City releases details of agreement with Tulane Stadium

A rendering of the Tulane Stadium released in September. (UptownMessenger.com file image)

Mayor Mitch Landrieu released the details of the agreement his office has reached with Tulane governing the use of the university’s proposed stadium on Friday, drawing swift reaction from neighborhood groups that it is still too lenient.

The full agreement can be viewed at the city website, but some highlights include:

Operations: The stadium can used for a variety of Tulane events — including Crawfest and commencement — but not for rock concerts, monster truck shows, boat shows, or more than one high school football game per week. The stadium must cease operations at 10:30 p.m. on weekdays, and at predefined intervals after weekend events. Tulane has reserved a number of nearby parking lots for major events, and parking passes will be assigned during ticket sales.

Design: The wall along Audubon Boulevard will be 36 feet tall. The sound system has been designed to direct all sound inward, with quieter concrete-base bleachers, and the stadium will have three levels of adjustable lighting, depending on the activities at the time.

Enforcement: There are a variety of fines, ranging from $500 to $5,000, if Tulane breaks specific aspects of the agreement.

A response drafted by leaders of eight different neighborhood groups around Audubon Boulevard, Carrollton and the Fontainebleau areas argues that the agreement still leaves Tulane with too much leeway with stadium operations. Among their complaints:

• There are too many non-football major events, and the threshold for activating the parking plan is too low.
• There is no limit on crowd noise, and no specific limitation on when the lighting must be turned off.
• The litter plan is insufficient for the expected crowds.
• Tulane has too much leeway to change the agreement later, and the fines won’t deter the university from breaking the agreement when it wants to.