When the Minnesota Vikings’ new stadium opens in July 2016, fans probably will not be thinking about the ground below them and the players.  The stadium, and the area around it, including Target Field (home of the Twins) and Target Center (home of the Timberwolves), present a unique challenge to construction: the ground is filled with ancient riverbeds and valleys formed by the glaciers 12,000 years ago.

Braun Intertec geotechnical engineers and Mortenson Construction team up to tackle the unique underground terrain to construct the newest professional stadium in the Twin Cities.

Target Field was built on a riverbed that is bigger and wider than the Mississippi River, according to vice president of Mortenson Construction, Dan Mehls.  Builders had to drive thousands of big pipes into the ground to support the outdoor stadium.  The field itself sits on more than 4,000 pipe piles, 10-inch diameter pipes that are driven over 100 feet into the ground.

The unique infrastructure was first discovered in 1904.  It occupies an entire city block, just 80 feet below the city streets and; in the 1920s, the city built pillars to hold up the ceiling.  To learn more about the stadium’s construction, visit the Mortenson Contruction website: https://www.mortenson.com/sports/projects/mn-stadium.

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