This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2008, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
SANDY - Snagging a parking spot shouldn't be a problem at the first game at Real Salt Lake's soccer stadium. But stopping into the souvenir shop or sounding a fire alarm could be.
The franchise has rounded up more parking spots than required, but it is rushing to open the 20,000-seat stadium in time to square off against the New York Red Bulls in an ESPN-broadcast match on Oct. 9.
"Construction is on schedule" to wrap at 9256 S. State St. at the end of October, RSL General Manager Bill Manning said Tuesday. "We would like to open a few weeks early to get a couple of games in there . . . That would be awesome."
Last year, RSL hoped for a July 4 opener against Real Madrid.
Moving up the new construction deadline to Oct. 9 won't mean sacrificing the experience - or the safety - of fans, Manning said.
Fire sprinklers have to be in place before the $110 million venue can premiere, but it's possible to hold a game without the flashing lights and drones of fire alarms, stadium manager Mike Steele said. Sandy firefighters would have to stand guard to orchestrate an evacuation in the event that a fire did break out.
The retail store and "back-of-house" facilities also could be temporarily sacrificed to have professional cleats hit the Major League Soccer field before the 2009 season, Manning said.
But nothing else can go, he added. The Oct. 9 game can be played at Rice-Eccles Stadium if the Sandy concession-stands aren't ready to dispense beer, soda and foot-long hot dogs.
On Thursday, Sandy's Planning Commission likely will give RSL the OK for its parking plan - a mechanism that has to be in place in July as a condition of the $10 million property-tax subsidy that Sandy plans to hand over at the end of that month. Last year, the Legislature channeled $35 million of Salt Lake County hotel taxes toward stadium land, parking and infrastructure.
Sandy required that RSL arrange for parking for 5,300 cars, including 1,000 on site. RSL must develop another 1,000 on-site stalls within two years of the stadium's debut.
On Tuesday, Steele told the City Council the team has met the requirements - and then some.
There are 1,400 stalls at the stadium and another 5,400 in lots nearby, including 1,000 at Salt Lake County's South Towne Expo Center, that soccer fans can use.
The team also plans to block parking on residential streets by posting signs. If that doesn't work, RSL will work with the city to place barricades, warning "no event parking" on neighborhood streets during games and concerts.
Parking also will not be allowed at nearby entertainment-complex Jordan Commons.
City Councilman Chris McCandless applauded the parking plan at Tuesday's meeting.
"Thanks for the hard work. I know this has been a tough thing," he told Steele. "Everybody will reap some benefits from having the traffic flow out of and into this site as a result of this effort."