A piece of Canadian football history went out with a bang in Regina on Friday.
The last standing section of the Mosaic Stadium, home to the Saskatchewan Roughriders for 80 years, was demolished as hundreds of football fans dressed in the team’s green jerseys watched on in a mix of nostalgia and sorrow.
The area is being converted to a mixed-use development. The City of Regina paid just over $2 million for the facility’s deconstruction.
Many fans gathered behind a security fence, while others perched on nearby rooftops to watch the west side grandstands of the stadium topple.
Mosaic Stadium at Taylor Field served as the home to the Saskatchewan Roughriders from 1936-2016. (Not to be confused with the Ottawa Rough Riders, a CFL team that left the game in the 1990s.)
The Roughriders opened the 2017 season in a new $278-million facility, also named Mosaic Stadium. The facility has a capacity of 33,000 but can be expanded to 40,000 for major events.
Fans shared memories of the stadium and photos of the dramatic demolition on Twitter.
#TaylorField #YQR pic.twitter.com/92aHmhaYJg
— Tim Assié (@timassie) October 27, 2017
And its down. #taylorfield #stadium #regina history. pic.twitter.com/1lhR4dG7To
— Sherri Grant (@GrantSherri) October 27, 2017
Knowing that Taylor Field is going down today... it's really hit me harder than I thought. Miss that place #MosaicMemories pic.twitter.com/lAWnRQsyRS
— Adrian DeCorby (@decorbs) October 27, 2017
Watching the live stream demolition of Taylor Field. Really just thinking about my dad. End of an era. It really is goodbye. #Riders
— Ranelle (@RanelleC) October 27, 2017
Rooftops filled to watch Taylor Field collapse pic.twitter.com/KWNevdN10f
— Angie (@whatz_wrong) October 27, 2017
