Candlestick Park will go out with a wrecking ball, not a bang

Plans for a pyrotechnic implosion of Candlestick Park have fizzled in favor of the wrecking ball — with health fears and political pressure playing a big part in the decision. The 54-year-old stadium is being demolished to make way for a shopping center, hotel and housing complex. But an attention-grabbing plan to implode the Stick next month ran into stiff opposition from Golden Gate University’s Environmental Law and Justice Clinic and the Bayview Hill Neighborhood Association over fears about noise and the spread of toxic dust