Gene Fatur.

• Author: Bronikowski, Lynn

BUILDING DENVER'S MILE HIGH DREAM

Gene Fatur oversaw construction of the Mile High Stadium Penthouse Suites in 1987, and will watch them tumble to the ground when they are dismantled in early 2001.

Fatur's a Little sentimental about seeing something he built not so long ago torn down. But he takes in solace in knowing that he's a key player in building a stadium for the team he's followed since he was a kid, and knowing that he's working despite the challenge of a lifetime -- coping with Multiple Sclerosis.

Fatur, 46, is project manager for Turner Construction Co., which is building the $364 million stadium in a joint venture with HNTB Corp. and Alvarado Construction. He quarterbacks the complex mix between the design and construction teams.

The Colorado native has been with Turner for 24 years -- building during the boom times of the late '70s and early '80s, and migrating to Seattle, Salt Lake City, and Portland, Ore., when the mid-'80s oil bust sent him chasing new, richer frontiers.

"I was one of the last ones to leave, and now it's a dream come true to come back to Colorado and work on a project like this," said Fatur, a Trinidad native and University of Colorado graduate. "And it's definitely challenging making some of the decisions and staying on schedule."

"We count down -- 21 months left before the game, 50 days left before the game, 49 days left before the game. In June we'll reach peak employment with 1,200 people working on (the stadium). It gets very, very busy around here."

Late 2000 is set for the stadium's topping-out ceremony, when the highest girder is set in place and the drive will escalate toward the August 2001 Broncos season kickoff.

Fatur has been project manager for the Salt Lake City area's West Valley Event Center, which opened in 1997 as the home of the Grizzlies hockey team, and staging area for hockey and speed-skating events during the 2002 Olympics.

And he headed up construction of the Rose Garden and Rose Quarter, the $150 million home of the Portland Trailblazers. It was during that project that Fatur learned of his illness.

"I have Multiple Sclerosis," Fatur said. "It started with double vision, and came and went. Then during Christmas 1993, it...