Ball 3

I recently wrote a rambling, 2,000 word, mostly critical review of USC’s proposal to renovate the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. However, it isn’t fair to simply sit back and criticize carefully-thought out plans without giving feasible suggestions. There have been many Coliseum renovation plans presented before, but the vast majority have been entirely unrealistic or too expensive . In addition, previous plans haven’t viewed the Coliseum in the same way that the USC Athletic Department seemingly does - as a historic stadium in need of a general facelift and a few modern amenities. Thus, I set out to create an alternative that accomplishes everything that USC’s proposal does, but in a more aesthetically pleasing and flexible way. *I should note that I’m not an architect. I am someone who has traveled to see approximately 70 professional and college stadiums and who has a near-encyclopedic memory of hundreds of stadiums around the world. My drawings may not be 100% to scale, bu...

*Before I begin this review, it should be noted that my comments are in regards to the renderings and plans released by USC on October 29th. Architectural drawings have likely progressed or changed since this date.* On October 29th, USC unveiled their proposal for a comprehensive renovation of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. With an estimated cost of $270 million and a scheduled completion in 2019, USC’s plan would begin a modernization process for the stadium that first opened in 1923. The renovated Coliseum would place a new suite/club tower on the south side of the Coliseum, restore the historic peristyle, replace all seats, add new aisles, and build 2 new video boards in the east corners. In this post, I’ll take a look at the good, the bad, the ugly, and the unanswered aspects of the planned renovation. THE GOOD -The peristyle would be restored to more closely resemble its original design. The peristyle is the most prominent visual feature of the Coliseum, but in r...