Creston grad helps launch new-age stadium

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — A Creston native had a front-row seat in the recent opening of the next generation of sports stadiums.

Levi’s Stadium, home of the San Francisco 49ers, has the latest technological advances, to the extent that patrons don’t even need cash or a credit card to enjoy their experience. All they need is the stadium’s phone app, which provides them everything from admission ticket and live video feeds, to orders for concession food delivered to their seat.

Highly involved in the unveiling of this new sports palace on the coast of California is Trent Bartling, 2001 graduate of Creston High School and son of Darrel and Jane Bartling, now of Urbandale.

Bartling left his position as assistant athletic director for ticket operations at the University of Delaware to join the San Francisco 49ers in May, just in time for the unveiling of Levi’s Stadium. He is manager of ticket operations for the stadium, which includes events besides 49ers games.

The new stadium, which has already hosted three NFL games and two major professional soccer matches, will also be the site of the California vs. Oregon football game on Oct. 24, the Pac 12 Championship football game, the San Francisco Bowl (Pac 12 vs. Big Ten) and the big one — the 50th Super Bowl on Feb. 7, 2016.

A Wrestlemania event in March 2015, with temporary seating installed, will serve as the prototype for the extra seating arrangement proposed for the Super Bowl, Bartling noted.

He is involved in preparation for all of those events in terms of ticketing and what’s referred to as “the fan experience.”

“This summer was kind of a whirlwind,” Bartling said. “I was learning the day-to-day operations. Then in mid-July things got busy quickly. We had to get all of the season tickets out, getting everything set up and ready. We have a lot of new electronic stuff. Through out app, we can scan your phone at a ticket kiosk that validates it. You can order food through the app and pay for it that way. You can pick it up through an express line since you’ve already paid, or have it delivered to your seat for a $5 service charge. You really don’t need cash or a card. It’s pretty new age stuff.”

This $1.2 billion facility 39 miles south of Candlestick Park is the stadium of the future. But for Bartling and his peers, it’s a present-day operation.

The 68,500-seat home of the 49ers opened Aug. 2. Fittingly situated near famed Silicon Valley, the nation’s technology hub, the stadium has WiFi access points under every 100 seats and 1,500 Bluetooth beacons, giving it the greatest bandwidth of any U.S. stadium.

“Getting on the Internet is a concern at many stadiums,” said Bartling, who co-founded a social media news website while living in Springfield, Mo., before joining the University of Delaware staff. He studied business at Arizona State University after playing baseball at William Penn University. He was a varsity baseball player for coach Vic Belger at Creston High School.

“Our WiFi system is very robust,” Bartling said. “That was something that was pushed from the very beginning. Fans can do a lot of things. They can live tweet during the game and it shows up on the big (video) board. It’s interactive. They have access to exclusive video replays during the game. It’s all to keep people engaged.”

The big LED screens at the stadium ends are state-of-the-art.

More than 1,000 “runners” will be on call to deliver concession items ordered through the phone app. Patrons can also access the nearest restroom or beer vendor through a GPS locator. During the game, 13 cameras stream replays through the app.

Solar energy

It’s also designed as a “green” stadium with a natural energy source on site. A four-story glass tower on the west side stacks all 176 suites in three levels. Media and team personnel fill the fourth level.

The roof includes a garden, public seating and 18,000 of Levi’s 27,000 square feet of solar panels that create enough energy to host 10 games. The “living” rooftop garden collects rain and provides insulation, while the solar panels pump electricity into the grid infrastructure.

The stadium is 44 miles south of San Francisco, making it the farthest in the NFL from the city claiming the name of the team, surpassing the Jets and Giants in MetLife Stadium located at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, N.J.

But, a light rail system connected to the city lets fans off next to the stadium, and there are 25,000 parking spots near the stadium and nearby partner facilities, including the California’s Great America amusement park. That park will be closed on game days to accommodate more parking resources.

There are also three major hotels within walking distance of the stadium.

Early move

Bartling said his offices were so new when he first arrived that he had to wear a hard hat through the construction area to get to his office.

“For the first month and a half, we were in temporary offices across the street from the stadium,” Bartling said. “They built the stadium directly across from the practice facility they’ve had for the last 19 years. So, there were a lot of team offices here. But sales and operations had to come down from Candlestick. The Ticket Office was the first to move into the new stadium, and we wore hard hats to get through. That was near the end of July.”

The first event was a Major Indoor Soccer League game on Aug. 2.

“The first couple of events, there was a learning curve because we have a lot of new electronic stuff,” Bartling said.

Jay Cutler tossed three of his four touchdown passes to Brandon Marshall and the Chicago Bears rallied for a 28-20 victory over the 49ers on Sunday night, Sept. 14, in the first regular-season game at Levi’s Stadium.

“Everything about that first Sunday night game was perfect except for the fourth quarter of the game,” Bartling said, chuckling.

Everything in the design is geared toward a positive fan experience.

“Another cool thing is how big the concourse is,” Bartling said. “The entire bowl is open, so you can still see the field. The concourse at Candlestick was 17 feet wide. Ours is 66 feet wide. It gives us some flexibility for selling standing-room only tickets as well. There are 45,000 seats in the lower level, which is also pretty unique. That’s a really good view for a majority of the 66,000, or about 70,000 when you include the suites.”

Commuters

Trent and wife Laurel (Creasy) Bartling, a native of Columbia, Mo., live in San Francisco. They both commute to the south for their jobs. Laurel is teaching kindergarten and first grade special education in San Carlos.

“She’s been a trooper through this whole thing,” Trent said. “We met in Springfield and she was going to school at Missouri State. When she finished school she came out to Delaware with me. We got married in July 2013. Where we live now, it’s definitely a bit of a drive for both of us, and we may relocate. But we thought we’d start off living in the city and check it out.”

While in Delaware, his boss, a good friend, knew he was looking for a new challenge, and encouraged him to apply for a 49ers job he’d heard about. Eight days after Bartling applied, he was hired. The team moved quickly to fill positions in preparation for its first season in a new home.

The 49ers host the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, so it’s been a busy week for Bartling As he walks on the grounds of an NFL team, Bartling sometimes pinches himself to check if he’s really working for an organization that has been the dream of many American youths, particularly during the Jerry Rice-Joe Montana Super Bowl championship years.

“It’s still surreal,” he said. “In the cafeteria, around the facility, I’ll cross paths with coaches and players. I’m just taking it all in. It’s pretty crazy. I remind myself all the time, don’t take it for granted!”