Dodgers Interview: Janet Marie Smith Shares the Full Potential of Dodger Stadium Renovations

The vocation of a stadium architect is an arduous one filled with millions of miniscule tasks that lead up to one question: how can this location be a launching pad for planned chaos, disorder and euphoria?

If this was an ACT essay question, Janet Marie Smith passed with flying colors and would now be on her way to MIT. 

She is the executive vice president of planning and development for the Los Angeles Dodgers and the quarterback of all the new amenities at Dodger Stadium. 

Her Mona Lisa is Camden Yards, but what she did for Dodgers Stadium deserves to be hung in an exhibition next to it.

Through the multiple memorials to Tommy Lasorda, Jackie Robinson and gold glovers of the past, she kept the sanctity alive while keeping the park modern with an added sports bar in left field and flat screen TVs just about everywhere you look.

Over a Zoom call, she elucidated about her unique perspective, process of renovations and even allowed for an idea to be pitched. 

Should @SmithJanetmarie throw @mattweiner20's idea in the hopper or in the Dodger Stadium trash can?

The full interview drops tomorrow! #Dodgers pic.twitter.com/etVgpPEbHu

— Dodgers Tailgate (@DodgersTailgate) May 6, 2021

The jury is still out on the, but time is ticking.

The biggest takeaway from the interview is how truly different her vantage point is compared to that of the average fan. 

Inconveniences that were brought up in the interview were added to her checklist of change in a jiffy. Where fans escape to forget about the tediums of daily life, she enters her office. 

Chavez Ravine is a means of escape for myself, but for @SmithJanetmarie it’s an office that’s 352 acres wide. Start your weekend by getting to know one of best architects to ever do it here @DodgersTailgate 👉 https://t.co/5O2jZZECOS pic.twitter.com/K1K4UUykQ5

— matt weiner (@mattweiner20) May 7, 2021

This is like Yin and Yang because you don’t get one without the other. Does she want to celebrate in unbridled joy when Mookie Betts hits an absolute moonshot? Yup. But, is it difficult without thinking about how each fan is reacting to the stadium? Also yup.

Throughout this conversation there is much hope that fans can soak in the history of what is being talked about so they can enjoy their next trip to Chavez Ravine just a bit more. 

For example, the CPK Tommy Lasorda montage in left field is more than photos on a yellow wall, it’s a memory bank of laughter and joy. 

Check out the full interview with Smith below, and point out your favorite stadium upgrades in the comments.