Citrus Bowl Reconstruction Begins
On Wednesday morning, officials from the City of Orlando, Orange County and Florida Citrus Sports joined together to kick off reconstruction of the Citrus Bowl with a demolition ceremony on the field of the historic stadium.
At the event, FCSports CEO Steve Hogan and President Tony Massey presented Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs with gifts — mounted sledgehammers commemorating the date of the event — in recognition of their hard work to make the stadium reconstruction possible. Following remarks by all four leaders, the ceremony concluded with crews pulling down the iconic scoreboard in the north end zone.
Once the demolition ceremony concluded and the crowd had vacated the stadium, crews went straight to work tearing down the existing structures. About 90% of the current stadium will be town down and rebuilt as a state-of-the-art facility, boasting an improved fan experience at all levels.
“This facility has entertained families from all over the world with more than seven decades of unforgettable experiences. Now we will build on that proud history with a future limited only by our imagination and a vision that continues to embrace visitors and residents alike,” said Hogan. “None of this would have been possible without our City and County elected officials and the spirit of partnership enjoyed throughout our region.”
The Citrus Bowl is scheduled to reopen in fall 2014. Highlights of the new building will include:
- 65,000+ seating capacity
- A vibrant, open-air exterior façade
- A brand-new lower bowl with seating featuring six more inches of leg room
- An expanded, wider main concourse which circles the lower and upper levels
- A unique club space with both enclosed and open-air spaces featuring 6,000+ seats
- A 10,000 square-foot party deck
- 1,000 suite seats
- 20 midfield loge boxes
- New facilities for teams and operations on the main concourse
- Multiple, LED digital video boards
- Expanded elevator and escalator service throughout
- Greater variety of food and beverage options for every guest