Photo: Texas Stadium; courtesy city of Irving

The stadium was completed in 1971 at a cost of $35 million. The team’s new $1-billion-plus home is in Arlington, and features a signature retractable roof designed by Houston-based engineering firm Walter P Moore. The new stadium was built by Manhattan Construction Co. and designed by HKS Inc., both of Dallas, and was completed last year before the start of the 2009 NFL season.

If you can’t join onlookers at 7 a.m. in Irving on Sunday for the farewell, watch here as the city and its crews prepare the stadium for the much-anticipated implosion, and be sure to check back on April 11, to watch the event via Web streaming, courtesy of the city of Irving.

To prepare for the implosion, crews began last year by stripping the stadium of concrete and steel. More than 2,800 holes have been drilled into the columns that will hold the approximately 2,715 lbs of explosives needed for the detonation. Explosives are tied to the 12 trusses that hold up the roof of the stadium so that the roof also collapses with the implosion. It is designed to implode in domino fashion, starting in the southwest end zone and proceeding along both sidelines to finish in the northeast zone.

For those in the area who want to join the last tailgate party at the Irving icon, a public viewing will be available in the Red Lot at stadium on a first-come, first-served basis or via Irving Community Television Network. On-site parking cost is $25 per vehicle, with all proceeds going to local charities. Gates will open at 2 a.m. with approximately 5,000 spaces available. No RVs or commercial vehicles will be allowed. Open flames and pets are prohibited.

The entire detonation is expected to take less than one minute. Whether it will be “well-crafted” or not remains to be seen.