New Houston Cougar Stadium

[MeanMag]

What's with people going crazy over law schools? Isn't there a glut of lawyers anyhow?

They only get in the way of productivity.

[Proud North Texan]

north Texas does not have a law school and never will.....north Texas-dallas might have a law school in the future trying to say that Denton has a law school because of that is like saying UTA, UTD, UTEP, and UTSA have a law school because UT Austin has one

and TAMS students for the most part are going to leave north Texas anyway since most of them view it as high school and if you ever ask them what they are going to do after they graduate TAMS the answer is "go to a good university"

Don't talk shit about NORTH TEXAS yo kid!! Go Mean Green

[JesseMartin]

That's funny. Your inferiority complex is the best. On the upside, you aren't located in Denton. Much better town because of that.

Glad I could help. Your opinion means a lot.

[UHFootballFeed]

Stumbled across this old thread. Wow - it escalated quickly. I'm ashamed our school had a couple of trolls derail the conversation.

I was at the Apogee opener in 2011, and was very impressed with your stadium. I loved the wide concourses, and all the leg room between rows. The build quality was awesome. And I liked how close to the field your first row of seats were.

I wasn't feeling the winged end zone. And the long walk from the Fouts parking lot was a pain. But those were the only two negatives.

Architecturally, Apogee's a very traditional stadium in almost every way. You weren't looking to break any new ground in that sense. But that's OK, because college football is nothing without tradition.

Our President and AD were also very impressed with your stadium. So much so that they asked how you funded it. Our fundraising was stuck at about $60M at the time. From discussions with your leaders, we decided to follow your lead and put a student fee to a vote. It passed in January 2012, and the rest is history. That fee will allow us to float $48M in bonds. Half was used for the football stadium. The other half will be used for the basketball arena renovation.

We're now getting close to finishing our new stadium. To correct some misstatements above, the stadium cost $120M. Unlike UCF (whose whole stadium is aluminum flooring) or Stanford and SMU (whose entire upper decks are aluminum flooring), our entire stadium is concrete everywhere you walk. Our lower bowl is concrete poured on grade, and our upper decks are prefab concrete. I have toured the stadium, and there is nothing temporary or flimsy about it.

We did use steel support beams for the upper decks, but so did A&M with their Kyle Field renovation. So did the 49ers with the new Levis Stadium. While concrete supports like those used at Apogee usually cost more than using steel, the difference in lifespan is negligible. For example, Robertson Stadium (built in 1942) was all concrete supports and it was very nearly condemned due to decay of those supports.

Anyway, when I think erector set, I think UCF. Maybe Stanford. After touring our stadium, I don't get an erector set feel at all.

We were very sensitive to air flow in the stadium, probably because of the negative feedback at BBVA Compass stadium on air flow in their lower bowl. It informed the controversial choice of the exterior skin. That skin is a single layer of powder coated mesh designed to allow air and natural light into the stadium. BBVA Compass Stadium used a double layer.

Another air flow decision is seen by the placement of the restrooms and concessions in the outer walls of the stadium, allowing for open concourses. This is different than BBVA Compass (and Apogee):

Other than air flow, the major design hallmarks of the stadium were:

1. Changing the orientation of the field slightly more East-West so the home fans can see the Houston skyline, and

2. Building the home club, suites, loge boxes as close to the field as possible.

We released our 3D seat viewfinder this week. I believe North Texas used the same company. It takes a second to load, but just click on any section of the stadium and it will show you the view of the field (and the skyline if on the home side).

Edited July 4, 2014 by UHFootballFeed

[GreenMachine]

north Texas does not have a law school and never will.....north Texas-dallas might have a law school in the future trying to say that Denton has a law school because of that is like saying UTA, UTD, UTEP, and UTSA have a law school because UT Austin has one

and TAMS students for the most part are going to leave north Texas anyway since most of them view it as high school and if you ever ask them what they are going to do after they graduate TAMS the answer is "go to a good university"

You are a very insecure little man. Your refusal to capitalize a certain word in any of your posts as a cut down to North Texas is immature yet telling of your character. Sorry you have such a tiny weiner, maybe Cougar Queen will be your friend because I seriously doubt you have any in real life.

[GMG24]

I like how low the suites are! You're in the action. Looks like it will be a nice venue. How long till turf goes down?

[wardly]

Back to the stadium, I am sure that the new Houston venue will be 1st class.If memory serves, when we began raising funds for our new stadium we targeted $32 million for a 34,000 seat stadium. By the time we raised the $7million or so necessary to bond out the rest, China was hosting the Olympics and the price of steel and construction materials skyrocketed. As a result, we had to scale back to a 30,000 seat stadium at over twice the price. If we were to build today out stadium might be constructed similar to Houston's as opposed to Allen High School.On another note, I don't know what we accomplish by bashing other universities other that lose their respect.Just an old man's opinion.

[UHFootballFeed]

How long till turf goes down?

Soon. We've installed the drainage and covered it in "gravel." Next, they'll roll the gravel and then install the field within a week or two.

Hopefully, we resume the series with North Texas soon. Coach McCarney has done a nice job.

View from the suites:

Drainage going in:

Edited July 4, 2014 by UHFootballFeed

[Eastwood Eagle]

Nice job of derailing after a quality post.

Fred, thanks for posting the progress. I'm in my final year at law school at UHLC. I don't go to that side of campus often, but when I do, I'm very impressed with the progress. The pictures do not do it justice on how large the stadium actually is. Can't wait to hit up some games this year. Luckily there are not a lot of conflicts between UNT and UH schedule so I can make a lot for both teams.

[Harry]

Stumbled across this old thread. Wow - it escalated quickly. I'm ashamed our school had a couple of trolls derail the conversation.

I was at the Apogee opener in 2011, and was very impressed with your stadium. I loved the wide concourses, and all the leg room between rows. The build quality was awesome. And I liked how close to the field your first row of seats were.

I wasn't feeling the winged end zone. And the long walk from the Fouts parking lot was a pain. But those were the only two negatives.

Architecturally, Apogee's a very traditional stadium in almost every way. You weren't looking to break any new ground in that sense. But that's OK, because college football is nothing without tradition.

Our President and AD were also very impressed with your stadium. So much so that they asked how you funded it. Our fundraising was stuck at about $60M at the time. From discussions with your leaders, we decided to follow your lead and put a student fee to a vote. It passed in January 2012, and the rest is history. That fee will allow us to float $48M in bonds. Half was used for the football stadium. The other half will be used for the basketball arena renovation.

We're now getting close to finishing our new stadium. To correct some misstatements above, the stadium cost $120M. Unlike UCF (whose whole stadium is aluminum flooring) or Stanford and SMU (whose entire upper decks are aluminum flooring), our entire stadium is concrete everywhere you walk. Our lower bowl is concrete poured on grade, and our upper decks are prefab concrete. I have toured the stadium, and there is nothing temporary or flimsy about it.

We did use steel support beams for the upper decks, but so did A&M with their Kyle Field renovation. So did the 49ers with the new Levis Stadium. While concrete supports like those used at Apogee usually cost more than using steel, the difference in lifespan is negligible. For example, Robertson Stadium (built in 1942) was all concrete supports and it was very nearly condemned due to decay of those supports.

Anyway, when I think erector set, I think UCF. Maybe Stanford. After touring our stadium, I don't get an erector set feel at all.

We were very sensitive to air flow in the stadium, probably because of the negative feedback at BBVA Compass stadium on air flow in their lower bowl. It informed the controversial choice of the exterior skin. That skin is a single layer of powder coated mesh designed to allow air and natural light into the stadium. BBVA Compass Stadium used a double layer.

Another air flow decision is seen by the placement of the restrooms and concessions in the outer walls of the stadium, allowing for open concourses. This is different than BBVA Compass (and Apogee):

Other than air flow, the major design hallmarks of the stadium were:

1. Changing the orientation of the field slightly more East-West so the home fans can see the Houston skyline, and

2. Building the home club, suites, loge boxes as close to the field as possible.

We released our 3D seat viewfinder this week. I believe North Texas used the same company. It takes a second to load, but just click on any section of the stadium and it will show you the view of the field (and the skyline if on the home side).

Thanks for the informative post. As a kid growing up in Houston I was a big Cougar fan and pull for you guys still. I really like your Stadium

And look forward to seeing a game there. Good luck this season.

[GrandGreen]

I wonder why Houston and NT, two of the most similar universities in the state; think it is fun to bash one another. Both are or on the outside looking in at the big boys. UH despite having a big head start via the old SWC, is only one step ahead of NT. As far as the stadiums both schools have substantially improved their facilities.

NT did very well building a stadium, but there are always going to be bigger and better and much more expensive venues.

[GrandGreen]

north Texas does not have a law school and never will.....north Texas-dallas might have a law school in the future trying to say that Denton has a law school because of that is like saying UTA, UTD, UTEP, and UTSA have a law school because UT Austin has one

and TAMS students for the most part are going to leave north Texas anyway since most of them view it as high school and if you ever ask them what they are going to do after they graduate TAMS the answer is "go to a good university"

Interviewing a lot of TAMS students are you? Sorry, to see that you still have not dealt with your apparent issues. At this point, you have probably spend more time thinking about NT than the vast majority of NT graduates. You have certainly written more about NT than almost anyone not paid to do so. I wonder what you think you are accomplishing with this senseless vendetta against an institution over some perceived injustice by NT employees probably long gone. There really should be a lot better things to do with your talent and time.

[greenit]

Looking forward to the next UNT/UH series.

[Ben Gooding]

Looks like the stadium will be nice. And UNT's law school opens this fall. Saying the branch of the UT's are hand in hand with UT Austin is not accurate. It's UNTD, 30 miles from Denton, not 500 miles like some of UT's "branch" schools. GMG

http://lawschool.untsystem.edu

Edited July 4, 2014 by Ben Gooding

[JRock]

Was CQ able to get his name in lights above the stadium?

[UNTexas]

It's going to be a nice stadium.

[letsgiveacheer]

It's going to be a nice stadium.

Agree, it is going to be a very nice stadium. Congratulations to UH for getting this done.

[Maduro]

once their new stadium is complete, Chita will continue to be the best looking thing in that town.

[Eastwood Eagle]

KPRC 2's Jennifer Reyna would disagree with you.

[TheWestie]

Hopefully come August the Harris County health inspectors don't find any...

[Ibleedgreen]

I prefer Apogee.

[UHFootballFeed]

I prefer Apogee.

Heck, there are some things I prefer about Apogee. For example:

1. I prefer the all concrete support structure. Steel supports are perfectly fine, but if we had the budget, I would have preferred concrete.

2. I prefer how close to the field the first row of seats are at Apogee. At the 50 yard line, the first row at Houston is probably 10-15 feet further away from the sideline than Apogee.

3. I prefer Apogee's LEED platinum certification, and the incorporation of the windmills for power needs.

4. I prefer that Apogee was built right next to the interstate. We looked at an interstate location, but ruled it out due to space constraints and infrastructure expense.

Certain differences were dictated by needs and location. For example:

1. North Texas apparently needed banquet space. And so a large portion of the club is a dedicated to that banquet room with all the windows. It looks very nice, but we already had banquet facilities. Our club level will look totally different. Much more of an upscale bar feel.

2. The UH stadium is located 3 miles from downtown Houston right in the middle of campus. North Texas is located in a smaller town. The settings and views, not to mention the parking situation, are completely different. Simply due to stadium placement, we have 3800 parking spots within 250 yards of the stadium. The land chosen by UNT for Apogee apparently doesn't lend itself to that kind of parking access.

Certain differences were design choices that aren't "right" or "wrong" but will evoke opinons based on personal preference:

1. Placement of premium seats;

2. Horseshoe vs. bowl

3. Open concourses vs. vomitories.

We each have our controversial bits:

1. The mesh skin exterior at UH;

2. The winged end zone at North Texas.

Certain things are very similar:

1. Lots of concessions and restrooms;

2. TV monitors at every concession stand;

3. Wide concourses;

4. Lots of leg room between rows;

5. Lower seating below grade;

6. Field turf, etc.

And certain things are just grander at the Houston stadium, which you would expect given the price difference:

1. The video board is twice as big;

2. The club seats are padded;

3. We have five times as many chairback seating options including loge boxes, party decks and suite decks;

4. We incorporated our marching band facilities into the football stadium.

As I said originally, I really like Apogee Stadium. I think y'all did a terrific job with it. And there are certain things about it that I prefer over our stadium. Would I trade stadiums with you? Nope. But then I am biased, and I would expect UNT fans to decline a trade based on bias too.

[Snowy]

Looks like Houston is going to have a very nice stadium! Can't wait to see it when it's complete!

[Maduro]

KPRC 2's Jennifer Reyna would disagree with you.

Chita rejects Jennifer Reyna's challenge, because Jennifer Reyna is no challenge. But if Chita needs to put on an exhibition for her fans, then she'll gladly let the masses decide who wins this battle...

VS

[Green P1]

Chita FTW