Arthur Ashe Stadium

Arthur Ashe Stadium 

Arthur Ashe Stadium is a tennis stadium located in Queens borough of New York City. The stadium opened in 1997 around Flushing Meadows and Corona Park and it is a part of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center and it was designed by the Rossitti, an architecture firm in Detroit. According to Biography.com, the stadium was named after Arthur Robert Ashe Jr, the first and only African-American U.S Open title winner. Arthur was born in Richmond, Virginia on July 10, 1943 and died in New York City on February 6, 1993, four years before the stadium was opened.

The stadium has been one of the greatest tennis since the day it opened, with the largest capacity of 23,771 seat as a specific tennis stadium. However, the recently added retractable roof just made the stadium very special and pulled attention to the U.S open 2016 as it is the first time to be hosted with the retractable roof. The roof now makes it more convenience and keeps the games on schedule instead of having delays caused by the weather such as having rainfall or any other similar situations. And Ashley said in the US open website, “The new $150 million retractable roof debuts at this year’s US Open, putting an end to lengthy rain delays inside the biggest stadium in Grand Slam tennis. And while fans look up and marvel at the giant structure closing above them, there’s actually a whole team behind the scenes making sure the process runs smoothly from start to finish.”  Ashley Marshall, USopen.org

The design and structural support of the stadium’s roof. As the Chase bank is the financial sponsor of the stadium, the architecture firm designed a roof that is very stable structurally and also a great representor of the Chase bank logo. After trying many different designs for the roof, The Rossitti found the Chase bank logo design for the roof is actually the best to hold and support the retractable roof and cheaper than some other designs; which was a great deal for both, the engineers and the sponsors. 

The roof is supported by eight steel columns according to the site of the architecture firm, Rossitti.com 

“The main support for the retractable roof features eight steel columns that surround the stadium's perimeter. These tree branch-like columns sit on massive concrete bases, each of which is supported by approximately 24 piles driven 175 to 200 feet in the ground for maximum support. The pilings are so deep, a Manhattan skyscraper could be built on the foundation. Additionally, the structure is engineered to withstand hurricane-strength weather. Utilizing the independent columns was the most efficient way to minimize the impact to the existing stadium as they are able to stand on their own to support the roof without touching the current stadium. In addition, the isolated foundation elements allowed the project to avoid much of the dense, underground infrastructure from not only the current campus, but also the site’s history as the home of the 1939 and 1964 World’s Fairs” Arthur Ashe Roof Background, http://www.rossetti.com/arthur-ashe-roof 

As a conclusion, The Arthur Ashe Stadium is valuable sport building that keeps fans experience a great time watching the games and also it is a place that keeps history for the sport itself, tennis, and also the great tennis player Arthur Robert Ashe Jr. 

References:

Biography.com

Rossitti.com 

USopen.org