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For Bronx Native, Stadium is Dream Come True
Joe Byrne is all energy. His hands move as quickly as his mouth and his rapid-fire speech is enough to make you dizzy. But you almost can't blame the guy for his excitement and enthusiasm. As the Project Executive for Turner Construction=Sports, Byrne oversees the construction of the new Yankee Stadium. And for a self-described "30 to 40 game-a-year" New York Yankees fan from Throggs Neck, this is the job of dreams.

Byrne is no stranger to big projects. A graduate of Lehman High School, he earned an engineering degree from SUNY Maritime and his previous work for Turner Construction included the state-of-the-art Hearst Building on West 57th Street in Manhattan and the Bear Stearns building on Madison Avenue. Yet, overseeing the construction of a stadium-especially one for the New York Yankees-is a once in a lifetime project. It is also a project that comes with a set of opportunities and responsibilities that aren't common in the building business in New York.

First and foremost is the New York Yankees Community Benefits Agreement with its benchmarks for hiring local vendors and workers. "The CBA allowed this project to start," Byrne said of the contract. He said that the New York Yankees have worked with the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation and local chambers of commerce to identify vendors from the area who could help with the construction. "Sometimes, all these guys need is a chance" to break into the business, said Byrne. He adds that the work of local contractors has been on par with some of the bigger players in the industry. As proof of his commitment to local vendors he points out that the wiring for the complex of administrative offices at the construction site-including his own-was done by a local vendor. "Diana Electric did a great job," Byrne said.

When asked what has been one of biggest challenges associated with building the new Yankee Stadium, Byrne said that finding skilled workers at a time when all of New York City is going through a building boom has been difficult but not impossible. "We've really had to search for the best specialized workers," he said, "but we've always found them."

According to Byrne an even greater challenge has been meeting the high expectations for the Stadium. "The daily challenge of being on the highest profile job in the five boroughs is tough," he said. But Byrne likes the challenge. "I really feel like we are expected to succeed off the field in the same way the Yankees are supposed to succeed on it." Besides, he adds, "how often do you get to say that you built a stadium?"

Council Majority Leader: "World Class Stadium for a World Class Team."
New York City Council Majority Leader Joel Rivera's Bronx roots run deep. His family has been in public service for decades, and his commitment to the Bronx is well-known throughout the borough. Rivera is the youngest Majority Leader in Council history, and he has brought a fresh perspective to his job and a commitment to revitalizing the Bronx. Rivera sees the new Yankee Stadium not just as an opportunity for his favorite baseball team to play in a state-of-the-art stadium but also as an opportunity for the Bronx to shine. "This is a major economic boom to the Bronx," Rivera said, "and the economic impact is at the forefront of our priorities. This has to be a win-win."

Rivera is pleased with the way in which the Stadium construction team is working with the local community to ensure that Bronx workers and vendors are included in the building process. "They're doing a great job of hiring and contracting in the Bronx," he said. " The Yankees are going beyond the letter of the contract."

He pointed to the case of Eastman Boilers, a local vendor, as an example of one of many Bronx vendors who have been contracted to provide services for the new Stadium. "I really wanted to make sure that if we were building in the Bronx that we create a "Buy Bronx" campaign, and that's certainly happened."

We're Building The New Yankee Stadium
Amid the cranes and cement trucks at the new Yankee Stadium construction site, it's easy to forget that people, not just machines, are behind the largest building project in the Bronx in decades. We visited with some of the workers at the stadium construction site recently, and found out more about them.

Name:	Elena Gracia
Age:	26
Neighboorhood:	Pelham Bay
Title:	Project Community Coordinator
Started Work:	February, 2007

After working at the site of the new water filtration plant in Van Cortland Park, Elena Gracia came to work at the Yankee Stadium Construction Project hoping to make a difference. She has. Gracia is one of the coordinators in the effort to hire local workers at the construction project.

"It feels good to put someone to work," she said. Indeed the commitment that the New York Yankees have made to hire local workers means that Gracia gets a chance "to do something good for the Bronx."

"This is a wonderful opportunity," she said. "I'm happy to be here."

Name:	Patricia Gilbert
Age:	41
Neighboorhood:	Morrisania
Title:	CCIP Coordinator
Started Work:	December, 2006

Patricia Gilbert says that she came by her job "through the grace of God." The Morrisania resident works with Turner Construction=Sports. She is the general contractor on the new stadium project and provides insurance coverage to the many contractors and sub-contractors that work on the site. The work is a big change from her days working for a hospital in Westchester County. "I've learned more about insurance, and I am still learning," she said. She knows that the construction of the new stadium will have an effect throughout the Bronx.

"This is very good for the community," Gilbert added. "It creates more jobs, which is what we need."

Name:	Clint Robinson
Age:	48
Neighboorhood:	South Bronx
Title:	Laborer-Local 731
Started Work:	November, 2006

Ask people to describe Clint Robinson and the first words that come to mind are: "success story." Robinson came to Yankee Stadium when he heard that local residents would have an opportunity to work on the construction site. His previous work experience was as a truck driver.

With the assistance of Benny Catala and officials from Local 731, Robinson is now a member of the local and part of the excavation team.

"I learned a whole lot," he said recently. Robinson also said that he enjoys the camaraderie with his co-workers. He knows that union membership will give him stability after the Stadium project is completed, and for this life-long New York Yankees fan, that means a lot. "It's been a good experience," he said.

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For Borough President, Stadium Signals New Era in Bronx
Carrión sees project as a major step in redeveloping the area

On Opening Day 2009, when the New York Yankees begin play at their new state-of-the-art ballpark, Adolfo Carrión will be entering his final months as Bronx Borough President. After nearly a decade, he will have overseen some of the most significant economic development in the borough in decades, including the new Yankee Stadium. Carrión, an early supporter of the Stadium project, envisioned the new Stadium as the anchor of a wide-ranging development process that would fundamentally improve the neighborhoods surrounding it. As the Borough President said during a recent interview about the Yankee Stadium project in his office at the Bronx County Courthouse, "This is more than just a stadium."

Carrión wanted to build and improve upon the historic relationship between the New York Yankees and their neighbors in the Bronx and he kept that partnership in mind as he began to outline plans for what the new Stadium could mean for the borough. Soon enough, he realized that the project would be much more than a new ballpark. The new Stadium will be the engine of a fundamental redevelopment of the South Bronx from the Harlem River to the Grand Concourse. Just as importantly, Carrión said, "the process has built a stronger relationship between the team and the Bronx community."

"The construction process," Carrión said, "is moving along with limited impact [on the community]. He added, "I can't begin to tell you how responsive the Yankees and their construction team have been. We meet regularly to make sure things are progressing and we have kept the lines of communication between us open."

Carrión has also been pleased with the number of local residents and vendors who are participating in the building process. "The Yankees have exceeded their goals," he said of the hiring and supplier goals established by the Yankees in the Stadium Community Benefits Agreement. In order to create opportunities for local residents, the Borough President is working with the Yankees so that local residents get needed training to work on major construction sites and become union members. He is especially focused on the long-term impact that this process will have on local young people who are eager to work. "We are getting these young people training, getting them a trade and getting them to work," he said.

Carrión believes that the new Yankee Stadium will lead to widespread growth in an area that for decades has faced sharp economic challenges. He said he can envision a local family outing to the Stadium whereby young people play along the newly developed waterfront, parents dine in local restaurants, and a revived retail sector entices them to stay after the last out of the game. Local residents will be able to enjoy new, modern parkland and green-spaces as well as improved transportation facilities. "The Yankees have made an investment in this neighborhood and I really believe that local residents will reap the benefits of that commitment for years to come," he said.

Carrión is eagerly looking forward to the completion of the new Stadium. "Both parties," he said, "will have benefited from this development." He looks at the construction of the new Yankee Stadium as one of the great achievements of his tenure as Borough President and, quite naturally, can't wait until Opening Day 2009.

Catala Says Stadium Creates Opportunities
Benny Catala was born in Puerto Rico and raised in the Bronx. He's been a Yankees fan for as long as he can remember and he is quick to let you know that on many game nights he can hear the roar from the Stadium crowd in his nearby apartment. The sound is music to his ears.

Little wonder that when the New York Yankees wanted someone who could organize and manage the process of identifying and hiring Bronx-based vendors and workers for the new Yankee Stadium project, Catala was at the top of the list. He was the ideal candidate for the job. For more than two decades, Benny Catala has devoted his time to improving the Bronx.

His mother was active in the local PTA and he followed her example earning a job with Assemblywoman Aurelia Greene. That work-mainly dealing with local constituent concerns-provided him with an understanding of many of the challenges facing Bronx residents and businesses. Community leaders in the Bronx noticed the quality of Catala's work and his commitment to the borough's residents. By 2000, he had been recruited to work in the Bronx Borough President's Office as Director of Constituent Affairs. It was during his time at the Bronx Borough President's office that he began to fully understand some of the serious challenges facing the borough, which he and his family call home.

Last year, when the Yankees tapped Catala to lead their efforts to ensure that local workers and vendors participated in the construction of the new Yankee Stadium, he was excited by the possibility of making a difference in the Bronx. For Catala, the decision to join the Stadium project was easy. "I wanted to be part of something that ultimately the community will benefit from," he said recently.

For Catala, the issue of recruiting local workers for the Stadium construction project has underscored some of the challenges he has seen over the course of his career in public service. In a borough where unemployment had been chronic, a project like the new Yankee Stadium can change lives.

"This isn't a one-shot deal," Catala says of getting local residents working on the Stadium project. Catala has funeled a number of local non-union workers into various construction training and apprenticeship programs.

Catala is confident that his community efforts directly related to the new stadium project will promote job opportunities for the local community.

After nearly a century, the Yankees broke ground on a new home
The weather couldn't have been better for baseball. The sun was shining and the temperature was mild. Of course, there weren't any bats to swing or balls to throw; this was about the future. On August 16, 2006, the New York Yankees broke ground on what will be America's most attractive and state-of the-art baseball stadium. More than 50,000 seats, modern concessions, and accessibility for disabled fans will be just some of the many features fans can expect to see when they come to watch the Bronx Bombers open the 2009 baseball season.

Yet, Yankee fans aren't the only ones who will benefit from the New Stadium. Local Bronx residents and business are important partners in the construction of our new home. The Yankees have committed to specific contracting and employment targets for local Bronx businesses and workers. That's why so many of our local elected officials -including New York Gov. George Pataki, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion Jr. and U.S. Rep. Jose Serrano--joined us to celebrate the beginning of a new chapter in the history of the Bronx and the New York Yankees.

"This new Yankee Stadium," said Bloomberg, "will honor this franchise's brilliant past while creating a new home field worthy of the greatest team in professional sports."

We couldn't have said it any better.


For Fans With Disabilities, New Stadium Will Be A Grand Slam
When Yankee Stadium opened in 1923, Warren Harding was the President of the United States, kids were dancing the Charleston, and Babe Ruth was settling into Yankees pinstripes. The architects for the project wanted to create an impressive Stadium that would hold nearly 60,000 fans and turn the Bronx into a baseball Mecca. For all of the beautiful design elements of the original Stadium, and there were many, one thing that was not a concern for the architects was making the Stadium accessible for fans with disabilities.

Over the years, the New York Yankees have worked diligently to accommodate fans by constructing accessible bathrooms and seating for wheelchair-bound fans. These efforts have improved the game experience for fans with disabilities.

When the Yankees ring in Opening Day 2009, the new Yankee Stadium will be a model of accessibility. Construction of the new Yankee Stadium is taking place under the rules set by Title 3 of the Americans with Disabilities Act. These rules require that any public building must make accommodations for persons with disabilities. For the Yankees, accommodating fans with disabilities in the new stadium has been a collaborative process. Working with the United Spinal Association's Accessibility Services group, the Yankees have conducted regular meetings with fans with disabilities and advocates to discuss ways in which the new Stadium can be accessible to all fans. Indeed participants at these meetings have raised issues ranging from improved signage for fans with visual impairments to identifying workable sites where fans with disabilities can be picked-up or dropped-off safely and conveniently.

The New York Yankees want all fans to feel at home at the new ballpark. Improved wheelchair seating, accessible family toilet rooms, electric outlets at select wheelchair seating sections (for fans who are required to travel with health-related equipment) and captioning boards will deliver information relayed through the public address system to fans who are deaf or hard of hearing are a few of the features the new Stadium will have. Each of these innovations will create an enhanced game experience for fans with disabilities.

Working together with designers and fans with disabilities, the New York Yankees are doing their part to make sure the new ballpark is enjoyed by all.

With Plans Approved, Construction is Underway
After securing approval for its building plans from various city, state and federal agencies, the New York Yankees began construction on their new state-of-the-art stadium in August. Construction has proceeded as planned and many of the first steps toward building the ballpark are at or near completion. Excavation for the foundation of the stadium is 95% complete. Approximately 1,500 driven piles have been driven home and 250 drilled piles have been drilled home, which represents some 80 percent of the project's pile work. The foundation's concrete work, which follows the driven and drilled piles, has begun. In total, 5% of the foundation work has already been completed.

In addition, the concrete retaining wall at 161st Street is complete. The site trailers, to be located on the corner of 164th Street and River Avenue have been installed.

The New York Yankees are Hiring!
Whether on the field or off, the New York Yankees are always looking for great talent. If you have the skills and determination to help us build the new Yankee Stadium, we want to meet you.

Stop by the new Stadium project trailer to pick up an application for employment and vendor applications. Please bring copies of union books, résumé, Photo ID and any training certificates. Applications are available for pickup and drop-off at the new Stadium Project trailer. The Yankee Stadium project office entrance is located at 20 East 161st Street, Bronx, NY 10451 (at the corner of 164th Street and River Avenue). The office is open from 10am to 2pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and from 2pm to 6pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

For additional information about this opportunity, call (718) 538-4370.

Local Vendors and Workers on the job at New Stadium
Building a new, state-of-the-art stadium requires an army of talented and experienced professionals to provide supplies and complete often-complicated building tasks. Whether it's supplying steel girders or operating a front-loader or a crane, building the new Yankee Stadium requires that we work with the best and the brightest in New York's construction business. Luckily for the New York Yankees, the Bronx is home to many of the city's most accomplished construction companies and suppliers as well as many special skills workers with experience constructing large, complex structures. As part of the New York Yankees commitment to ensure that the stadium project creates economic opportunities in the Bronx, we have made a concerted effort to recruit a wide range of vendors and employees from the area. Of the 44 vending contracts awarded thus far, 17 have been awarded to Bronx-based businesses. This is well above our goal of having 25 percent of our vendors from the Bronx. When it comes to employing local Bronx residents, we have also enjoyed greater success than we ever imagined. Of the 122 workers hired to date, 35 are Bronx residents. We are especially pleased since workforce needs during the first phase of construction include workers mainly with specialty skills including welders, operating engineers and Back Hole operators. On Dec. 13, 2006 the New York Yankees teamed up with the Bronx Chamber of Commerce, Tishman Speyer, and Turner Construction to host a forum at the Hutchinson Metro Center to identify and register qualified Bronx based vendors to assist in the construction of the new Yankee Stadium. A total of 73 local vendors registered at the event, and upon completion of the application process, they will be eligible to bid on contracts related to the new stadium.

For One Vendor, Stadium Means Business
For fifteen years, Paul Moore worked financing real estate developments throughout New York City. After learning the business and recognizing the ample risks and rewards, he decided to strike out on his own. Armed with a degree in real estate financing from NYU, he launched his own general contracting company, MDG Builders LLC in 2001.

After the terrorist attacks against the World Trade Center, the construction business in New York sagged but Paul Moore was undeterred. He had the experience and the skills to weather the lows and had a plan to succeed.

"I just thought 'let me take a chance,'" he said recently.

His bet has paid off and less than six years later he is one of the first contractors hired by the New York Yankees to build the new Yankee Stadium. Working through the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation, Moore earned a spot as a subcontractor to Turner Construction, which manages the construction process for the Yankees. "They have really been great," Moore says of the BOEDC and Turner. "They have been very pleasant to work with."

Beginning in August, MDG constructed the site fence and scaffolding around the construction zone. Depending on the day's plan, between 15 and 20 workers make their way to the stadium to work for Moore. The project ended in mid-November, but Moore has already submitted another bid to handle the waterproofing, caulking and roofing work that should begin in the near future. The opportunities, it seems, are endless. "People don't realize how huge this project is," Moore says.

Moore also knows what the new stadium means for the people of the Bronx. A resident of the West Bronx and a life-long Yankees fan, Moore has seen how a construction project like this can help build businesses. "This contract is a huge deal for us."