Postcard from Minneapolis

Believe it or not, this is a football stadium. I know it doesn’t look like one, which was my first impression when I first laid eyes upon it. This is US Bank Stadium, the new home of the Minnesota Vikings. As much as I enjoy football, I look at this stadium more as an architectural wonder. I enjoy photographing architectural elements…you may be aware of that if you are a long-time reader of this blog. In this case, the element is the whole structure.

You may notice that it is not quite completed in this photo. Well, I took it just over a month ago, and from what I read it is now finished. As I write, the grand opening is in two weeks. The first Viking preseason game to be played there is on August 28th…with the first regular season game scheduled for September 18 against Green Bay on Sunday Night Football. It will also host the Super Bowl in 2018. 

Here are a few interesting details about it: Its a fixed roof stadium, with the roof made being a strong translucent plastic material spanning 240,000 square feet. The walls are also made of the same materials allowing fans to see outside, including views of downtown Minneapolis. There are also wall panels that open to the outside allowing people inside to experience some of the outdoor elements while being protected from rain and snow. If you look just above the elevated walkway, you can see the outline of a couple of these wall panels.

The truth is that the Viking ownership wanted to build an outdoor stadium, but state and local governments would only provide funds if it were an indoor stadium so it could host other events. I can’t image watching a Super Bowl in February if it were an open stadium.

The stadium sits on the site of the on the site of the now-demolished Metrodome. You may remember that stadium as it was also a covered but the roof was an inflatable fiberglass roof that was held in place by air pressure. In its latter stages, it was not well maintained and eventually became a safety hazard. On November 19, 1981, a rapid accumulation of over a foot of snow caused the roof to collapse, requiring it to be re-inflated. It deflated the following winter on December 30, 1982, again because of a tear caused by heavy snow.

The beginning of the end occurred on December 12, 2010 at about 5:00 a.m., the roof had a catastrophic collapse as three panels tore open. They continued to try and repair it, but it was not worth doing. Demolition initially began in 2014. It was the home for both baseball and football, but this new stadium will only be for football. The baseball stadium, Target Field, is only a couple of miles away. 

I didn’t get to spend a lot of time in Minneapolis, but I sure am glad I got to see this amazing piece of architecture. I look forward to seeing a football game on TV so I can see the inside of this place.