St. Paul’s future Major League Soccer stadium designers won’t take their cue from Avaya Stadium in San Jose, Calif. — the boxy, functional and artistically bland home of the San Jose Earthquakes.

Related Articles St. Stanislaus’ longtime priest the Rev. John Clay leaves legacy of love. He died Sunday at age 94

St. Paul man threatened another man with a sword, charges say

Mural workshop, events at Victoria Theater Arts Center in St. Paul’s Frogtown this weekend and next

St. Paul council approves mayor’s basic-income project for poor families

St. Paul City Council agrees on no levy increase Instead, for inspiration as to what kind of stadium aesthetic to bring to St. Paul’s Midway, Dr. Bill McGuire is looking to the more intricate, rounded-bowl styles of Johannesburg, South Africa; Munich, Germany; and Lyon, France — not to forget professional stadiums in Romania, Ireland and Canada.

McGuire spoke about his vision for the soccer stadium Monday during the Greater St. Paul Building Owners and Managers Association luncheon in downtown St. Paul.

McGuire, owner of the Minnesota United FC soccer team, hopes to have shovels in the ground by June and create a privately funded Midway destination that has “a little different, forward feel. We want this to be beautiful and inspiring. … We expect this to be a preeminent facility, certainly artistically.”

Minnesota United’s future home won’t be the largest stadium around — at 18,000 to 20,000 seats, it will be less than half the size of the 50,800-seat TCF Bank/Gopher Stadium down the road at the University of Minnesota.

Nevertheless, creating an eye-catching attraction for travelers along Interstate 94 that complements but doesn’t overwhelm the neighborhood is a key concern, said McGuire.

McGuire has promised that the stadium itself will be privately funded, with initial cost estimates in the vicinity of $120 million. With a roof-like overhang and other elements of modern design, those costs could easily grow, and green space, retail, a new street grid and possible residential or even hotel development around the stadium will cost millions more.

It remains unclear how much of the costs related to desired public improvements, such as a park roughly the size of Mears or Rice Park, would be picked up by the public sector.

“I will tell you right now that $120 million will not build what we want,” McGuire told the crowd.

PUBLIC TRANSIT IS KEY

The stadium design, still underway, will also be informed by the site’s transit needs. The same light rail line that connects Gopher Stadium to CHS Field and the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul and Target Center and Target Field in Minneapolis will also bring visitors to the new MLS stadium just south of Snelling and University avenues.

As a result, creating pedestrian-friendly access points will be an important priority. St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman has talked up the possibility of having half of all patrons arrive by foot, public transit or bicycle. Whether that’s achievable or not, it’s clear that nationwide, the most successful MLS stadiums draw support from urban millennials who embrace light rail and car-free travel.

McGuire has retained the architecture firm Populous for the stadium itself, and Mortenson Construction to manage construction. Populous is known for designing aesthetically-interesting athletic facilities around the globe, such as Zhuhai Tennis Centre in China or ANZ Stadium in Sydney, Australia.

Meanwhile, Midway Shopping Center owner RK Midway is working with S9 Architecture to redesign the acreage surrounding St. Paul’s future MLS stadium. Anchored by a Rainbow Foods supermarket, the 34.5-acre Midway “Super Block” forms a sea of asphalt and takes up the equivalent space of 12 downtown St. Paul blocks, without a traditional street grid.

A HOTEL IN THE MIDWAY?

McGuire said he could not speak for RK Midway directly, but he’s heard from restaurant, hospitality, fitness, corporate office and other potential tenants who might be interested in moving into a redesigned Super Block.

Given the number of colleges in the Midway area drawing visiting families, athletes and speakers, McGuire hasn’t ruled out the possibility of a hotel within the Super Block, he said. Residential development, such as apartments or condos, will depend on the market.

He pointed to the example of Lansdowne, Ottawa, a 40-acre shopping, recreational and residential community anchored by the 24,000-seat TD Place stadium, the home of the Ottawa Redblacks and Ottawa Fury FC, as well as a hockey team affiliated with the Ontario Hockey League.

Among its amenities, Lansdowne offers 280 residential units, a skateboard park, an outdoor children’s play area, a movie theater and the Shops at Lansdowne, a commercial shopping district.

The city of St. Paul has contracted with SRF Consulting to do a parking and traffic study, but McGuire envisions parking will be “wrapped” around the site, as opposed to occupying tall ramps directly adjoining the soccer facility.

The goal is to have the Super Block link the surrounding neighborhoods, instead of dividing them.

Planning and Economic Development Director Jonathan Sage-Martinson said the city remains interested in reintroducing the street grid that currently exists to the north and west of the site. Currently, Shields Avenue — which runs east and west — effectively dead-ends at Snelling Avenue, west of Big Top Wines and Spirits.

McGuire hopes to see a stadium ready to host professional soccer games by February 2018, but that’s dependent on the Minnesota Legislature granting property and construction tax breaks for the 10-acre site owned by the Metropolitan Council. The stadium would likely be centered toward the site’s southernmost edges, overlooking I-94.

McGuire noted that from the National Football League to Major League Baseball, professional sports have struggled with flat, rocky or declining game attendance for years. In the National Hockey League, average game attendance remains roughly where it was in the 2008 – 2009 season.

While those franchises remain far more profitable for team owners and players, McGuire called Major League Soccer one of the few professional sports that is actually growing, and St. Paul’s diverse ethnic communities will continue to fuel interest in games and events at the future stadium.