City: Atlanta, GA

Category: Spectator Sports

Telephone: (404) 522-7630

Address: 755 Hank Aaron Dr.

Description: New definitely means better in talking about the home of the Atlanta Braves. Many baseball boosters complained bitterly about their old home, Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, which converted to suit the needs of both baseball and football but put an unnatural distance between fans and the field. But Turner Field, once the 1996 Olympics and the Paralympics Stadium, underwent sweeping renovations that transformed it to suit the needs of the Braves. Forty-one percent of the Olympic Stadium’s 85,000 seats were eliminated; the Olympic track went to Clark Atlanta University, where it still gets a good workout; and leftover construction materials are now supporting the bleachers at a local high school. The remodeled stadium seats 49,831 fans in an environment designed exclusively for baseball. The wonderful thing, for Atlanta taxpayers anyway, is that Turner Field, as a whopping $242.5 million project, was financed partly by money provided for the 1996 Olympics and partly by the Braves themselves. The team added $35.5 million to the reconstruction budget and got a few perks for doing so: The Braves locker room includes an artificial turf putting green so that ace pitchers, who love to play golf, get in some below-the-knee swings when they are in the mood. Turner Field, named for media mogul and Braves owner Ted Turner, combines revered baseball traditions with the latest in modern amenities. The stadium features steel trusses and an arched masonry facade of red brick with a precast stone base. Elevators, stairs, escalators, and ramps throughout the park provide state-of-the-art vertical circulation among the ballpark’s three levels. The stadium’s color scheme features the Braves’ team colors of red, white, and blue, along with dark green accents, again evoking the appearance of an older, more traditional ballpark. The stadium’s lower level seats 27,663, including 3,500 in a bleacher section. The second, or club, level holds 5,372 seats, in addition to 58 private suites and 3 party suites. The club level is an enclosed, climate-controlled concourse with four food courts and a stadium club restaurant and bar. The upper level seats 15,608. The stadium is near Downtown, just south of where I-20 and I-75/I-85 intersect. Dominating the view above right field is Coca-Cola’s Sky Field, towered over by a giant flashing Coke bottle (the original bottle constructed from baseball gear was retired in 2009). There, kids can test their speed running the distance from a mock-up home plate to first base, while their parents wait for a home run to sail the 500-plus feet into the area. The person who catches it can win $1 million. The sky explodes with fireworks after each Braves victory, so don’t leave early to beat the traffic. The 755 Club on the club level, a restaurant overlooking left field, is open only during games for lunch and dinner and only to members and guests of the club. It’s also available for banquets and functions year round. Call (404) 614-2100 for reservations. Private luxury suites are also available for rental. Call (404) 577-9100 for information. A Boston firm designed the entertainment complex that is meant to bring in the crowds much earlier than the start of a Braves game—the goal being to not only get folks to spend money but also to develop a new generation of baseball fans who can play interactive games, visit a museum about baseball, enjoy murals of some of the Braves heroes, and party in the huge plaza at the main gates. At Turner Field, which is called a “baseball theme park,” you get to play as well as watch: There are batting games, electronic kiosks to check out the Braves Internet home page, TVs in the team store that show other major-league games in action, and an air-conditioned kids’ corner called Tooner Field. You can select from a vast variety of foodstuffs vended by more counters than you’ll find at the local mall. The Braves Museum, which is run by the Atlanta History Center, features memorabilia and interesting tidbits about the team and players as well as the old railroad car used by the Boston and Milwaukee Braves during the ’50s. Hank Aaron’s bat and ball are there, too. The museum ticket costs $5 on nongame days and $2 on game days. It is open 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. when the Braves are playing night or away games. Call (404) 614-2311 for specifics. A behind-the-scenes tour of Turner Field includes the dugout, broadcast booths, press boxes, and suites, even the Atlanta Braves clubhouse. You can play some of the interactive games that line the breezeways and test your baseball skills. The tour is $12 for adults, $7 for children, and toddlers younger than 3 go free. When the team’s in town, tours are given only in the mornings from 9 a.m. to noon. You can take a picnic lunch with you, by the way. It’s best to call ahead, since hours depend on the team schedule. Call (404) 614-2311 for specifics. Turner Field is the Braves’ second home in Atlanta. In 1997, the Braves said good-bye to Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, their home of 31 years and at one time the pride of Atlanta and the South. It was the site of countless Braves memories, including Hank Aaron’s record-breaking 715th home run, the team’s first world championship, and three other World Series. It also was home to the National Football League’s Atlanta Falcons, hosted a 1965 Beatles concert, and was the site of countless other musical events and tractor pulls. The stadium was demolished by implosion and fell like dominos on August 2, 1997. A total of about 8,700 much-needed parking spaces now occupy the former Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium site adjacent to Turner Field. Part of the old outfield wall is preserved between levels of the parking lot. The location of Aaron’s famous home run is marked with a monument, and the old field is outlined in the parking lot pavement. Tickets Patrons may buy tickets at the Braves ticket office outside the main plaza, online at the Braves’ website, or by mail: Atlanta Braves Mail Order, P.O. Box 4064, Atlanta, GA 30302-4064; include a $6 handling fee. Allow two weeks for delivery, or pick up tickets at Will Call. Tickets are $56 for dugout level, $40 for Lexus level, $35 for field and terrace levels, $20 for field pavilion and terrace pavilion, $6 for upper level, and $10 for upper pavilion. A number of Skyline tickets are sold only on game days, and they usually go quickly. You may order by phone and charge tickets through the Ticketmaster service. Call (404) 249-6400 in Atlanta; long distance, dial (800) 326-4000. Season and group tickets are available directly from the Braves: Call (404) 577-9100. If you don’t have tickets, you can watch the Braves on Peachtree TV and the SportSouth cable network (selected games only). Every game is broadcast over the 150-station Braves Radio Network; Atlanta’s flagship station is WSB-AM (750), whose clear-channel signal reaches 38 states at night. Stadium Rules Some Atlanta sports and concert venues have more rules than a religious order. In comparison, the Braves’ gate policies are positively liberal and getting more so by the moment. Criticism over the cost of concession food may have been responsible for a change in policy on fans bringing in their own chow. When the stadium opened, it was a no-no, but now it’s allowed. Upon entry, ticket-takers typically perform a cursory inspection of carry-in items, looking for obvious violations of the following rules. Fans may bring in their own food and beverages in small coolers and plastic containers only if these are small enough to fit easily under the seat or in one’s lap. No alcoholic beverages may be brought into the ballpark. Glass bottles and cans of any kind (except medicinal aerosol cans) are not allowed. Foam tomahawks are allowed and sold everywhere; real tomahawks (wooden or metal) are not. Smoking is not allowed in the stadium except in designated areas on each concourse. (Look for floor markings outlining a yellow box.) Fans may photograph or videotape the ball game, provided their equipment does not obstruct the view of other fans. However, no film or videotape may be reproduced or broadcast without the Braves’ permission. Banners can only be hung off the upper deck, they must have no commercial references, and, of course, they must be in good taste. Reselling tickets for more than their face value is a violation of Georgia law; both sellers and buyers are subject to prosecution. If the game is rained out before the end of the fifth inning, your ticket stub is good for a rain check and can be exchanged at the ticket window. And if you catch a foul ball, go to Guest Relations in the plaza and pick up a “Grandstand Fielder” certificate. Parking, MARTA, and Getting Around at the Game Parking is at a premium, and many spaces are reserved for season-ticket holders and VIPs. The lots and the main plaza open three and a half hours prior to game time (the rest of the ballpark opens two hours prior to the first pitch), and the team operates the lots and promises that flaggers will be on-site to provide security throughout the game and handle ins and outs in an orderly fashion. It costs $10 to park at these lots. There are also more than 10,000 private or illegal spaces in lots around the ballpark, but you “pays your money and takes your chances.” Your best bet is to park in one of MARTA’s many free lots and take the train to the game ($2 for one-way Breeze ticket). Ninety minutes before each game, you can get a shuttle bus from MARTA’s Five Points station on the Forsyth Street side. Ask for a transfer at the MARTA station or else you will have to pay $2 for the shuttle itself. Shuttle service begins 90 minutes before each game and continues until the ballpark is empty. The shuttle bus drops you off at the corner of Ralph David Abernathy Drive and Central Avenue and then it’s a 2-block walk east to Turner Field. The streets are always cordoned off for pedestrians, so walking is fun, especially since urban vendors line the streets hawking everything from boiled peanuts to water and kiddie T-shirts to tomahawks. If you do decide to drive yourself to the stadium, we suggest that you call ahead and find out which gate is the closest to your seat—then try to park somewhere near that gate. Otherwise, be prepared to walk the entire stadium (not so awful considering all the fun things to see and do along the way). Odd aisle numbers are along the first-base line, even ones along the third-base line. Escalators flank the ballpark, and there are ramps and elevators, too, but the stairs are easy to navigate and better than waiting for the elevators, which take a lot longer to get to you than they should considering we are only talking about three floors here. For disabled fans, the Green Lot north of Ralph David Abernathy Drive is a first-come, first-served parking lot for those with state-issued handicapped permits or plates. You can also drop off a disabled person at the stadium’s East Gate on Hank Aaron Drive (the old Capitol Avenue). All levels have wheelchair seating and companion seating on raised areas so you won’t have to worry about fans blocking your vision. Courtesy rides, restrooms, Braille signage, and TTY and TDD services are all available here. There are even phone booths, drinking fountains, and concession counters designed to enable fans who need out-of-the-ordinary services. Nevertheless, if you need more assistance, call (404) 614-1326. At every game there are more than 100 guest relations personnel to help out. The main Guest Relations window is in the plaza, and there are others on each concourse. First-aid stations are staffed by Emory University Hospital personnel and are located behind home plate on all three concourses.