Starfire Sports Complex

Former names	Fort Dent Park Starfire Sporting Complex
Location	6840 Fort Dent Way Tukwila, WA, 98188
Broke ground	June 20, 2003
Opened	April 23, 2005
Owner	Starfire Sports
Operator	Starfire Sports
Surface	4 Grass fields, 4 outdoor FieldTurf fields (inc. stadium) 2 indoor FieldTurf fields
Architect	HOK Sport
Capacity	2,000 (at main stadium)
Tenants
Seattle Sounders (USL-1) (2002-2008) Seattle Sounders Women (W-League) (2003-Present) FK Pacific (PCSL) (2003-Present) Hibernian & Caledonian (PCSL) (2004-Present)

Stadium field at Starfire Sports Complex

Starfire Sports Complex is a sporting facility in Tukwila, Washington, on the banks of the Green River, near Seattle. It is operated by the non-profit corporation Starfire Sports. At the time of its opening, CEO Chris Slatt believed it to be "the largest synthetic-turf soccer complex in the U.S."^[1]

Starfire features fields for softball, soccer, and occasionally rugby union games, as well as a 2,000-seat soccer stadium previously used by the USL Seattle Sounders and now used by the MLS Seattle Sounders F.C. for US Open Cup matches (and the home pitch of the Sounders Women^[2]). It is also the home of Hibernian and Caledonian F.C. of the Pacific Coast Soccer League. Additionally the complex hosts the annual All Nations Cup. The stadium field in 2004 became only the eighth American artificial-surface pitch to earn "recommended" status by FIFA and is thereby sanctioned for international play^[3].

The complex has an Indoor facility which has two indoor soccer FieldTurf fields. It also hosts the administration offices as well as Mad Pizza restaurant. They also provide a game room for the children.

[edit] History

The site was formerly Fort Dent Park, operated by King County. In addition to the existing grass soccer and softball fields, the park included a cricket pitch in the area now occupied by artificial-surface soccer fields^[4]. Severe budget cuts in 2002 led the county to schedule the closing of this park, among others, at the end of the year; however, the parks that were located within municipal boundaries were offered to the respective cities^[5]. That offer sparked the formation of Starfire Sports by Slatt, Steve Beck and Mark Bickham, who negotiated a 40-year lease with the city of Tukwila to allow them to build and operate the complex^[1]. This would relieve the city of an estimated $500,000 in annual maintenance costs which would likely have caused it to refuse the county’s offer had Starfire not stepped in^[4]. Starfire plans to cover operating and maintenance costs through user fees and advertising banners and hopes to retire the $10,000,000 construction costs over the course of several years^[6].

New construction included four lighted outdoor soccer fields with FieldTurf, including the stadium with its 2000-seat grandstand, along with the indoor facility.

Beginning in summer 2004, English Premier League powerhouse Manchester United offered training at Starfire as part of their Soccer Schools program. This came to an end in December 2007^[7].

The city of Tukwila still maintains a wooded part of the 54-acre (220,000 m²) site as a public park^[8].

[edit] References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Tukwila soccer fields to be ready late next month", Seattle Times, Oct. 22, 2003
2. ^ Seattle Sounders Women at starfiresports.com
3. ^ "Starfire Sports receives FIFA nod", Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Sept. 29, 2004
4. ^ ^{a b} "Cricket team makes a pitch to save the pitch", Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Apr. 11, 2003
5. ^ "Pssst, cities: Want to take over a park that's run by King County?", Seattle Times,Mar. 29, 2002
6. ^ "Doomed park gets a new lease; local soccer gets much-needed kick", Seattle Times, July 22, 2004
7. ^ Starfire Sports :|: training
8. ^ "Fort Dent has new stewards", Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Oct. 11, 2003

[edit] External links

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Coordinates: 47°28′11.11″N 122°14′54″W / 47.4697528°N 122.24833°W / 47.4697528; -122.24833