The Syracuse University Board of Trustees will be spending part of its November meeting voting on the tentative future of the Carrier Dome, according the Daily Orange’s Justin Mattingly. The future of the Carrier Dome has been up in the air for a while now, as the current inflatable roof will need to be replaced soon. Options include giving the Dome a new inflatable roof, building a hard roof and creating an entirely new stadium off-campus.
There’s a good chance the Dome will undergo other renovations while the roof is being replaced, so Syracuse will have an opportunity to improve its less-than-admirable features. There’s a lot to choose from, but here’s a quick grocery list of what I would be changing if I were in charge.
1. Air Conditioning
I’ve gotten to meet Syracuse’s Athletic Director Mark Coyle a few times, and there’s now a bit of a running joke between the two of us. It usually goes something like this: I tell Coyle to put air conditioning in the Carrier Dome, and then Coyle thinks I’m joking. The Carrier Dome is brutal in the early weeks of the football season, to the point where I didn’t go to an SU football game earlier this season only because I didn’t want to have to sit in the humid Dome for three hours. I understand that the luxury would only be needed for a few months out of the year, but they could at least keep us comfortable while we watch Syracuse football lose.
2. Seating
I’ve said this in a previous post, but I’ll reiterate. The Carrier Dome has two seating options:
Uncomfortable metal bleacher with uncomfortable metal back rest
Uncomfortable metal bleacher with no back rest
Anyone who has gone to a game in the Carrier Dome knows how painful it can be to sit in those bleachers for an extended period of time; it’s really no better than any of the high school fields in the area. I don’t need padded seats, but I don’t need back pains either.
3. Food
I don’t have much to say on this front. The Carrier Dome’s food sucks. The nachos are by far the best item on the menu, and that’s only because it’s really hard to mess up nachos. I’m not a food critic, but you get the point.
What else should be changed about the Carrier Dome? Let us know in the comments below! Follow us @OrangeFizz to stay up-to-date with Syracuse sports.
Posted: Nathan Dickinson
2 responses to “What Should Happen to the Carrier Dome? A To-Do List”
The building itself is fine , and would last another 35 years , in my honest opinion . The outside , as well as the inside , look about like they did when the dome first opened . So I really don’t see a need for a new building/site . But …………. with all the modern technology available now , why the heck don’t they invest the upgrade money they keep spending , on one great upgrade for the building and the fans . A semi-retractable roof made of lightweight materials , and the hot and sticky games are a thing of the past , and the building stays another 30 years . And I find it totally ridiculous of the claims that that structure cannot support the weight . It is built like a modern day castle ! Aluminum and lightweight fiberglass can do wonders , and again … it only needs to open in the center 1/3 of the roof area . Go Orange !
As a season ticket holder I would like to address a couple of issues. My brother-in -law used to work for Carrier and he said it would be next to impossible to put AC in the existing dome or at the very least tremendously expensive. . the same air that inflates the roof would have to be cooled which would be very expensive when it is constantly recirculated. Cooling the air would require larger compressors on the outside of the building and you would then have to cool all the air required to keep the roof up while at the same time dealing with increased air flow and pressure requirements. Cool air is heavier than air at temperature so you would need more airflow as cool air sinks.. Just like in your house,, the upstairs is hotter than the downstairs even with AC. Can it be done yes but does it make sense and at what cost vs other options.
Second as a season ticket holder I paid for seatbacks in my ticket price. I have often said that the university as a concession to the community owes it to put seatbacks on all the seats…The cost could probably be recaptured in 1-2 years just by increasing basketball tickets 1-2 dollars per game, not to mention a similar increase in football tickets. With approx. 300,000 fans buying basketball tickets it would it seems like a no brainer.. The university should be able to buy those seats at an attractive price. if the cost is around 15.00 per seat the numbers are easy to justify 15.00 x 50,000 seats is 750,000…300,000 basketball tickets at 2.00 is 600,000 already…can you imagine the dome that would appear to be all orange when you are seated instead of looking at gray in areas where no one is sitting.. We are the ORANGE so why not show it wherever we can