Join fellow attendees at the 2020 Seminar on Wheels Tours at the 31st Annual SFMA Conference and Exhibition. Pre-registration and additional fees required for both Monday and Thursday tours. Attendees of Monday’s tours will visit site of Super Bowl LIV, Hard Rock Stadium, FAU Stadium and Palm Beach Gardens North County District Park. Attendees of Thursday’s half-day tour will venture to Dean Chevrolet Stadium and FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches.
Lunch and transportation included. Sign up within your conference registration under “optional events.”
Mon., Jan. 13, 7 am – 5:15 pm
See Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, one of the most unique stadiums in the U.S. Home of the Miami Dolphins, University of Miami and the Orange Bowl, it will be the site of Super Bowl LIV, just 20 days after the tour! The 65,326-seat stadium underwent a privately funded $350 million renovation in 2015. You will see the Superbowl field preparation, unique behind-the-scenes areas, and hear Sports Turf Manager Tom Wilson speak about the many different and diverse events it hosts. You will also hear from the NFL Superbowl event team about the field preparation and challenges. Next, you will tour FAU Stadium in Boca Raton, home of the Florida Atlantic University football team, and visit its new practice football fields at the Schmidt Family Complex. The tour includes the recently renovated FAU softball field, with Latitude 36 Bermuda Grass and Dura Edge skinned area. The final stop is the Palm Beach Gardens North County District Park, which opened on June 29, 2019. It spans 81.9 acres including 21 acres of Latitude Bermudagrass grown in by the county’s Parks and Grounds Division. Featuring seven lighted multi-purpose fields, two playgrounds, walking trails, green space, a maintenance building, and a splash pad, this $13.7 million-dollar project was paid for by a one-cent sales tax fund.
Thurs., Jan 16, 1:15 – 5 pm
First stop is Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium, a 90-acre complex in Jupiter, FL. The Spring Training home to the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals, the complex also hosts both clubs’ Advanced A and Gulf Coast League affiliates. The Town of Jupiter (JTAA) uses the complex for its recreational leagues from April through mid-December. The final tour stop is the FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches, located in West Palm Beach. It is the Spring Training home to the Houston Astros and the Washington Nationals. The site also hosts baseball, soccer, lacrosse, and other sports. The facility’s layout centers around the 6,500-seat stadium field and features 12 full-size baseball fields, 2 half-sized fields, 5 multipurpose fields, and 2 artificial agility fields as well as clubhouse spaces. The City of West Palm Beach operates a public park adjacent to the complex and a 2-mile jogging trail encompasses the entire property.
Sign up for conference here.