the child is going to be and. You know you're watching all the movement

and you know getting a sense of that and when the child arrives it's so much greater than you ever would have imagined. And that's really what it is it's just so much greater than than we all could've imagined. And I think that the that Baltimoreans and Mary Landers who come down and see this facility you can see them they just the look of wonderment in their eyes just refreshes it in you all the time and it's neat to see the sense of pride that those folks really deserve to feel because this is theirs. They did it. Now all the Season Tickets are they have been sold are there still single seats available for various games. Well we actually do have some cells and season tickets still available. But but what we've done is we have a reserved 6000 tickets for each game as we promised that we would basically 10 percent of the capacity of the regular seating area available for single game purchase so that I'm a mother and son or a father and daughter can come and enjoy a Ravens game without ever having had to purchase a PSL or a season ticket and they're available in all press categories so you could come and buy two tickets on the 50 yard

line for one game without ever having had to buy any of that other jazz now. If I can luckily for games are sold out already those are those individual tickets. And there's a limited number of tickets for the other four so folks are interested in attending. They should get in touch when I got to office but that they really should do it because they're going quickly. And as you can see it's magnificent. There were a couple of criticisms of one people were saying that the wait in the at the concession stands was really really long day. Have you heard that in what's being done to improve that are you going to add dev vendors. Well I think that generally the reviews of the stadium have been terrific. Our objective was to open this ball park on August 8th as if it had always been here so that basically everything would be working right and I think by and large we had that we have a great group of folks working at the Ravenswood and associated agencies find host and safe management center who I think produced a great couple of games opening the ballpark. Naturally there are tweaks but I can tell you this the organization

is focused on being champions both on and off the field and everything that we do. So if there are five points five being the highest rating that we can achieve in terms of quality of service food lines potties the whole thing. And we're four now and we actually our J.D. Power has already given us a four out of five. Ok seriously. Again that's our first game. OK. I was our first ever game was a 4 out of rival EJB foreign associates. But but we haven't achieved championship level and we won't rest until we have here and out there most importantly on the football field. This is we have to talk football. We are going to be OK. I like it. But you know this is a big game on Sunday. I mean a key game because it could have implications implications for for the playoffs. Oh well eventually it could I mean I'm already thinking ahead to their day and you know we we need to try to focus on a week at a time.

You know we take steps in the right direction but they need the Steelers like absolutely with our divisional opponents twice so beating the Steelers in our home first ever regular season game in the stadium clearly will be a good thing. I can tell you the football team is very excited about the stadium. They recognize that this is the best one in the NFL. They already take a great deal of pride defending what they recognize as being the best stadium in the NFL. And I can assure you of one thing this game this weekend is going to be a rumble. No question about it going to be a rumble rumble. Although one other question that's not related to football however how has the modell family been received in Baltimore in your opinion. Terrible. It's good it's been outstanding. It's it's really really from day one and I've I've said this consistently so it's not something I'm just making up here. When I moved here personally November 5th of 1995 the day that we announced that was my first day in town and I've never left and I felt at home in Baltimore from the very outset which which is a great testament to the folks in this community and you can understand why it's called Charm

City when you're just embraced so instantaneously and it's not literally I didn't know a soul not know one person Dave but there has been a lot of I won't you maybe I have resentment among some people because taxpayer dollars paid for the stadium in their mind. OK. And in and in reality this to the taxpayers about build the stadium. This was funded through the proceeds from special lottery. So it's quite a wide distinction because theoretically then those lottery proceeds wouldn't have been available for anything else it just didn't exist. So it isn't as if we've taken it away from anything else education which is certainly worthy of Naturally any thinking person understands that. So I hope that those folks will come down on it and at least you know they can enjoy this ballpark. And have fun rooting for the Ravens because we're here and we're defending the honor of this community and we bring lots of benefits along with us.

You know I I think just just you know we just had John Mogue on earlier about of about 10 minutes ago who's who's who talked about all the economic benefits or at that the stadium is already bringing to the city of Baltimore. So some of it's you know some of the the the benefits that you have are even just measurable in terms of dollars and cents. But but can't how do you measure of the quantifiable contribution they make to the community An example would be the Monday Night Football is doing its pre-game show and halftime show from ESPN Zone in the inner harbor and they're coming their whole Open is going to be Hank Williams flying into Baltimore. Well now you can't you can't buy that kind of a resident right. That's every week to a national audience without the stadium without this football team. That's not happening period the end. So just one simple little thing shows how great this community is. Shows others what we know. That's a great opportunity for us all. OK Dave Modell thank you very much. And would you like to say Go Ravens. Whoa yeah go Ravens. OK and good luck I decided that I get back to you

Bob. Thanks coming up next on NEWSNIGHT Marilyn we're going to. Yeah we're going to go down I-95 a little bit because within just a little bit more than a quarterback's throw away from the Washington Beltway The Redskins are planning their second season in their new stadium. But there's a lot about Jack Kent Cooke Stadium that's new this year two years Knight senior correspondent John Oliver shot gives us a tour. If there's any stadium envy here it's very well hidden. The Ravens new home might have a few more doo dads courtesy of Maryland taxpayers but the Redskins claimed The House That Jack Built is the finest stadium in the NFL. Fans were still coming into the jack as it's called while the team prepared to do battle with Boston and.

Scalpers were getting face value for their tickets. It's at least double that in the regular season. Tailgaters were wrapping up supper. And inside team officials were showing off 25 million dollars worth of improvements they have made since the end of last season. They enclose the entire club and suite levels and lavish marble and candles on the bands who can afford these prices. Last season this was just bare concrete floors painted cinder block. They installed a posh concession stands a fancy food court on that level. There's a cigar bar if you're so inclined. At a fancy but casual Italian restaurant that's I'm all right. And a ballpark beer was never like this an on premise microbrewery. The name was a natural when Mr. Cook originally built the stadium. He allowed for an improvement like this as you know we built the original stadium in 17 months which is an extremely fast track. And then now we've come in and we've completed the

things that we need to get done. We made significant improvements to the traffic flow. We've added another way to get in and out of the stadium. We've had a lot of signage around the stadium. We're going to be making changes to those to the railings and the general seating areas. Probably the thing that all the fans are going to notice is Is the SAT the new sound system are put in the seating bowl so it shouldn't carry it should very much improve the quality of the sound system for all the fans love level ticket holders are impressed. Last year was a bit disappointed in the money it cost me but this year it's amazing. Now I'm thinking the money I paid is well worth it. It's really nice really is the best and I have the same. Well I think it adds a lot to the Comfort. And lets you concentrate on the game. The Redskins band was ready to march on and the cheerleaders already were trying to rev up the crowd. But not everything was roses. The national

anthem singer showed up two hours before game time and was sent to five different entrances before someone finally let her in. The skins also invested quite a bit of money and they're often C of line during the off season but early in this pre-season game it showed not at all. Boston took an early lead. What about the stadium itself we heard very few complaints. Now the jack is not glitch free we just ended the first quarter and it's not as light out there on the field as it's supposed to be. That's because one of the big banks of lights surrounding the field is out tonight. A blown circuit breaker got the blame and in fact the rest of the lights did come on before the game ended. The team itself came onto just too little too late to handle the Patriots and that was not the stadium's fault. At Jack Kent Cooke Stadium I am John office on NEWSNIGHT Marilyn's.

Whichever stadium you're going to or if you're just going to watch the games at home this fall. Have a good football season. That's all for this edition of NEWSNIGHT Maryland. Have a safe holiday and join us again Monday. You might not know them if you meet them but you hear them all the time especially with the election season in full swing. We'll meet some local political announcers with national reputations. For all of us here at NEWSNIGHT Maryland. Thanks for watching. Good night. We want to hear from you. If you have a comment on tonight's edition of NEWSNIGHT marriage. Or a story idea for a future program. Please e-mail us at NEWSNIGHT at MPG dot org. Or call our Talk Back. At 1 800 5 8 6 1 4 6 1. That's. 1 800. 5 8

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