Stadium construction reaches new phase

SANTA CLARA -- The 49ers will not have any practices at the team's facility open to the general public this summer . . . or next year, for that matter.The reason is because of activity and lost space due to the ongoing construction of the stadium near the 49ers' complex. The only open practice of training camp this summer will take place Aug. 12 at Candlestick Park. (Adult tickets are 5 with children 12 and under admitted free.)Stadium construction, which began in mid-April, is 10-percent complete, team officials say. The stadium is on schedule to open for the 2014 season. Once the 49ers' new stadium is operational, the club could hold several open practices there during training camp every summer.
On Monday, the construction reached a new milestone with the beginning of the installation of the steel beams -- the skeleton of the stadium. Four cranes that reach 338 feet at full height can lift 20,000 pounds at one time, the equivalent of five cars.The first 3 12 months of work on the stadium was focused on work under the ground, including 3,000 foundation piles at an average depth of 55 feet. More than 50 miles of pipe have been laid underground. And 17,000 cubic yards of concrete have been poured -- the equivalent to foundation slabs for 340 homes of 2,000 square feet.General manager Trent Baalke said the 49ers have lost 1.5 acres of land at the team's practice facility due to the construction of new access roads from the rear of the 49ers' training facility. Also, the 49ers are building a 12,000-square foot training facility at 1.7 million, which will serve as an outdoor weight room alongside the practice fields. The new workout room is expected to be completed in September.