Boston, MA Gilbane Building Company beat winter conditions and an aggressive schedule to safely complete improvements and renovations at Fenway Park. The renovations were completed in time for the Boston Red Sox season opening day game vs. the Pittsburgh Pirates on April 3 – marking nearly 105 years since Fenway Park hosted its first professional baseball game on April 20, 1912.
The improvements mark the seventh project in Gilbane’s partnership working at Fenway Park having completed projects in 2007, 2010, 2012, 2014-17 with this year’s project being the largest at Fenway Park in six years.
The depth of both the home and visitor dugouts has been increased by moving the front rail of the dugouts forward three feet, providing better circulation, improved sight lines from bench seating areas, and additional space for storage of bats and helmets. The field wall between the dugouts has been moved forward the same three feet to align with the dugout expansion, allowing for the addition of a new row of seats in the area from home plate to each dugout, and additional rows of seating behind the camera pits on the first and third base side. A total of 124 new seats have been added. The new, relocated field wall houses new televisions and built-in antennae systems which required significant coordination among all parties involved.
Notably, four new day-of-game suites have been constructed on the State Street Pavilion level of the ballpark. Two on the first base side adjacent to the existing “B Suites,” and two on the third base side adjacent to the existing “K Suites.” The new party suites offer views of both the playing field and the sky line and can be used as individual spaces for 12 people or combined to create single, expanded suites accommodating 24.
Additionally at right field, several rows in the back of the right field grandstand were removed this offseason to accommodate the construction of the new “Tully Tavern” bar area. Terraces with swivel stools, tables and standing room spaces feature charging stations and 64-inch televisions.
Other projects include the right field foul pole, “Pesky Pole,” which underwent extensive structural repairs to reinforce areas that were impacted by general wear and tear over the years. A new removable field wall system has been installed in front of the bullpens, in the same location and with the same dimensions, to better accommodate non-baseball events that continue to be popular at Fenway Park. Additionally a new video board was installed in right field, replacing the Cumberland Farms sign that previously occupied that space and requiring significant structural reinforcement.
“This year’s project is the largest renovation in Fenway Park in six years. The project demanded an aggressive schedule, with all construction operations being completed before the Red Sox season home opener vs the Pittsburgh Pirates April 3” said Justin MacEachern, Gilbane project executive. “There were several logistical challenges including working safely through the bustle of the Fenway neighborhood while keeping the park fully operational for historical tours, Spartan Races, hockey games and many other events.”
“The improvements this offseason were some of the most extensive we have undertaken in several years,” said Red Sox executive vice president of business affairs Jonathan Gilula. “We are thankful for the partnership with Gilbane who worked around our busy schedule of events to get the work completed in time for an early April home opener, and for the hard work of the many workers whose tireless efforts kept us on track.”
Gilbane provides a full slate of construction and facilities-related services – from pre-construction planning and integrated consulting capabilities to comprehensive construction management, close-out and facility management services – for clients across various markets. Founded in 1873 and still a privately held, family-owned company, Gilbane has more than 50 office locations around the world.
Gilbane has been a leading Boston construction firm since 1946, serving commercial, institutional, and public clients in the Commonwealth including the University of Massachusetts, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Tufts University, Genzyme, Fidelity Investments, and Bank of America. The Boston office was recently named a Top Charitable Contributor in 2015 and 2016 by Boston Business Journal.
