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ARLINGTON -- After crowd control issues at Sunday’s home opener, Arlington city and Dallas Cowboys officials have agreed to limit the number of fans in the stadium’s six party decks to approximately 15,000.
About 30,000 fans who bought the $29 Party Passes for the first regular season home game competed for space in the standing-room-only areas overlooking the end zones. Arlington police initially attempted to limit the number of fans entering the party deck areas but, fearing injuries, decided to remove the barricades as the crowds pushed forward to get inside.“One thing we all agree on is we will not have a repeat of Sunday,” Arlington Mayor Robert Cluck said. “None of us want any unsafe conditions in the stadium.”The city is not specifically asking the team to limit sales of the Party Passes but has recommended the Cowboys clarify what areas those tickets guarantee access to, Assistant Fire Chief Don Crowson said Thursday. The team has the option of creating more standing-room-only areas inside the stadium, which would allow more fans to experience the game, Crowson said.The stadium’s maximum occupancy load is about 111,000, but that includes maintenance areas and other areas that have no view of the field. Crowson said individual areas of the stadium, such as the clubs and suites, have their own occupancy limits.The occupancy limits for the party deck areas could change depending on how many displays and kiosks the team has set up, Crowson said.“The building is a very complex building. Pinning it down to a hard number is almost an impossibility. You can configure those stadium plazas in different ways,” Crowson said.Crowson said public safety officials will use visual counting methods and other methods to guarantee party deck capacity is not exceeded during future events.“Patron distribution is the key element to the standing room only areas,” Crowson said. “You couldn’t let all Party Pass holders congregate in one area.”
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