Shady Days Are Here Again

Ansin Sports Complex generates revenue and creates a premium sporting environment with bleacher shade

Located in sunny Miramar, Fla., Ansin Sports Complex is a large 24-acre state-of-the-art sports complex that is home to a Class 2 internationally certified track, community center, and other amenities. Shade manufacturer Superior Recreational Products and distributor Pro Playgrounds worked with the complex to create a custom shade for the bleacher seating.

One of the ways this facility generates revenue is by leasing the track and field space for various events. Since the core audience for most of these events are family members, this includes a variety of ages ranging from the very young to the very old—both of whom are highly susceptible to the heat in South Florida

“By creating a more comfortable environment for patrons, these shades are an additional asset that can be leveraged to entice additional booking as it helps to draw larger crowds who stay longer,” Paul A. Adrianse of Pro Playgrounds says. “The additional time the crowds spent there creates additional opportunities for on-site vendors and the like who can benefit from their extended presence.”

This part of Florida can be unbearably hot during summer months, which also coincides with when track events occur.

“The south side of this stadium in particular received a disproportionate amount of sun due to southern exposure. The bleachers as a result would become very hot, creating an uncomfortable seating environment and potentially dangerous surface temperatures on the bleachers themselves,” Adrianse says.

In order to cover the large 250-foot-long area, they chose a custom multi-hip shade that is designed so five rectangular canopies share common posts. Not only is this option the most economical, it minimizes the amount of obstructed views of the field.

“The customer is very pleased with the end result. The finished product accomplished their shade goals while creating minimum intrusion and disruption during the construction because of the intelligent design of the shade structure that took into account existing site features that needed to be avoided to create a seamless installation,” Adrianse says.