Some very unlucky spectators at Giants and Jets games will be getting a better view of steel beams instead of the field. The Post went on a visit to the new stadium and found, "Each of the two end-zone mezzanine sections has four pillars supporting the upper deck -- unsightly and archaic steel structures that experts say are routinely avoided in modern stadium design. Behind each column are rows of seats where views of the gridiron are fully obscured -- 59 seats in total. Some others have limited sightlines." That should really help selling PSLs!
NY architect Peter Eisenman, a Giants fan who designed the Arizona Cardinals' and Dallas Cowboys' stadiums, guessed that cost and/or time was why there were beams and not a cantilevered support, "They might have saved a lot of money in terms of the steel needed in the cantilevers. They might have been under a lot of pressure to bring the cost down or under enormous time pressure."
The New Meadowlands designer, George Heinlein, said that the beams were needed because the stadium was designed to have the levels stacked closer to the field, "The objective of ownership... was to create the most intimidating home-field advantage in football. Columns are not needed in other stadiums, which do not have the capacity or the proximity of end-zone seating." And he claims that the seats with obstructed views aren't going to be sold—in fact, they'll be taken out. We guess we'll find out how true that is when the preseason rolls around.
