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Retractable Roof At New Marlins Ballpark Nears Completion

LITTLE HAVANA (CBS4)- Approximately one year away from opening day in Little Havana, the new Marlins Ballpark is reaching another milestone- the installation of the last major structural piece of steel to be installed on the retractable roof.

A 'topping out' ceremony was held on Friday at 9:45 a.m. to celebrate the historic moment. According to stadium officials, the project remains on-time, on-budget and continues to exceed all of their goals.

The topping out ceremony at the Marlins Ballpark will commemorate the last major structural piece of steel of the retractable roof. The steel piece was signed by over 800 construction workers as well as Marlins executives, Miami Dade County officials and City of Miami officials.

"This is dedicated to all the people in Miami who realize what a great project this is and supported what a great project this will be for everyone," said Marlins president David Samson.

After this steel beam is installed, the remaining steel roof panels will be added prior to decking the center panel of the retractable roof. The last steel beam weighs approximately 6,845 pounds and will measure approximately 38 feet long.

"Every single beam that went up, I actually touched every single beam," said local business owner Vincent Boreland. "So basically, I got it prepared for it to be flown up in the air."

The retractable roof is composed of 11,000 pieces of steel held together by welds and over 115,240 bolts. In all, the retractable roof weighs approximately 7,500 tons.

In October of 2010, CBS4 News toured the facility as it marks its 16th month of construction. Construction officials said construction was 47 percent complete with the stadium framework in place.

"It's a big deal for us because we've had season tickets for a long time," Dean D'Gati of Bostic Steel said.

Two elevators, the baseball field and dugouts were already in place.

The ballpark will be located on the parcel of land bordered by NW 6th Street to the north, NW 4th Street to the south, NW 16th Avenue to the west and NW 14th Avenue to the east. With a capacity of approximately 37,000 spectators, the retractable roof, air-conditioned ballpark will contain 928,000 square feet on the former Orange Bowl site.

The team said a retractable-roof facility will help draw more fans during South Florida's hot and rainy summers.

The team, which won World Series titles in 1997 and 2003, will be renamed the Miami Marlins when the new stadium opens in April 2012.

The 1000-year-old topping out tradition started in Scandinavia when workers would place an evergreen tree on the highest structural element of construction as a symbol of the workers' 'respect for nature's contribution to the building process,' Marlins officials said.  The tradition continues as a sign of good faith and well wishes for the building and its inhabitants.

The traditional topping out tree will be placed on the last piece of steel at the New Marlins Ballpark.

Click here to follow the ballparks progress from a webcam that overlooks the site of the new ballpark.

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