Megha Parekh speaks ad lib and is all revved up while talking about the National Football League (NFL) team Jacksonville Jaguars (US) where she holds a top-notch post.
As bubbling with joy she said, “I am really excited to talk about our project in Jacksonville. I have been with the Jaguars now since 2013 and I am a lawyer by trade. We are currently underway in construction on the new stadium of the Jaguars and it is scheduled to open in August of 2028.”
Megha Parekh is the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Executive Vice-President and Chief Legal Officer. She is in her 11th year with the organization. Parekh manages the legal, technology, security, and capital improvements at the Jaguars.
In an exclusive for ‘Coliseum’, Megha Parekh, EVP & Chief Legal Officer, Jacksonville Jaguars, US, shares that the Jacksonville Jaguars home ground – the EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida (US) sits on the St Johns River and 10 acres of land in downtown Jacksonville and is a sight to behold. She also pointed out that for the Jaguars the fans’ needs is foremost and for the ‘Stadium of the Future’ the fans wanted a shade which they are constructing on a big level. The Jaguars are totally cock-a-hoop about their remodeled venue.
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida (US). The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference South Division. The team plays its home games at the 67,838-capacity EverBank Stadium.
‘Stadium of the Future’
The Jaguars’ ‘Stadium of the Future’ is a $1.4 billion renovation of the EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville designed to be a state-of-the-art, year-round sports and entertainment venue. The key features include a transparent, climate-controlled canopy, expanded capacity up to 71,500 and various technology upgrades. The project aims to transform the existing stadium into a modern facility with completion expected for the 2028 season.
Megha Parekh began by stating, “The EverBank Stadium boasts the world’s largest outdoor videoboard. It lights up part of downtown during our night games. And we now have a 6,000-seat amphitheater that’s just off of the stadium across the part that’s right on the water. So, essentially the stadium and the amphitheater are like one big space where you can hold music festivals and other events.”
Fans First
She added, “We are not renovating the EverBank Stadium but we are remodeling it and it has its share of challenges. And since 2020 we did the structural study to see if it was possible to do even a substantial renovation and it was. So, that was Step One. Step 2 became okay we need to interview the various stakeholders that are coming here to figure out what is that the people actually want. As you are talking to the fans and we did a survey of our fan base what we found is that they wanted a handful of things – Firstly, more vertical transportation – easy enough and fair make sense. Secondly, varied food and beverage (F&B) offerings which also makes sense. The No 1 thing that the fans wanted – shade. So, as you are evaluating the design of the stadium and looking at the amphitheater that we have built, also an open-air amphitheater, the structural seal on the roof is designed to match the undulations of the river. And, so we did a design competition and with that we got feedback from a handful of different architecture firms and what they found is that they could design an enclosure around the stadium that’s open-air that does have an organic shape that matches the river and all the other natural beauty that’s in Jacksonville but really modernizes it and brings our fans to the shade.”
Wrap-up
She proudly summed up by stating, “What we now have is – a training facility that is just North-West of the stadium which opened in the Summer of 2023, a Four Seasons hotel going up across the street that should open up in 2026. The main feature will really be the enclosure which maximizes passive inhalation, allow you really pretty views of downtown – the bridges, the riverfront and hopefully a catalyst of further expand development on the entertainment complex and you have a multiuse district that is now activated year-round. We are in the business of making memories and that’s what we realize so much on the designers and the construction teams to help us because we are making them memorable.”
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