Coors Field Press Box Rehab
A view of the Coors Field press box from the lower seating section
Coors Field in downtown Denver is home to the Colorado Rockies ball club, their fans, and the press that reports on each game. Between the 2021 and 2022 Major League Baseball seasons, our team worked against the calendar to deliver a unique solution to the existing operable window system to transform the PNC Press Club.
A view of the Coors Field press box from the empty seating section below
a view of the new Renlita counterbalanced glass doors for the Coors Field press box
We all have projects that stand out for us personally and collectively. Construction on Coors Field began in 1992, and the stadium opened on April 26, 1995. But it wasn’t until the fall of 2021 that glazier LW Facades brought our team to troubleshoot the unique situation of “opening” the press box at Coors Field – in less than six months
The Challenge. Long known as the “pitcher’s graveyard,” the mile-high altitude at Coors Field, combined with the thin, dry air, allows the ball to travel farther, making it easier to hit a home run – just one of the challenges of fielding a game here in Denver. As it turns out, that wasn’t the only challenge to overcome in this elevated space. Our team learned that first-hand as they designed, engineered, and installed a clever retrofit solution using counterbalanced glass doors on the facade of the press box.
Located on the Club Level of the stadium, cantilevered above the Infield Box seats, the Press Box sports a panoramic field view. Since its opening in April 1995, press members have used this plexiglass-clad space to view and report on the games. To open the plexiglass panes, someone had to secure each panel individually to a battery of carabiners affixed to the drop ceiling. This method of opening the pressroom proved clumsy and labor-intensive over time. Enter elegant counterweight-balanced Renlita.
IN NEED OF OVERHAUL. Demonstrating how to manually open the plexiglass windows, clipping them individually to the carabiners attached to the drop ceiling.
The Solution. By mid-November, Keith Lunsford, Renlita Product Director for Powers, assessed the openings and collaborated with our Operations team to create a plan to meet the application needs and project timeline constraints. Of particular focus was access to the cantilevered balcony with the large 25-foot by 6-foot motorized, vertically pivoting doors given the unique location and geometry of the Rockie’s press box. By the first week of December, Lunsford had a plan and concept drawings from Renlita for five Renlita S1000 counterbalanced glass doors to retrofit the space.
The single-panel S1000 provided the perfect solution for this application. As a jamb-supported system, it did not require any additional structural support. In addition, the single-panel system provided sightline-matching mullions, minimized the amount of headroom taken up when pivoted into the open position, and the counterweight assemblies were customized to operate from a remote location to maximize the clear opening widths.
FRESHLY INSTALLED Renlita S1000 counterweighted door, one of five, opens out over the Infield Box seats of Coors Field. 
THE FACETED CONCAVE GEOMETRY of the Colorado Rockies Press Box presented unique challenges for the design and installation of the Renlita door systems.
Timeline. Our team entered the project in early November 2021, with the caveat that the entire project, including the supporting trades, must be completed by April 4, Opening Day. Game on!
By January 14, we had Renlita’s submittal drawings and followed up with architectural drawings for the permit later that month. Things moved rapidly from that point, and we were able to finalize field dimensions and release the doors into production on February 7. By March 23, the custom doors were on site and ready for the precarious installation process, with the first home game 16 days away.
With the countdown to opening day ticking down, our outstanding installation team hoisted the Renlita product into place and created columns to remotely house the massive counterweights on the interior of the press box. With the doors operating beautifully and the final trim in place, the project wrapped up just in time for the opening pitch of the 2022 Rockies season.
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