Authors

Jordan Vardon

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2010

Keywords

Urban planning, land use, development, sports, professional sports, Baltimore Colts, Baltimore Orioles, baseball, stadiums, Baltimore, Maryland legal history

Abstract

Buildings, like people, have lives all their own. They have beginnings, middles, ends, and even good and bad years. This project is a study of a building known by many names, including Venable Park, Mud Stadium, The Great White Elephant of 33rd St., The Old Gray Lady, and the World’s Largest Outdoor Insane Asylum, although for most of its life it was officially referred to as Memorial Stadium, located in Baltimore, Maryland.

The story of Memorial Stadium is really the story of those in the community that surround it. As the use and popularity of the Stadium grew, so too did the annoyances associated with living near the 20th century Baltimore landmark. Memorial Stadium would become and is most known as the home of both the professional baseball and football teams of Baltimore, the Orioles and the Colts. However, before professional sports teams labored under the lights of the Old Gray Lady, the Stadium was home to some of the most important collegiate football games in the United States, and used as a gathering place for community events and symphonic concerts.

This shift in use from civic-based events and the occasional college football game, to almost exclusive professional sports use spurned consternation and complaints from those that called the surrounding neighborhood home….

Disciplines

Land Use Law | Law | Legal History

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