Report: Rose Bowl Plans to Install New LED Lighting

The Rose Bowl Stadium plans to install new LED lighting by mid-2019 as part of renovations intended to attract more events in the crowded Los Angeles sports and concert market.

The Rose Bowl Operating Company (RBOC) issued a Request For Qualifications last month for the LED lighting requirement that could cost up to $2 million, with initial bids due May 23, according to the Los Angeles Business.

The lights are scheduled to be installed by August 2019. ME Engineers is leading the design, the report said.

George Cunningham, the Rose Bowl’s Chief Operating Officer, told the Journal a new request for proposal could be issued soon for a second new scoreboard. The stadium is also planning security upgrades that would ensure a smoother entry process for patrons during events, the report added.

Cunningham said the stadium is also looking at options to allow smaller events.

“We want to allow ourselves flexibility to be able to adapt to who is playing,” Cunningham told the Biz Journal. “For example, one artist might have a crowd that will prefer to stand and dance, and another is more into sitting in their seats, and another might have seating with a table to have [food and beverage] service.”

Between 2006 and 2016, the Rose Bowl went through a $183 million renovation program paid for by bonds the City sold and contributions from UCLA and the Tournament of Roses, which oversees the annual New Year’s Day Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game.

Improvements included wider wireless coverage for speedier internet and cell phone service, a new brick donor plaza, a renovated Court of Champions, new signages, and a rebuilt scoreboard at the South End.

The Rose Bowl was constructed in 1922 from plans by Myron Hunt. With a seating capacity of over 90,000, the Rose Bowl has hosted the Super Bowl five times between 1977 and 1993, and 1994 Soccer World Cup Final.