Jill Monaghan at Generator Studio talks with Shield Lockers about the impact of COVID-19 on sports architecture

What’s waiting for sports venues and athletic facilities on the other side of this pandemic? There’s a lot of speculation and ideas gaining momentum as to where design could or should go once we’ve emerged from this complex crisis.

Shield Lockers recently had a conversation on this topic with Generator Studio’s Jill Monaghan. With a specific focus on achieving clients’ goals and creating tailored end-user experiences, Monaghan believes in establishing long-term value through design. She’s a key architect on sports and entertainment projects with a voice in all scopes, helping to shape solutions that leave a meaningful, lasting impression.

Generator Studio is an architecture and interior design firm delivering national expertise in venue design, entertainment and hospitality. On the boards at the moment are NHL Seattle’s new headquarters and training center, several projects with Live Nation, and even a new Esports venue. Of note, in 2019 Generator designed the Brooklyn Nets refurbished locker room at Barclays Center, collaborating with Shield Lockers in their custom player lockers that are “…unlike anything [ESPN’s Kristian Winfield] has seen around the league.”

Here’s what she has to say about it.

Health and wellness in athletic venues and facilities

“Our approach to designing athletic facilities is based on the idea that the built environment should inspire and support the athletes and staff that use those facilities,” says Monaghan. “The best practices we implement in our projects take a holistic approach to health and wellbeing; from the aspirational implications of the design to the physical selection of materials.”

“A few key factors that have played into our athletic facilities recently include circadian lighting, which helps soften the impacts of travel and time zone changes on athletes, to the selection and specification of products that come from natural or recycled materials and have low to no VOCs. This thought process was critical to the design and construction of the recently completed Brooklyn Nets locker room at Barclays Center, where we partnered with Shield Lockers and Dimensional Innovations. The Nets’ locker room utilizes the latest lighting, material and fabrication technologies to create a durable, waterproof, microbial-resistant locker room that balances the grit of Brooklyn with a sleek, sophisticated aesthetic.”

The impact of COVID-19 on sports facilities design

“Sports and entertainment facilities pre-Covid were about creating hospitable and unique spaces for people to be together. An integral part of attending a sporting event or a concert is the idea of being surrounded by your peers⁠—whether that environment is in the pit at a concert, or at a high-end sponsored club in a football stadium,” says Monaghan, which is emerging as a common theme across sports design firms in response to the current crisis. How can future design support a healthier fan experience while maintaining the longstanding cultural traditions of sporting events, a critical question for someone like Monaghan who’s core responsibilities actually include a focus on having fun.

“The challenge we face moving forward is how to create engaging environments that appeal to sponsors and fans, while establishing new protocols to protect people and provide social distancing. For us, this means a practical approach centered on changes that can be immediately implemented: social distancing protocols for queuing at entries and concourses; wayfinding that separates streams of traffic earlier; creating a completely touch-less experience for everyone who enters the facility; integration of readily accessible PPE; changes in MEP systems and in-venue technology; reconsidering egress-only stairs as possible ingress to reduce congestion; and many more future considerations that we are currently discussing with our clients.”

Design trends to come

Generator Studio’s team shares similar sports industry concerns about how to collectively work to reopen the sports and entertainment segments. Monaghan understands that any design changes emerging in response to the current crisis will have to be evaluated and implemented across both short- and long-term strategies.

“In the short term, we’re working diligently to help clients modify building layouts and operating procedures as we all gain perspective on what could be the new normal,” says Monaghan. “There will be impacts to the seating manifest and approach to setting event capacity. Operations and staff, including access and cleaning protocols, will be heavily impacted now and in the future.”

“Looking forward, we think sports facilities will continue to trend towards a wider variety of experiences, both public and private, that aren’t tied to a seat. We see this now with our recent renovation work: the desire to provide 15 different experiences within one venue all tied back to the team. We think this tiered approach will continue, but will be centered on smaller, flexible group sizes, and hosting people in a way that is more private.”

According to Monaghan, “This ‘publicly private’ hospitality approach could manifest itself in a resurgence of suites tied to a sponsor with secondary activities related to esports, VR, sports betting, or other experiential technologies. It could also manifest itself in scaled down premium products, like individual loge boxes for 4-8 people with app driven F&B service, or private speakeasy bars for smaller groups sponsored by a local distillery or microbrewery. Larger traditional clubs and gathering areas will promote scarcity rather than density; soft seating areas and bars will be rethought to cater to separate, individual groups.” The idea of creating a more exclusive, almost personalized and more dynamic fan experience could be an effective new model for future sports and entertainment venue design. It could also be supported financially through strategic corporate sponsorships and premium ticket revenue.

“We also see a better overall integration with technology to provide enhanced experiences with food & beverage, access, game day experience, and brand- while limiting the need to interact with staff,” says Monaghan. “We’re anticipating more opportunities for in-home engagement with live events through team-driven interactive content. This is for families or groups who cannot make the live event but still want to participate remotely.”

Learn more about Generator Studio’s sports architecture design expertise.

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