BY LUCY MAY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The innovative design for the Bengals' new Paul Brown Stadium has won national architecture honors.
The swirling design by NBBJ Sports & Entertainment of Los Angeles was among 15 selected for the 1998 American Architecture Award. There were more than 300 entries.
Hamilton County and the Bengals have taken heat over the project's cost, an estimated $400.3 million for the stadium, practice fields, land, site preparation and stadium infrastructure.
Troy Blackburn, the team's director of stadium development, said the recognition for the stadium's design serves as "strong affirmation that the path the project's on is the right one."
"This confirms in spades that spending a little bit of time and getting it done right is going to bring some acclaim," he said. Mr. Blackburn stressed the design also will be good for fans. The shape virtually eliminates corner seating, considered the worst seats for watching a game.
The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design sponsored the competition, which was open to American architects and architectural firms working nationally or internationally for projects in the United States and abroad.
Other winners included the Sendai International Airport in Sendai, Japan, the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark, N.J., and the IBM corporate headquarters in Armonk, N.Y. Paul Brown Stadium, scheduled for completion in August 2000, was the only stadium among the winners.
