Atlanta Braves Announce New$672-Million Baseball Stadium

The Atlanta Braves organization on Nov. 11 announced that it is planning to build a 41,000-seat baseball stadium in Cobb County, Ga. The Braves stated that the facility, estimated to cost $672 million, will start construction in the second half of 2014 and will be completed in time for the 2017 season. The new, open-air facility—to be located at the intersection of Interstate 75 and I-285—will be owned by the Cobb-Marietta Coliseum and Exhibit Hall Authority.

1 WTC Set To Beat Chicago's Willis Tower as Country's Tallest

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat's (CTBUH) height committee has settled a dispute that makes way for 1 World Trade Center to be the tallest building in the U.S., upon its completion in early 2014. The 1,776-ft tower was dubbed the "Freedom Tower" after 9/11, but the building is now known as 1 WTC.

Two points were at issue: whether the tower's topmost structure is a spire or an antenna and which of the building's entrances would be the starting point for measuring its height. The committee determined that 1 WTC's spire is a "permanent architectural feature," which qualifies toward the record, while an antennas would not. The committee also determined that 1 WTC's main entrance is the south side facing the 9/11 Memorial plaza. Given these determinations, the building will surpass Chicago's Willis Tower as the country's tallest building. Since 1 WTC construction is not yet completed, however, the structure cannot enter CTBUH's rankings, "but its height is no longer in dispute," the group said in a Nov. 12 statement.

650-MW Iowa Gas-Fired PlantIs Set for Final OK on Nov. 23

Iowa regulators gave preliminary approval on Nov. 8 to Interstate Power & Light's plan to build a 650-MW, natural-gas-fired plant in Marshalltown, but they imposed a construction cost cap of $920 million. The Cedar Rapids utility, a unit of Alliant Energy, says the project is needed to accommodate growing demand and limit the company's exposure to a volatile purchased power market.

Large power users in Iowa have opposed the new plant, claiming that IPL had not properly considered market alternatives. Opponents contend the firm's request for proposals significantly biased the results in favor of the Marshalltown plant through unreasonable adjustments for transmission construction costs. The approval will become final on Nov. 23, if no protests are filed. Construction, which is set to begin in 2014, would finish by 2017.