Recently unveiled designs for a new Redskins stadium were "supposed to be a throwback to RFK Stadium," but instead look like "the next Mars colony space station," according to Rick Snider of DC-based WJFK-AM. The eye "went first to the surrounding moat." Snider: "This place will be known as 'The Moat' no matter whose name is on the stadium." The "towering walls are remindful" of Tampa Stadium where the Buccaneers used to play. Snider: "Note to architect -- nobody liked that stadium." The Redskins new design also lacks a retractable roof, and the team "can't build a stadium to open" in '27 for more than $1B "without a roof to allow more use than 10 football games and a couple concerts annually." Redskins Owner Daniel Snyder "needs to eat the design cost and start over, preferably with an American firm that understands sports and fans" (WASHINGTON.CBSLOCAL.com, 3/14). In DC, Scott Allen wrote the "most striking feature of the semi-transparent, hyperbolic paraboloid-shaped design is the moat." Allen: "To no one's surprise, reaction to the proposed design -- and the moat in particular -- on Facebook and Twitter was mostly negative." Fan reaction on Twitter ranged from one person calling the design "jellyfish barf" to another fan asking if the team was "relocating to Ocean City" (WASHINGTON POST, 3/14). In Minneapolis, Michael Rand wrote the design put forth by the Redskins is "now the beginning and end point when talking about wackiness" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 3/14).
