T.N. Ward Company: PPL Park
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et’s get one thing clear: not even Nick Sakiewicz thinks soccer is going to replace American football in the nation’s affections any time soon. But he does think there’s a new generation coming along for whom the increasing impact that American teams are having on the international game matters. He ought to know. The 49-year-old Sakiewicz started playing soccer when he was a student at New Haven University and over 10 years had a distinguished career as a goalkeeper, playing for European and American teams until an injury took him out of the game. Nick was a founding member of Major League Soccer 15 years ago. Now his company, Keystone Sport & Entertainment, runs the newest MLS team, the Philadelphia Union, and is the lead partner in the new 18,500-seat PPL Park stadium, which has risen over the last two years on a prime riverside site. This is only the ninth soccerspecific stadium to be built in the US, and it’s much more than just a place for the Union to play its home matches. For Philadelphia it’s an important addition to the social environment, raising the profile of a rather neglected part of the city of Chester. This was a largely industrial part of the town that had become run down, with many firms leaving over the last 20 years. When T.N. Ward Company broke ground in February 2008, they had no idea what kind of terrain they would be working with. “We trained every single worker in hazard assessment and groundwork best practices, and we made sure all the necessary equipment was on site to deal with any hazard we might encounter,” says Rick Bernardini.
JUNE 10 www.bus-ex.com
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