[EDITOR'S NOTE: This release is directly from the Giants]
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – The Giants have begun relocating to a new home for the first time in 32 years.
After reporting to work in Giants Stadium every day since 1977, following the October 1976 opening of the building, the organization is moving to its new office and training facility, located just west of the stadium. The state-of-the-art, 199,000 square foot complex, sits on a 20-acre campus and will provide players, coaches and staff with a state-of-the-art learning, practice and working environment.
The Giants are not abandoning Giants Stadium entirely; they will play their home games there this year before moving in 2010 to the new stadium being built next door. But by the end of this month, the team will conduct its daily business from its beautiful new home.
"Our Giants Stadium offices have served as a great home for our organization since 1977,” said team President and CEO John Mara, “and we appreciate the cooperation and treatment we continue to receive from the NJSEA as the first tenant of the stadium. We have talked for years about having our own training facility, and it is now a reality. (Giants Chairman) Steve (Tisch) and I believe our players and coaches and staff deserve a facility like this, and it should be a source of pride for all of us, as well as our fans.”
The first group to make the move to the new facility is, appropriately, the football group, consisting of the players and coaches, as well as the training, equipment and video staffs. Over the course of the next 2-3 weeks, the remainder of the organization, including ownership and Jerry Reese and his player personnel staff, will move into its new digs.
For the players and coaches, the move means significant upgrades in several areas, from a new 4,535-square-foot football shaped locker room, a 7,500-square-foot weight room and nine meeting rooms. The auditorium is approximately 2,500 square feet with 132 seats equipped with everything needed for a team meeting to a press conference and to even a movie night. Seventy-five large-screen television monitors throughout the building support all Giants coaching video functions as well as the club’s business interests.
“I am sitting in my office and looking out over the most magnificent practice fields I think I have ever seen,” said Head Coach Tom Coughlin. “We have had a great first day in this facility. I came in by the weight room this morning, and it was my first opportunity to see it set up. (Strength and conditioning coaches) Jerry Palmieri and Markus Paul stayed until 10:30 on Friday night to get it set up. The rookies are back in today, along with the veterans, and the players are genuinely excited about their new surroundings and facilities, and we’re excited about the new facility. We’re feeling our way through right now, but we’ll be up and running at full-speed before long.”
The two-story main building is state-of-the-art in every way, from the rehabilitation pools in the training room to fully-integrated video equipment in every meeting room and coach’s office.
The complex also includes four full-length fields; three natural grass full-length fields, one FieldTurf synthetic field in the field house, and one 80-yard FieldTurf outdoor synthetic field.
Designed by architectural and design firm EwingCole and constructed by Joseph A. Natoli Construction Corporation, the Giants training complex will serve as the home for the entire Giants organization (except the ticket office) and is equipped with conference rooms, work space and state-of-the-art technology to create an efficient and friendly work environment.
The Giants training facility by the numbers:
- Is 103,000 square feet.
- The field house is approximately 93,000 square feet.
- The complex sits on 20 acres of land.
- 4 full practice fields.
- 3 full grass practice fields.
- 1 full synthetic field in field house.
- 1 80-yard synthetic field north of field house.
- Weight room approximately 7,500 square feet.
- Locker room approximately 4,535 square feet.
- 69 lockers shaped into a large football.
- 9 player meeting rooms.
- The auditorium is approximately 2,500 square feet.
- The auditorium is equipped with 132 seats.
- The dining room is approximately 5,900 square feet.
-- Here's a video look at the new training facility.