Super Bowl 2011 / Cowboys Stadium

SLANT 45 to party at Cowboys Stadium

SLANT 45 is a youth education program being run in conjunction with the year-long buildup to Super Bowl XLV. And Angie Bulaich, a community outreach manager for the North Texas Super Bowl Committee, says that the year-end party scheduled to culminate the event, has been moved from the American Airlines Center to Cowboys Stadium, site of the Super Bowl. In part it is because SLANT 45 is expecting to attract more than 20,000 area kids and a bigger venue was needed.

Bulaich said that "Radio Disney talent" will be part of the festivities and she is hopeful that co-chairs Laura and President George W. Bush will attend.

That is great news for the North Texas elementary school children who participate in SLANT 45, which encourages youngsters under the guidance of adult team leaders (coaches), to participate in projects that make a positive impact on their community. Bulaich says that some of these projects initiated by area school children include recycling, installing motion-detecting lights to make a neighborhood street safer, eliminating gang-related graffiti, raising money for animal shelters.

"We wanted to use the Super Bowl platform to create a great program and do something to inspire kids," Bulaich said. Participants get a workbook, service learning guide and a T-shirt. Team leaders get a Coach's Playbook, although Bulaich reiterated that this is a kid-driven program.  

She said that since many of these incentives need funding that the first 100 teams to apply on the SLANT 45 website (www.slant45.org) will received $100 seed money. Initially the program was open to kids from the third-fifth grades but now all elementary school-age children are eligible.

The North Texas Super Bowl Committee is partnering with Big Thought of Dallas in this youth-oriented community outreach program. Former Cowboy fullback Daryl Johnston is chairman of SLANT 45.  

Pete Alfano

Volunteer draft off to a fast start

Only five days after launching its "Get Drafted" program, the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Committee says it has already enlisted 2,600 volunteers. The goal is 10,000 volunteers, and even if the sign-up rate slows in the next few weeks, it looks as if the committee is well on its way to reaching the magic number.

Volunteers will work at a number of venues but not inside Cowboys Stadium on Super Bowl Sunday. If you want to sign up visit www.northtexassuperbowl.com and click on Volunteers to begin the process. You can also pick your shift and venue on a first-come-first-serve basis.

Pete Alfano

OSHA cites Cowboys roofing subcontractor in falling incident

The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration said Monday it cited a Cowboys Stadium roofing subcontractor for two violations in a December incident in which two maintenance workers slipped on an icy roof and slid until they were caught by a gutter.

OSHA cited Birdair Inc., of Amherst, N.Y., with one alleged willful violation and one alleged serious violation of OSHA standards, saying the workers weren’t wearing “required fall protection equipment” and weren’t trained in “hazards associated with falls.”

“The workers were wearing fall protection gear; however, they were not tied off in accordance with OSHA standards,” Elizabeth Todd, an agency spokeswoman, wrote in an e-mail in response to a question from the Star-Telegram.

OSHA proposed $45,000 in penalties. Birdair has 15 business days from receipt of the Fort Worth, or contest the citations and penalties before the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

“Birdair is considered a safe contractor working worldwide on this unique style roof system,” Karen Mathews, Birdair’s general counsel, said in a prepared statement Monday. “Safety is a core value of the corporation, and the safety of our workers is paramount. Birdair will be contesting the alleged violations assessed by OSHA.”

The citations resulted from an investigation by OSHA’s Fort Worth-area office, begun after the two workers slid about 260 feet down the side of the domed roof. One of the workers suffered head and chest trauma and a broken leg. The other man hurt his back.

“If OSHA’s standards for fall protection had been followed, (it) is possible these employees would not have been seriously injured,” Zachary Bennett, OSHA’s Fort Worth area director, said in a news release.

OSHA’s citation of “willful violation” was related to whether the employees were wearing the correct fall protection equipment. The agency defines a willful violation as one committed with “intentional disregard of, or plain indifference to, the requirements” of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

The serious violation was related to Birdair’s training, OSHA said. Serious citations are issued when “death or serious injury could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.”

Birdair has had no other closed or open OSHA cases in Texas or New York within the last five years, the period data is available on the agency’s website. Birdair bills itself as “the leading specialty contractor for long-span and large custom tensile structures.”

The injured men were among employees doing final work on the stadium’s fabric roof panels.

-- Scott Nishimura, employment and Super Bowl XLV business reporter

Tony Dorsett takes another run down memory lane

Tony Dorsett did his part for the Super Bowl XLV effort Thursday, appearing onstage with Brad Sham at the Cowboys draft party to officially kick off the drive to recruit 10,000 volunteers.

Before his appearance, Dorsett sat down with a local TV station to talk about his Hall-of-Fame career. The interview will be aired later, as part of the Super Bowl Host Committee's Century in the Making fan voting drive.

Dorsett talked about the day he was drafted by the Cowboys in 1977 (No. 2 overall), back before the NFL Draft became a prime-time media circus. He found out he was a Cowboy via a phone call from Gil Brandt while he was working out at his alma mater, the University of Pittsburgh.

Dorsett also talked about his NFL-record 99-yard run, which is one of the "pro football moments" on the Century in the Making ballot.

I had forgotten that the Cowboys had only 10 men on the field for that play. Dorsett blamed himself, saying he gave fullback Ron Springs bad information about the formation and the play.

Listening to Dorsett talk was another reminder that perhaps the coolest thing about North Texas finally getting a chance to host the Super Bowl is the memories it stirs up.

Many of us grew up watching these guys create a legendary franchise from the ground up. Texas Stadium and Coach Landry are gone, but plenty of people remain to carry the torch.

And it's good that another generation is getting a chance to meet them.

Thanks for the memories, Tony.

-- Kathy Vetter

Here's Dorsett, talking about the need for Super Bowl volunteers:

The Cowboys by any name ...

Folks in Irving know how frustrating it was over the years to have out-of-town print and broadcast media say that Texas Stadium was in Dallas.

Well, it was in Dallas County but not the city of Dallas. And Arlington will likely deal with the same issue when the world comes to Super Bowl XLV next February. Invariably, it will be referred to as the Super Bowl in Dallas.

Irving Mayor Herbert Gears said that city officials and residents of Arlington shouldn't fret about it.

"I would tell people of Arlington there will be an infinite number of opportunities to showcase Arlington," he said. "It [The Super Bowl] is a regional opportunity and we’re all invested in it.

Not that city oficials in Irving didn't try.

"It was a continual battle," Gears said. "I worked with guys on Monday Night Football, told John Madden, told them for years to try and get them to say Irving."

But how is this for a silver lining.

"The best part of Cowboys going to Arlington," Gears added, "is that everyone thinks they left Dallas because they didn't realize the Cowboys were in Irving. 

And if they leave Arlington some day, everyone will think they left Dallas for a second time because they didn't know they were in Arlington."    

-- Pete Alfano

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker hired to chronicle SLANT 45

Mark Birnbaum, an award-winning filmmaker who has tackled subjects like newspapers' decline and Tom DeLay's career, will turn his attention to SLANT 45, the education and service project accompanying Super Bowl XLV.

SLANT 45 kicked off in February. Its purpose is to involve more than 20,000 children in service-learning projects before the Super Bowl in 2011. Dallas-based Big Thought, a nonprofit that champions creative learning, is coordinating the project for the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Host Committee.

Birnbaum's documentary will premier shortly before the Super Bowl, organizers have said. In a statement issued Wednesday, Birnbaum said: "The opportunity to make a documentary about this ambitious project is the sort of thing a filmmaker dreams about. The scope will be challenging, but we look forward to revealing the individual stories of kids and communities that SLANT 45 represents."

- Traci Shurley

And with the first "shift" in the Super Bowl Volunteer Draft ...

Well, we're hunkering down in the war room getting ready for the draft.

No, not that draft but the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Committee Volunteer Draft that launches Thursday, coinciding with the first round of the National Football League draft.

The Host Committee is looking to enlist 10,000 volunteers for Super Bowl XLV and be able to sign up by visiting www.northtexassuperbowl.com and clicking on "Volunteers."

It is a seven-step process, or seven rounds, as volunteer manager Amanda Whitelaw calls it, and you'll get to pick your shifts and venue on a first-come-first-serve basis.

The only requirement is that you must be 18 years old. There is no maximum age either.

Whitelaw supplied us with the demographics from the 2009 Super Bowl in Tampa, where she worked and it shows a great deal of diversity in the corps of 6,000-plus volunteers.

For that Super Bowl, 48 percent of volunteers were male, 40 percent female. The 39-48 age group had the most volunteers, but barely with 21.72 percent.

Here is the age breakdown:

Age  Percentage
18      0.95
19-28    12.97
29-38    18.57
39-48    21.72   
49-58    20.25
59-68    13.68
69-78   4.48
79-88      0.01
89-98      0.04

-- Pete Alfano

Residents still hoping to cash in on Super Bowl home rentals

Jeff Mosier of The Dallas Morning News has an interesting story today about residents hoping to rent out their homes to Super Bowl XLV visitors.

Mosier has spotted signs in Dallas rights-of-way inviting people to list their homes online (for a fee, of course). I haven't seen any of those around Arlington yet, but I haven't driven the entire city.

Some people apparently think they can get thousands of dollars a night for their homes. Hmm.

A couple of things COULD come together to help interested Arlington homeowners: There is definitely a shortage of high-class hotel rooms in the city, and it IS close to Cowboys Stadium and halfway between Dallas and Fort Worth, where the majority of the events will be held.

It remains to be seen, however, if a nice house in, say, Arlington's Interlochen neighborhood can command the same fees as a beachfront condo in Hollywood, Fla., that comes with a Hummer thrown in. Nice find, Jeff.

(Photo: Arlington has no beaches. But it has some awfully nice homes on the water in the Interlochen neighborhood!)

The Star-Telegram's Susan Schrock wrote a similar story last December:

ARLINGTON -- There’s a potential upside to living in the shadow of Cowboys Stadium -- fans may be looking to rent a home away from home for major sporting events.

At least that’s what the Phoenix-based online company www.sportseventsrentals.com is pitching to residents living near the new $1.2 billion stadium.

Company co-founder Todd Brenneman describes his 8-month-old site as a sort of Craigslist where property owners living near stadiums worldwide can post photos and information about their homes in hopes of landing lucrative, short-term rental deals with sports fans who either can’t find or don’t want to book hotel rooms.

So far, the site has listings for 315 sporting events in more than 150 cities in 27 countries, he said.

"If you are not into football, if you want to get out of the area, this is an excuse to escape. You can go on vacation with the money you make," Brenneman said. "You can rent your home, not for an obscene amount, but for a lot more than you could a vacation rental."

Exactly how much the home will rent for is left up to the owner, who pays the company a flat $99 fee to list their property for either one event or for a year. People listing their property also handle the rental agreement and collect the money from renters.

Brenneman said his company is planning an advertising campaign early next year in Arlington, including mailing advertisements to property owners within five miles of Cowboys Stadium, targeting events such as the Feb. 14 NBA All-Star Game and Super Bowl XLV in 2011.

No one is currently advertising their properties for those sporting events or others scheduled in the Dallas-Fort area, including the Bell Armed Forces Bowl at Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth on Dec. 30 or the AT&T Cotton Bowl at Cowboys Stadium on Jan. 2, according to the Web site.

City officials say there could be a market for home rentals during sporting events. Since Cowboys Stadium opened last June, Arlington’s hotels have been booked up for almost all of the venue’s events.

Jay Burress, president and CEO of the Arlington Convention & Visitors Bureau, said Arlington homeowners have been contacting his office for information on how to cash in on their proximity to the stadium.

"We’ve had plenty of people call and ask. We know there is a demand," Burress said. "As a CVB, we would encourage visitors to stay in hotels as opposed to home rentals."

Burress said home renters are competition for area hotels, which can hurt the city since hotel occupancy taxes are not collected on nights booked at private residences.

Arlington’s hotel occupancy tax is used for things such as promoting tourism and repaying the city’s bonds for Cowboys Stadium.

Burress said he doesn’t believe there will be a shortage of hotel rooms for the Super Bowl at Cowboys Stadium since the North Texas region has 90,000 rooms available.

The North Texas Super Bowl Host Committee has already reserved 25,000 of those rooms for fans, he said.

"Maybe there is an opportunity there," Burress said of home rentals near Cowboys Stadium. "I hate to get anyone’s hopes too high. I think a lot of people see dollar signs."

One of those considering the possibility is George Hawley, who lives on Slaughter Street across from the stadium. Hawley, whose home borders one of the stadium’s parking lots off Collins Street, said making money off his property could make up for some of the hardships, such as traffic and litter, that he’s endured since the facility opened.

Hawley said fans renting homes close to the stadium will experience what residents already do -- tailgaters who get a little rowdy after an afternoon of drinking.

"Several of them came over one night and started urinating on my lawn so I called 911 on them," said Hawley.

Brenneman, who said he has rented out his home for sporting events and been a renter, said opening up your home to strangers requires some preparation.

He recommends securing or hiding valuables, setting limits on where they can go on the property and what amenities they can use, and even swapping out the sheets and towels with inexpensive linens.

Susan Schrock, 817-390-7639 (C) The Star-Telegram 2009

-- Kathy Vetter

Who would you like to see play Cowboys Stadium in September?

The game, commercials and music. Those are the three biggest elements of the Super Bowl. And by music, we generally mean the halftime show, which has run the gamut from hip hop to geriatric rock, and featured wardrobe malfunctions such as the infamous Janet Jackson unveiling and a stomach baring glimpse of the Who's Pete Townsend that we frankly could have done without.

But this year, the Super Bowl buildup also includes a first-of-its-kind concert series undertaken by the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Committee.

Faith Hill performed at Bass Hall, Sting will be at the Winspear in May, and as yet, a third act hasn't been chosen for the grand finale at Cowboys Stadium in early September.

So who should it be, and by that we don't mean the Who. We're conducting a poll and have arbitrarily picked artists such as Alicia Keys, Beyonce, Justin Timberlake, the Eagles, Carrie Underwood and Garth Brooks.

I'd love to see the Eagles, given that I went to see them twice at the American Airlines Center a couple of years ago. And so far, they are leading the early returns. But I also admit to being part of the geriatric generation so perhaps the committee ought to think younger. What do you think?

Why not go to http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/04/15/2118216/who-would-you-like-to-see-play.html and cast your vote. Who knows, you might even influence the committee.

-- Pete Alfano

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