Mercedes-Benz Stadium roof opens for first time

via 11 Alive

Mercedes-Benz Stadium reached a big milestone on Thursday when the roof mechanism opened for the first time. The video seen here shows the roof’s eight panels in the open position after testing.

Here’s what the roof is supposed to look like upon completion:

However, there’s still much work to be done according to Arthur Blank. He tells 11 Alive that they have thousands of personnel working around the clock to get the stadium operable by the new August 26 deadline.

"They have to complete the process, having the pedals extended on, put the tips on, make sure it operates properly with the open position, do the same thing in the closed position. There are two different positions that have to meet (certificate of occupancy) requirements. We've got a couple of thousand men and women that are dedicated working 24/7, literally 24/7 in making that happen." — Arthur Blank; Source: 11 Alive

Obviously Atlanta United fans were bitterly disappointed when it was announced earlier this week that MBS had been delayed yet again. Blank says he shared in the disappointment that United’s schedule couldn’t be accommodated as hoped.

"You're always a little disappointed. But you have to look at these things in the grand scheme of the stadium. The complexity of it, the details of it, everything it takes to complete it and complete it properly, make sure that it's represents the very best of everything we had planned on," he said. "You don't want to open up something sooner than you should and have a lot of disappointments rather than open it up a month, two months, three months later and make sure everything's operating the way it exactly it should operate."

Progress seems to be happening after months and months of staring at cranes inside the stadium. We can only hope that the rest of the construction goes off without anymore hiccups and there are no more delays.