RCA Dome

Infobox_Stadium
stadium_name = RCA Dome
nickname =


location = 100 South Capitol Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46225
coordinates = Coord|39|45|49|N|86|9|48|W|type:landmark
broke_ground = May 27 1982
opened = 1984
closed = 2008
demolished = May-December 2008
owner = Capital Improvement Board
operator = Capital Improvement Board
surface = AstroTurf (1984-2004); FieldTurf (2005–2008)
construction_cost = US$77.5 million
architect = HNTB
former_names = Hoosier Dome (1983-1994)
tenants = Indianapolis Colts (NFL) (1984–2007)
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament (1991, 1997, 2000, 2006)
seating_capacity = 57,980
The RCA Dome was a domed stadium located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and the home of the Indianapolis Colts NFL franchise for 24 seasons (1984-2007). It was completed in 1984 at a cost of $82 million as part of the Indiana Convention Center, with the costs split evenly between private and public money. It was finished nearly a year before the Colts actually moved to the city. In 1984, the Colts relocated to Indianapolis from Baltimore.

History

The stadium was completed in 1984. It was similar in design and appearance to the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis and BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, owing in great part to the involvement of engineer David Geiger, pioneer in air-supported roofs [ [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/BT/PAPERS/smthsnian.html Smithsonian January 1988] ] .

The stadium was originally named the Hoosier Dome until 1994 when RCA paid $10 million for the naming rights for 10 years, with two five-year options to RCA at a cost of $13.5 million if invoked. The stadium seated 57,980 for football. Modifications were made to the stadium in 2001 to expand the suites and add club seating. Before that, the maximum seating for a football crowd was 60,272. The dome was officially dedicated on September 8, 1984, as a sellout crowd watched the Purdue Boilermakers defeat the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame.

Basketball was also played at the RCA Dome. The first game played there was an exhibition game in 1984 between an NBA All-Star team led by home-state hero Larry Bird and the United States Olympic Men's Basketball team, coached by Bob Knight, who was at the time the coach of Indiana University. The dome also served as the site of the NBA All-Star Game in February 1985, where a record NBA crowd of 43,146 saw the Western Conference beat the Eastern Conference 140–129 [ [http://aol.nba.com/history/allstar/recap_1985.html NBA Encloypedia] ] . Since then it hosted many NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship games, including four Final Fours (1991, 1997, 2000, 2006). The NCAA, whose headquarters are in Indianapolis, has committed to holding the Final Four in Indianapolis once every five years. The RCA Dome hosted its first Women's Final Four in 2005.

In addition, it hosted 1990 General Conference Sessions of Seventh-day Adventists, WrestleMania VIII in 1992, the Indiana High School Athletic Association's annual boys and girls championships, and served as one of two sites for the FIBA Men's World Basketball Championship Tournament in 2002, sharing the honors with Conseco Fieldhouse, the home of the Indiana Pacers. Additionally, the RCA Dome served as the site of the Indiana State School Music Association State Marching Band Competition, the Bands of America Grand Nationals, and the Drum Corps International Midwestern Regional, along with the NFL Scouting Combine in February of each year.

The football playing surface was originally AstroTurf; it was replaced with FieldTurf in May 2005 [ [http://www.iccrd.com/dome/facts.aspx RCA Dome ] ] .

On September 24, 2008, demolition of the RCA Dome began as the roof was deflated

Roof

The roof was made up of teflon-coated fiberglass and weighed 257 tons, which was held up by the air pressure inside the building. The ceiling was 193 feet high, though the height varied up to five feet as the materials expanded and contracted with the weather. As was the case with other domes of this style (the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York and the Pontiac Silverdome outside Detroit, Michigan) there were warning signs posted cautioning patrons of the high winds at the doors when exiting. On September 24, 2008, the roof of the Dome was deflated. [http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3606768 RCA Dome deflated to prepare Colts' old home to be demolished] ]

Future

The stadium has been replaced by a new retractable-roof stadium, the Lucas Oil Stadium, in time for the 2008 NFL season. It recently was completed due south of the RCA Dome, which is slated to be demolished at a cost of $3,500,000 and replaced by additional space for the adjacent Indiana Convention Center. [ [http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080128/LOCAL/80128050 $3.5M winning bid for spring demolition of Dome | IndyStar.com ] ] . The new convention space will eventually connect to Lucas Oil Stadium in much the same way that the existing Indiana Convention Center had been connected to the RCA Dome (although the new connecting walkway will pass under a railroad track).

Notes and references

External links

* [http://www.iccrd.com/dome/ RCA Dome website]

succession box
title = Home of the
Indianapolis Colts
years = 1984 – 2008
before = Memorial Stadium (Baltimore)
after = Lucas Oil Stadiumsuccession box
title = NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
Finals Venue
years = 1991
1997
2000
2006
before =
McNichols Sports Arena
Continental Airlines Arena
Tropicana Field
Edward Jones Dome
after =
H.H.H. Metrodome
Alamodome
H.H.H. Metrodome
Georgia Dome succession box
title= NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament Finals Venue
years = 2005
before = New Orleans Arena
after = TD Banknorth Gardensuccession box
title = Host of
Bands of America
Grand National Championship
years = 1984 – 1986
1989 – 2007
before =
Gator Bowl
Pontiac Silverdome
after =
Pontiac Silverdome
Lucas Oil Stadiumsuccession box
title = Host of the
NBA All-Star Game
years = 1985
before = McNichols Sports Arena
after = Reunion Arenasuccession box
title = Host of WrestleMania VIII
years = 1992
before = Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
after = Caesars Palace