Editing Rogers Centre (section)

===Background and design===
The idea of building a domed stadium can be traced back to the bid that Toronto lost to [[Montreal]] as the Canadian candidate city for the [[1976 Summer Olympics]]. In the proposal, an 80,000–100,000 seat complex would be part of the planned Harbour City development on the site of [[Maple Leaf Stadium]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Bidding for the Summer Olympics |url=https://torontoist.com/2015/07/bidding-for-the-summer-olympics/ |website=Torontoist.com |date=July 29, 2015 |access-date=June 26, 2020 |ref=Bidding for the Summer Olympics}}</ref>

The contemporary impetus for building an enclosed sports venue in Toronto came following the [[70th Grey Cup|Grey Cup]] game in November 1982, held at the outdoor [[Exhibition Stadium]]. The game, in which the hometown [[Toronto Argonauts]] (also known as the Argos) were making their first Grey Cup appearance since [[59th Grey Cup|1971]], was played in a driving rainstorm that left most of the crowd drenched, leading the media to call it "the Rain Bowl". As many of the seats were completely exposed to the elements, thousands watched the game from the concession section. To make a bad experience even worse, the washrooms overflowed. In attendance that day was [[Bill Davis]], the [[Premier of Ontario]], and the poor conditions were seen by the largest television audience in Canada (over 7.862 million viewers) to that point.<ref>[https://www.cfl.ca/index.php?module=page&id=33 Canadian Football League] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016233646/http://www.cfl.ca/index.php?module=page&id=33 |date=October 16, 2015 }}, Canada.</ref> The following day, at a rally for the Argos at [[Toronto City Hall]], tens of thousands of people who attended the game began to chant, "We want a [[dome]]! We want a dome!"<ref>{{Cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=K1JsDAAAQBAJ&q=toronto+rally+1982+we+want+a+dome&pg=PT785 | title=Paikin on Ontario's Premiers 2-Book Bundle: Bill Davis / Paikin and the Premiers| isbn=9781459738331| last1=Paikin| first1=Steve| date=October 22, 2016| publisher=Dundurn}}</ref>

Seven months later, in June 1983, Davis formally announced a three-person committee would look into the feasibility of building a domed stadium at [[Exhibition Place]]. The committee consisted of [[Paul Godfrey]], [[Larry Grossman (politician)|Larry Grossman]] and former Ontario Hydro chairman Hugh Macaulay.<ref>Miller, David (October 7, 1984). Battle Is On for Right to Build Our Domed Stadium. [[Toronto Star]]. pg A1, A13.</ref>

The committee examined various projects, including a large indoor stadium at Exhibition Place with an air-supported dome, similar to [[BC Place]] in Vancouver. In 1985, an international design competition was launched to design a new stadium, along with selection of a site. Some of the proposed sites included Exhibition Place, [[Downsview Airport]], and [[York University]]. The final site was at the base of the [[CN Tower]] not far from [[Union Station (Toronto)|Union Station]], a major railway and transit hub. The [[Railway Lands]] were a major [[Canadian National Railway]] rail switching yard encompassing the [[CNR Spadina Roundhouse]] (the desolate downtown lands were part of a master plan for revitalizing the area, which includes [[CityPlace, Toronto|CityPlace]]). Ultimately, the Robbie/Allen concept won because it provided the largest roof opening of all the finalists, and it was the most technically sound.

The stadium was designed by architect [[Rod Robbie]] and structural engineer Michael Allen and was constructed by the [[EllisDon]] Construction company of [[London, Ontario]] and the [[Dominion Bridge Company]] of Lachine, Quebec. The stadium's construction lasted about {{frac|2|1|2}} years, from October 1986 to May 1989. The approximate cost of construction was [[Canadian dollar|C$]]570&nbsp;million<ref name=cbcwinlose>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/you-win-some-you-lose-some-1.1060052|title=You win some, you lose some|date=February 9, 2011|access-date=December 27, 2013|publisher=[[CBC News]]}}</ref> (${{formatprice|{{Inflation|CA|570000000|1989}}}} in {{Inflation-year|CA}} dollars{{inflation-fn|CA}}) which was paid for by the [[Government of Canada|federal government]], [[Ontario]] [[Government of Ontario|provincial government]], the City of Toronto, and a large [[consortium]] of corporations.<ref>Romell, Rick. "Tax money for stadium site backed". Milwaukee Sentinel May 16, 1989: 1–6.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/blog/mma/post/_/id/1621/inside-the-venue-torontos-rogers-centre|title=Inside the venue: Toronto's Rogers Centre|date=April 29, 2011|access-date=December 28, 2013|publisher=[[ESPN]]}}</ref>