Planners Begin To Pare Mariners Stadium Design

Now comes the hard part for the architects of the Seattle Mariners’ new ballpark: getting the dreams to match the budget.

The local firm of NBBJ must trim the construction estimate for the stadium from $211 million to $185 million by cutting back on everything from restaurant space to the number of bricks.

On Monday, NBBJ presented the seven-member stadium board with a revised design that is 108,000 square feet and 2,830 seats smaller than the design unveiled in June.

The 45,000-seat stadium is expected to cost about $320 million. Board members want the stadium to have the charm and intimacy of a 1920s ballpark and the amenities of a modern entertainment complex when it opens in 1999.

To help cut costs, architect Dan Meis tried revamping the building’s southern facade, eliminating brick-framed bay windows and exposing the crisscrossing steel framework behind the windows.

The design could save $1 million to $2 million, but board members don’t like it.

Board chairwoman Joan Enticknap said she was still committed to a beautiful southern approach to the ballpark.

“We don’t want to build a building everyone hates,” she said. “I don’t want to use our budget as an excuse to do something ugly.”

But NBBJ’s project manager, Dennis Forsyth, noted there are still some sacrifices to be made to meet the $185 million construction budget.

“We could have predicted you weren’t going to like this,” he told the board. “We’re not fools. But unfortunately, this is very expensive.”

The board agreed it wanted to hold to the original design for the southern facade and make tradeoffs to cut costs in other parts of the building.

A covered arcade along the First Avenue side of the ballpark has been removed to make room for a 30-foot-wide walkway covered with canopies. Also, the ground story of the building will have a rustic, stone facade topped by huge windows framed in brick.

Architects will present a final design to the board on Sept. 16. From the design, the project’s contractor must provide the board with a maximum price for the stadium.

Bob Souter, a member of the financial oversight committee formed by the King County Council, said he’s already worried about cost overruns.

Souter asked whether the board, in trying to get the stadium built by April 1999, was leaving enough time for design development. Without a thorough, detailed design, he also wondered whether the maximum price tag the board is seeking would have much value.

Notes

As expected, catcher Chris Widger was optioned back to Tacoma to make room on the roster for pitcher Matt Wagner. . . . You probably could have guessed, but here’s the evidence: Seattle’s starting pitchers have worked fewer innings (664) than any rotation in the A.L. - averaging just 5.4 innings a start. Worse, in 39 games Mariners starters have failed to finish the fifth inning.