Dorton Arena - Pushing the Limits: New Adventures in Engineering - page 90

land of the engineer, are there so few frank expressions of integrated engineering that create dra-
matic architecture?” It was certainly a valid question then, and it remains a valid one now.
Dramatic architecture, like dramatic engineering, begins with a creative idea for solving an old
problem in a new way. There were plenty of unimaginative livestock-judging arenas located in state
fairgrounds around the country, and there were numerous covered riding arenas and sports stadi-
ums that could have served as models for what was needed in Raleigh. Duke University's Cameron
Indoor Stadium, fewer than twenty miles away in Durham, was just one example right in the area.
Indeed, many architectural and engineering problems are solved by adapting existing solutions with
minor modifications, often without regard to the unique needs or opportunities of a new site. Mat-
thew Nowicki, by thinking about the problem anew, perhaps using his European experience and
training to reach beyond examples to principles, was able to rise to the occasion and propose a truly
imaginative scheme. And his inspiration was well served by Stanislawa Nowicki, his widow and
collaborator; his friend William Deitrick, the architect; and his friend Fred Severud, the engineer.
With the blessing of J. S. Dorton, representing the client, and the sympathetic construction skills
of William Muirhead, the contractor, Nowicki's dream was realized. The formula for dramatic en-
gineering and architectural achievement is on one level simple, then: Just recognize a brilliant idea
when it occurs, and preserve it through the long and arduous process of making it a reality.
When it opened, the fairgrounds pavilion that was built “to serve agriculture, industry, and com-
merce” was officially and unpretentiously named the State Fair Arena. Unofficially and unappreci-
atively, it was referred to as the Cow Palace. While under construction, it had been called “a flying
saucer anchored to a glass platform” and shortly after its opening a “parabolic pavilion.” But from
the start it was also recognized among professional architects and engineers as “the most important
building in America today.”
In 1961, at the opening ceremonies of that year's fair, the building was renamed the J. S. Dorton
Arena, in recognition of the longtime manager of the North Carolina State Fair, who had recently
died. The building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976, a considerable
honor for a structure barely a quarter century old. In 2002, just as it reached the half-century mark,
it was named by the American Society of Civil Engineers as a National Historic Civil Engineering
Landmark, a distinction that cannot be applied to anything less than fifty years old. A plaque de-
claring the structure's landmark status was unveiled at the opening day of the 2002 fair.
No matter how much recognition the Dorton Arena has received, it continues to function as a
state fairgrounds building. The fair can occupy the arena only a couple of weeks a year, however,
and so the building is available to rent the rest of the time—at a cost of $1,400 per day or 10 percent
of the gross ticket sales, whichever is greater. Among the high-profile events that the arena has
hosted have been comedy shows and rock concerts. It has also been the site of farm shows, home
shows, ice-hockey games, basketball games, high-school proms, wrestling matches, and circuses.
In spite of its humble beginnings and unpretentious uses, the Dorton Arena remains “a familiar
architectural landmark, studied and hailed as a masterfully unique design, nationally and interna-
tionally.” Unfortunately, getting my visitor to the airport to catch his return flight did not allow us
to go to Raleigh to view the structure. He went back to Chicago not having seen one of the most
significant engineering and architectural structures in the Research Triangle area and in the world.