The US Open Will Have Two Retractable Roofs Built By 2018
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The USTA announced today a $550 million dollar renovation to the US Open that will including the construction of two retractable roofs over Arthur Ashe Stadium as well as one over a new Louis Armstrong court.
In addition, the tournament will move the Grandstand to it’s own separate 8,000-seat structure as part of an overall expansion of the grounds.
“We have been working toward a viable design for a roof on Arthur Ashe Stadium for more than a decade,” said USTA Chairman of the Board and President Dave Haggerty. “Through a long and arduous process, we feel that we now have a design that meets the criteria of being architecturally sound, aesthetically pleasing, reasonably affordable, and buildable.”
The roof over the cavernous Ashe court, which has a target completion date of 2017 and could be ready for 2016, is expected to be four times the size of Wimbledon’s court.
The Ashe roof will be constructed of flexible, translucent PTFE fabric stretched over a steel frame and will be supported by eight steel columns surrounding the stadium. It’s expected to open and close in 5-7 minutes.
The men’s final at the US Open has been heldover to Monday the last five years.
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