Why does it seem that most new retractable domed stadiums are built in the South?

Question

They say the Sunbelt is so much better as far as weather and everything. Then, the question becomes, if the weather is so much better, then why are all these retractable roofed, air conditioned stadiums being built in the South? (Houston, Phoenix, and even Miami is planning a new one)

I heard that Minnesota is planning to build an open air baseball stadium to replace the Metrodome. MN will get really cold for those early Spring games. We know they wouldn't even consider building a total open air stadium in Houston (those Houstonians are addicted to a/c).

Another thing I can't understand is why the Astros field is closed when the temperature is above 80 degrees. I consider 85 degrees and sunny to be perfect "baseball weather". It gets much warmer than 80 degrees in the North and most people up there don't complain.

I guess my question is "Why are all these retractable stadiums being built in the South if the South is such a much better climate than the North?"

I also wanted to say that the same thing is happening for football as well, with Arizona's new stadium.

Why can people not take sitting in the 110 degree sun in AZ, but they can take sitting in the -10 degree snow and wind at Lambeau field in Green Bay, WI, and even revel in that fact?

Serious sunburns can be prevented by sunscreen so that really isn't a factor.

Couldn't people get frostbite at Lambeau while sitting in -20 windchill for 3 hours? Aren't the serious health effects of those conditions just as harsh on the elderly and the children as the harsh Southern conditions?

Yes I've been to Houston in the summer. I currently live in Austin so I know what heat is.

I can't understand the policy that an evening game in Houston that starts at 85 degrees at 7:00 PM and dips to 80 degrees by 10 PM (with no chance of rain) should be played with roof closed in air conditioning. To me, that is a great baseball night. It's in the evening, there's no sun, so that should not be a consideration.

In other words, I think they've excessively made the game in Houston an indoor one. Several people at the game made the same comment, by the way.

I've been to several Texas Rangers games in Arlington (open air stadium) when it was the evening and it started out 97 degrees at 7:05 PM and it was 90 degrees by 10:00 PM and you know what, it actually wasn't that bad! We just drank extra water.

From a practicle standpoint, doesn't it make just as much sense to have the trend to retractable stadiums up north as well so the fans have a comfortable fan experience? (Yes I know they have many stadiums that are domes/retractable, but there are many new ones planned up north that are not)

If what most people are saying here is true, then perhaps the North is a better climate than the South? In other words, the -10 F (-40 F windchill) extreme cold of Green Bay, WI, is preferable to the 85-90 degree humid heat of Miami, FL??? Somehow that just doesn't sound right to me, but that's how we are behaving and how most of these responses are.

If people like the cold so much, then why aren't people moving up North in droves?

Answer 1

If Miami is planning such a stadium, it's because in Florida, it pours just about every afternoon during the summer, usually right around 4:00 or 5:00 pm. Almost every day brings heavy thunderstorms during the summer, so a roof like that would make sense, if nothing else than to prevent having rain delays every single day of the summertime.

If Houston has a similar weather pattern during the summer, it would make perfect sense for Minute Maid park to have a retractable roof.


Also, people can 'bundle up' a lot if it's ten below in Green Bay... that's not the tough part, plus they're all drunk anyway...

However, if it's 110 degrees out, there are only so many clothes one can remove and still be allowed to enter a ball park.

Answer 2

Have you been to Houston in the summertime?

When the game starts at 7:05 pm, the temperature is 85-90 degrees, with a heat index of 95-100+. On afternoon games, the temp is 90-100 degrees with a heat index of 100+. You can't enjoy a game sitting in an open stadium with conditions like that.

The same goes for Dallas (which gets hotter than Houston), Miami and Atlanta (though Atlanta doesn't really get hot in the summertime), but these cities don't have domed stadiums and they play most of their home games in the evening. These cities have very high humidity levels...cities up north and out west don't have that problem.

In Phoenix, it gets ridiculously hot in the afternoon and evening, with temps easily at 100+.

Folks would be passing out and even dying from heat exhaustion and heatstroke. A domed stadium makes sense down south.

Folks flock down south because the weather is so much better during the winter. Trust me, they complain about the summer heat too.

Answer 3

The South has different problems than the North does. You don't want to watch baseball in Phoenix when it's 110 degrees in the middle of the afternoon. Houston has heat, humidity and mosquitoes. Miami has enough rain that rainouts become an issue in the summer. Roofs solve those problems.

Minnesota used to have an open-air park. They made it work. I'm sure the April and September games will get a bit chilly, but they'll appreciate it in July when nobody wants to be indoors on a 75 degree night.

But I can't answer the question about Minute Maid Park. Unless there is something else happening (like humidity, or threats of storms, or something like that) I don't know why they would close the roof on a nice night.

Answer 4

triple digit temperature will only hurt more when bodies are crammed together and sharing body heat, but the cold wont be as much of a problem in the same situation, also, think of the serious sunburns that can occur when sitting in 95+ degree temps when there isnt a cloud in the sky for upwards of 3 hours

Answer 5

Hey brianwarner1313 (some Manson reference I presume?)

Anyways...while you are correct about Seattle's roof (which is due to rain by the way)...you do realize that Arizona and Houston (Texas) are both southern states...right?

Answer 6

It incorporated many of the amenities that the new wave of stadiums have improved on. Rogers Centre, formally known as the Skydom was Built in 1989, it was the first stadium with a retractable roof. Primarily used for baseball10, the retractable roof sold itself on simple economic grounds. Baseball games are routinely delayed and even canceled during the season because of rain. Rain-outs and rain delays have enormous economic impacts. Canceled games result in the lost wages of stadium workers, lost revenue for refunded tickets, and decreased attendance at the make-up games. Furthermore, teams incur rent and facilities expense without receiving the expected revenues to offset them. Rain delays can last for hours and in general few fans remain to watch the rest of the game. This results in lost concessions, while all the stadium workers earn overtime. In addition, networks who carry the games on television have to fill the time of the rain delay and then deal with the overlapping of the game onto regularly scheduled programming. No one gains from rain.
Consideration of those factors has led several stadium projects to incorporate retractable roofs. While not only saving the day in terms of rain-outs and rain delays, the roofs can be closed to "beat the heat" of baseball's scorching summers. In addition to serving as a quasi-attraction themselves, the roofs' offer another side benefit. Because of their size, they usually take 25-35 minutes to close. Technology has advanced to the point where new roofs could close in around five minutes, but no roof probably will. Half and hour is enough time for the fans to leave their seats and spend money at the concessions, while not getting perturbed about the delay. This is part of the novelty of the device. With increasing fervor, stadium projects have focused less on enhancing the games and more on enhancing the entertainment experience. The stadiums-as-attraction theme is consuming the next wave of facilities. There are playground facilities for kids, and video games for bigger kids. For the biggest kids of all, full-service restaurants and bars, replete with plush lounges, are de rigeur. The trend is not just for big name restaurants to put a location in stadiums,18 now big-name department stores have outposts next to the guy hawking the giant foam #1 fingers and the big inflatable bats. Fans can go shopping for anything at the stadium, from airline tickets to Christmas gifts. So the key to success on the field is money, and the reason teams want to succeed is... more money. Goals, dreams, teamwork, and a sense of achievement are all part of it, but sports is a business, a big business. The business is successful if it thrives, has a good public image, and makes profits. And a franchise in the business of sport does all three things necessary to be a success if it wins. Winners thrive, winners have a great public image, and more importantly winners have fantastic profit margins. Winners win from every angle too. Winners have more fans, which translates into higher attendance. This equals increased gate receipts, concessions sales, and parking fees. Fans of winners will buy more of their paraphernalia. Everyone wants to be associated with a winner. Winners play more games, like playoffs and championships, where more attendance, concession, and parking revenue is to be had. Winners get bonuses from these playoffs and championships. Winners get more attention in the print media and on news shows increasing their popularity and earning them more fans. And what do winners do with all this money they have earned from winning, they go out and improve their team with talented players so that they can - say it out loud this time - keep winning. All of this comes together to create an endless circle of self-reinforcing benefits.
That being the case, it is easy to see where a majority of teams' revenues come from - their stadiums. General attendance used to be the meal ticket for most franchises.

Answer 7

less rain outs and it does get unbearablely hot at the stadium wuth 50,000 ppl all crunched in during 80-90 degree weather

Answer 8

Too much of a snow load on the roof in the northern states. A big snow storm couold collapse the dome.

Answer 9

There is also a retractable roof stadium in Seattle, so there not all in the south.

Answer 10

What about Arizona & Seattle?

How about Houston?

None are in the south.