New Memorial Stadium Breathes New Life into an Old, Treasured Landmark

A treasured Charlotte landmark is opening its doors once again, 85 years after it first welcomed the community to come together and celebrate its recovery. American Legion Memorial Stadium, originally built in 1936, has been torn to the ground and rebuilt on-site — and is already hosting crowds and the sports they love. When our nation was trying to dig itself out of the Great Depression, the Public Works Administration put men to work building the original Memorial Stadium on what is now Charlottetown Avenue outside of Uptown. President Franklin Roosevelt spoke at the grand opening; hundreds of thousands of people have come through its gates in the years since. The stadium’s replacement, with an expanded footprint, is ready to host hundreds of thousands more, including its most memorable sport: high school football. “This is a designated historic site through the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission,” says Bert Lynn, Capital Planning Division Director for Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation. “We worked with them early in the design process to make sure the character of the stadium — the buildings, the horseshoe shape of the field, the stone wall — were all part of the new facility and harkened back to the original field as much as possible.”

Want to read about the stadium’s origins? Read the 2003 Historic Landmarks petition here.

One of the most striking and memorable features of the stadium has returned — the rock wall surrounding the field. The wall and field actually pre-date the stadium seating, so preserving it was integral to the renovation. The wall is constructed a little differently now, too, but it’s made of the same “native rocks” used 85 years ago. “One of the first things contractors did before demolition was come in and remove the stone wall piece by piece, clean them up, pallet them, and store them offsite,” says Lynn. “It was put back in such a way that we won’t have the erosion issues we had over time.” The old wall was stacked stone with mortar holding the rocks together, and water got trapped behind it over time and caused parts of the structure to erode. The new wall is made of concrete with stones covering the front. There were plenty of rocks left, says Lynn, and you’ll see them in walls around other parts of the stadium. The original ticket offices, bathrooms, concessions, and press box have been torn down and rebuilt as well, following strict designs in the style of the original buildings on the site. “We coordinated with the Historic Landmarks Commission to approve the look,” says Lynn. “We wanted it to be as true to the original buildings in the stadium as possible.” Thirteen new buildings ring the stadium in all, including new security offices, concessions, first aid, and bathrooms that — I know you’ll cheer — meet code. That means — wait, there’s more — there are more women’s toilets than men’s. Yes, that’s in the code. But we digress.

One thing you’re sure to notice when you come to the front gate of the new Memorial Stadium is that Armory Drive, at the “top” of the horseshoe, is gone. In its place is a front walkway landscaped with the familiar rock walls (using those extra rocks), and an eye-popping piece of artwork paying tribute to the men and women of the armed forces. The laser-cut steel panels by artists Simon Donovan and Ben Olmstead project a 3-D look at World War I veterans, the stadium’s original honorees. Named “Tribute,” the relief-style art comes to life as patrons move from one side to the other. It recognizes that honoring veterans was an essential part of the stadium’s original name. “It’s in recognition of the work the American Legion does after conflicts, after our veterans come home and acclimate to life,” says Lynn. “It was absolutely important. It was actually part of the contract with the County Commission that this would always remain American Legion Memorial Stadium.” The front entrance walkway is parallel to Charlottetown Avenue (formerly Independence Blvd., for us old-timers). A tunnel under the road still connects the front of the stadium to Independence Park across the street, as the playing field inside the stadium was originally built in 1935 to be part of the park. Both venues are easily accessible by bus, streetcar, or greenway links. With the ticket offices moved forward towards Charlottetown Avenue, a large concourse opens up inside the front gate. For some events, says Lynn, it will be a social area. For others, it will host VIP and special occasion tents. A short wall separates the entry concourse from the social areas, which are covered in artificial turf and include barstool seating and a narrow ledge overlooking the field. “What we wanted to do is incorporate as many areas as possible to give fans a different viewpoint or different experience” depending on the event, says Lynn.

And speaking of the concourse — it’s one level all the way around. The old stadium contained different grades as new areas were added over time, and the result was not ADA accessible in a lot of ways. Now the concourse is one big sidewalk that is even with the street level, so yes, the field is technically below grade. This is interesting for another reason: The original Memorial Stadium & field were built around a small creek, taking advantage of the natural slope. If you take a closer look at the vintage photos lining the walls of the concourse, you’ll see the slopes under the seating were full of SAND, not the clunky red clay we’re used to. Once the field and wall were built in 1935, it was basically unusable as a stadium, prompting Charlotte leaders to petition the federal government for WPA funds to build stadium seating. The concourse also includes small alcoves for food vendors to supplement concessions during games. These alcoves have electrical and internet hookups to make doing business easier; and for limited occasions, food trucks will add to the offerings. Three types of seating will be offered in the new stadium depending on ticket prices: Fold down chairs with seatbacks for premium seats, bleachers with backs outside of that, and bleachers without backs in the end zone. VIP seating will be offered on the field for some engagements. Which brings us to the star of the show: the field. It’s big enough for soccer but can also accommodate football, rugby, and lacrosse. And it’s artificial TURF, not natural grass. “Natural turf provides a limitation on how many events you can have on it before you have to go in and replace the sod,” says Lynn. “That’s not something we typically have in our budgets. We like to keep our prices low so we can program the venue as much as possible.” Turf allows the stadium to maximize the number of games and concerts it can hold. The lines painted on the turf are “scrubbed” off by special equipment when the game needs to change. And if you get down on your hands and knees and look closely, you’ll notice light fill similar to wood shavings between the blades of plastic grass. “It’s organic field material made from pine,” says Lynn. “It’s a little less hot than the crumb rubber is.” The field has also shifted towards Charlottetown Avenue to accommodate a new concrete pad for a stage under the scoreboard. Trucks can bring in a stage and equipment from the service drive behind the Grady Cole Center, without ever having to drive on the field. Stadium designers invited the public to weigh in on the new design, and actively solicited old stories to capture the heart of the Charlotte landmark. Even Lynn remembers traveling to Charlotte from South Carolina when he was a kid to watch the Shrine Bowl. Eighty years and thousands of local memories later, the new American Legion Memorial Stadium is ready for more. Lynn sums up his awe of what’s risen on the historic site. “It’s fantastic, I love it,” he says. “We built the stadium very well. It should stand another 80 years for sure.” Want to go? Enjoy the Charlotte Independence Soccer games High school football games at Memorial Stadium, via Charlotte Kickoff Night