PONTIAC, MI — The Pontiac Silverdome, site of one of the sports turf industry’s most celebrated triumphs, appears to be headed for a date with the wrecking ball. The Silverdome, built in 1973 for $55 million, hosted a 1982 SuperBowl and a Mass by Pope John Paul I in 1987, but veteran turfgrass researchers and educators at Michigan State University remember it as the site of World Cup (soccer) qualifiers when the United States hosted the Games in 1994. It was the MSU turf team’s task to install a natural grass field inside the field located in Pontiac, MI, just north of Detroit. At that time FIFA, the governing body for international soccer, did not allow World Cup events to take place on fields with synthetic turf. The MSU researchers conducted months of testing with various types of turfgrasses under varying light conditions at a their own "mini Silverdome." This was a much smaller domed structure erected at their research station near East Lansing, MI. Eventually, they came up with a plan to grow grass in large octagonal metal containers. Days before the first qualifier they moved the containers into the domed stadium using fork lifts. In effect, the playing field was a giant jigsaw puzzle, carefully fitted together. Their planning and execution resulted in an attractive, seamless playing field of real grass. The grass field made it through the qualifiers, which lasted more than a week and the MSU team expanded industry knowledge of growing sports turf under low light conditions. In recent years, the Silverdome has been a losing proposition, in spite of events such as concerts and monster truck events, it posted a $1.6 million deficit in 2005. Developers have approached the city about removing the Silverdome and replacing it with a variety of projects, the latest being a proposal for a mixed commercial/retail development and a hotel. The Silverdome was scheduled to close on Feb. 25. Its $700,000 synthetic turf field, installed for the Pittsburgh Steelers to practice prior to this past Super Bowl, will be donated to Wisner Stadium in Pontiac, home to football for Pontiac Northern and Central high schools. Related links:
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Silverdome, site of MSU turf triumph, closing
|When the facility closes for football on Feb. 25, its new synthetic turf field, installed for Super Bowl practices, will be donated to a Pontiac high school
Marvin joined PBI-Gordon Corporation in 2011 as the director of field research.Keep Reading
When the facility closes for football on Feb. 25, its new synthetic turf field, installed for Super Bowl practices, will be donated to a Pontiac high schoolKeep Reading