the1wags wrote:While I realized that the new stadium still won't be idea for a AAA club, it will be lightyears better than their current digs. I'm hoping that this talk is mostly bargaining chips. I will say that if they do end up in a Sarpy Co ballpark, it will be the end of me going to Royals games.
I have an idea! We should give everyone involved (including all Omaha citizens) a brick to leave their scent markings and build the stadium with that! That should solve some of the ego issues here..
the1wags wrote:While I realized that the new stadium still won't be idea for a AAA club, it will be lightyears better than their current digs. I'm hoping that this talk is mostly bargaining chips. I will say that if they do end up in a Sarpy Co ballpark, it will be the end of me going to Royals games.
I would really like to have them downtown too, but I would still attend if they moved west, just like I still travel across the river to see the Lancers(Playoffs start tomorrow). If they do build them a stadium that is perfect for them, you couldn't blame them for taking the deal. Say someone was going to give you a small, fast, fuel efficient sports car for free or rent you a top of the line conversion van fully decked out and make you pay for the gas when it gets 10 miles a glaaon.... you are probably going to take the sports car.
Well I sure hope the Royals do work something out (while I'll continue to be unhappy with the giant, empty stadium... at least it would be within walking distance of other entertainment)... because it would obviously be a huge disaster to the downtown ballpark if the Royals were to go elsewhere (Sarpy County or worse... gone entirely).
Shoot for the Moon... if you miss, you'll land among the stars.
Stargazer wrote:Well I sure hope the Royals do work something out (while I'll continue to be unhappy with the giant, empty stadium... at least it would be within walking distance of other entertainment)... because it would obviously be a huge disaster to the downtown ballpark if the Royals were to go elsewhere (Sarpy County or worse... gone entirely).
I agree stargazer, it's too bad that people have to be so darn hard to deal with.. I mean at least just try it out! If after 2-4 years your |expletive| is still in a bunch then re-negotiate and all that..
Stargazer wrote:Well I sure hope the Royals do work something out (while I'll continue to be unhappy with the giant, empty stadium... at least it would be within walking distance of other entertainment)... because it would obviously be a huge disaster to the downtown ballpark if the Royals were to go elsewhere (Sarpy County or worse... gone entirely).
I think we NEED the Royals to make a downtown stadium work. I don't see how we can build a $140 million stadium to be used 2 weeks out of the year.
Stargazer wrote:Well I sure hope the Royals do work something out (while I'll continue to be unhappy with the giant, empty stadium... at least it would be within walking distance of other entertainment)... because it would obviously be a huge disaster to the downtown ballpark if the Royals were to go elsewhere (Sarpy County or worse... gone entirely).
I think we NEED the Royals to make a downtown stadium work. I don't see how we can build a $140 million stadium to be used 2 weeks out of the year.
Maybe they could move the State High School baseball games there. :lol:
joeglow wrote:I think we NEED the Royals to make a downtown stadium work. I don't see how we can build a $140 million stadium to be used 2 weeks out of the year.
Not being a baseball fan the only Royals games I recall attending were on the 4th of July. Directly related to the atmosphere, I'd very much be interested in attending a downtown Royals game. Watching a Royals game out west in the burbs? No thanks.
I'm with the theory that a downtown park draws more fans than one in South O. I don't know about you, but I'm never cruising around south O looking for something to do.
If I'm wandering around any part of Omaha, it's always downtown.
I'd have no problem with buying a ticket mid-game and catching some of the royals if I see it as I'm walking the No Do section, maybe after catching a film at Film Streams, or shopping at Urban Outfitters, It's very natural to then take in a ball game. People like me don't like going too far out of their way for a little entertainment.
I hope there's an untapped group of people like me who will attend Royals games.
Maybe then the seats would actually fill to an acceptable level for these whiners.
I haven't been to a Royals game in years, but I guarantee I'll go at least once a month at the downtown stadium. To me, the biggest appeal about seeing a baseball game is drinking beer outdoors, but I don't like doing that at Rosenblatt because I inevitably have to drive to my next location. Drinking + driving = NO!
At the downtown stadium I'd just walk over to InPlay/Slowdown/Mattress Factory.
"The right to have access to every building in the city by private motorcar in an age when everyone possesses such a vehicle is actually the right to destroy the city."
Lewis Mumford, The Highway and the City, 1963
Stargazer wrote:All it takes is the exploding Papillion+La Vista tax base ... plus those Werner dollars. It's not like the Royals even want HALF of a $140 million stadium.
I never even thought of this. I know that early on in the process, the Royals said they wanted the city to put up $25 million and the Royals would cover any costs over this. If this holds true, I don't think it is out of the question for Papillion, LaVista and Gretna to try to come up with $25 million together.
joeglow wrote:If this holds true, I don't think it is out of the question for Papillion, LaVista and Gretna to try to come up with $25 million together.
And do what? Put the stadium on wheels?
There's no way they could figure out an amicable way to share the revenue from that development. If one municipality put up $23 and the other put up $1M each they might figure something out.
joeglow wrote:If this holds true, I don't think it is out of the question for Papillion, LaVista and Gretna to try to come up with $25 million together.
And do what? Put the stadium on wheels?
There's no way they could figure out an amicable way to share the revenue from that development. If one municipality put up $23 and the other put up $1M each they might figure something out.
-Big E
I'd be curious what the economic benefit to Papillion, LaVista, or Gretna would be for investing $25 million into a baseball stadium. Other than to say "we stole the Royals". Certainly Council Bluffs hasn't profited much for investing much more than that to build the MAC to steal the Lancers.
I agree with all of what your saying, but one thing to think about is this...
The attendance for the Royals would be higher in Omaha's DT than most, if not all of the suburbs here..
And the reason isn't that suburbia is less than midtown/downtown, it's just that when people go to downtown they usually are
going down there to have a good time, to be entertained. When people go to the suburbs they do it to do everyday shopping, or eating...
If the Royals go to Papillion-La Vista, they would have only hurt themselves..
Big E wrote:I still think it would be great to try to get a Twins-Royals series or Rockies/Cubs/White Sox-somebody series in there once a year. Could be great barnstorming for the big league, and let's face it... outside of the Cubs, there's not that many teams that are pulling 20K+ for home games (especially a KC-MN game). They might appreciate the ticket revenue.
Is there anything in the contracts with MLB that would completely rule that out? I'm thinking TV markets might be the only issue.
I think we could certainly do this, the Devil Rays are hosting the Blue Jays in Orlando this month. No reason why we couldn't get a KC series with somebody.
"Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved."
Big E wrote:I still think it would be great to try to get a Twins-Royals series or Rockies/Cubs/White Sox-somebody series in there once a year. Could be great barnstorming for the big league, and let's face it... outside of the Cubs, there's not that many teams that are pulling 20K+ for home games (especially a KC-MN game). They might appreciate the ticket revenue.
Is there anything in the contracts with MLB that would completely rule that out? I'm thinking TV markets might be the only issue.
I think we could certainly do this, the Devil Rays are hosting the Blue Jays in Orlando this month. No reason why we couldn't get a KC series with somebody.
I agree, ESPECIALLY, with MECA running the stadium. I know they have been bashed quite a bit by us recently, but we should never doubt their ability to pull something like this off. They have loured some incredible events to the Qwest Cetner, so I would expect them to do the same with the stadium.
Erik wrote:I agree with all of what your saying, but one thing to think about is this...
The attendance for the Royals would be higher in Omaha's DT than most, if not all of the suburbs here..
And the reason isn't that suburbia is less than midtown/downtown, it's just that when people go to downtown they usually are
going down there to have a good time, to be entertained. When people go to the suburbs they do it to do everyday shopping, or eating...
If the Royals go to Papillion-La Vista, they would have only hurt themselves..
-I have not been to a Royals in over 15 years. If it were out West, I would go a dozen times a year, easy. The reason? I work downtown. By the time I drive home, it is between 6:00 and 6:15. That means driving all the way out West, picking up the kids and heading all the way back to where I already was, in about and getting to the game late. I am willing to wager there are a LOT of people in the same boat I am in.
Erik wrote:I agree with all of what your saying, but one thing to think about is this...
The attendance for the Royals would be higher in Omaha's DT than most, if not all of the suburbs here..
And the reason isn't that suburbia is less than midtown/downtown, it's just that when people go to downtown they usually are
going down there to have a good time, to be entertained. When people go to the suburbs they do it to do everyday shopping, or eating...
If the Royals go to Papillion-La Vista, they would have only hurt themselves..
-I have not been to a Royals in over 15 years. If it were out West, I would go a dozen times a year, easy. The reason? I work downtown. By the time I drive home, it is between 6:00 and 6:15. That means driving all the way out West, picking up the kids and heading all the way back to where I already was, in about and getting to the game late. I am willing to wager there are a LOT of people in the same boat I am in.
I'm sure that everybody within 10 square blocks would too.. :;):
joeglow wrote: I have not been to a Royals in over 15 years. If it were out West, I would go a dozen times a year, easy. The reason? I work downtown. By the time I drive home, it is between 6:00 and 6:15. That means driving all the way out West, picking up the kids and heading all the way back to where I already was, in about and getting to the game late. I am willing to wager there are a LOT of people in the same boat I am in.
So what's your excuse for 15 years worth of weekend games?
OmahaJaysCU wrote:So Joe does that mean you never attend events at the Qwest Center, plays at the Orpheum, Concerts at the Holland Center, or eat in the Old Market?
heh, in that part of the city? too many homeless people..
the1wags wrote:
So what's your excuse for 15 years worth of weekend games?
Too hard. Afternoon games are right during nap time, church is Saturday night and Sundays are usually spent visiting family and doing errands that can't get done during the week.
OmahaJaysCU wrote:So Joe does that mean you never attend events at the Qwest Center, plays at the Orpheum, Concerts at the Holland Center, or eat in the Old Market?
Qwest: maybe a dozen times
Orpheum: Nope
Holland: Nope
Old Market: yes for lunch. Nope for dinner.
Erik wrote:I agree with all of what your saying, but one thing to think about is this...
The attendance for the Royals would be higher in Omaha's DT than most, if not all of the suburbs here..
And the reason isn't that suburbia is less than midtown/downtown, it's just that when people go to downtown they usually are
going down there to have a good time, to be entertained. When people go to the suburbs they do it to do everyday shopping, or eating...
If the Royals go to Papillion-La Vista, they would have only hurt themselves..
-I have not been to a Royals in over 15 years. If it were out West, I would go a dozen times a year, easy. The reason? I work downtown. By the time I drive home, it is between 6:00 and 6:15. That means driving all the way out West, picking up the kids and heading all the way back to where I already was, in about and getting to the game late. I am willing to wager there are a LOT of people in the same boat I am in.
Y'all only have one vehicle that you can't meet the family at the stadium?
"Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved."
OmahaJaysCU wrote:So Joe does that mean you never attend events at the Qwest Center, plays at the Orpheum, Concerts at the Holland Center, or eat in the Old Market?
Qwest: maybe a dozen times
Orpheum: Nope
Holland: Nope
Old Market: yes for lunch. Nope for dinner.
I don't want this to turn into a suburb versus downtown debate. I think a vibrant downtown is necessary for a successful city. However, I do think suburbs also add value to a city and fits my needs and desires for a family. While the Royals playing out West would be better for me, I still support it going downtown. However, I do think there would be a legitimate chance that one could succeed our West.
i'm gonna help you out joeglow and divert this from an urban/suburban debate I got bored and decided to look up some info about other parks (of a non-major league persuasion) to see where Rosenblatt and the new stadium will stack up.
After looking at quite a few of them, i noticed a couple things that makes me glad that we are (believe it or not) somewhat progressive in our stance to make the baseball we do have around here, better. capacity is better, our field looks 100x better (some parks do not have a distinctive line between the grass and the dirt; not crisp or look maintained), and many appear to be cramped. Not so much the seating, but just that you feel like you're in a small place (based on the pictures). Many do not have open concourses (the ones that aren't very small are typically just one large bleacher, akin to high school football or a stock car track) and would be very hard to be viewed as fan friendly, if you're looking at amenities beyond simple nostalgia. There are parks that are nice, new, or updated, and are in larger-than-average metro areas. It makes me wonder why the Royals would even think of playing anywhere else; where would that be, without making huge sacrifices for a quality park and the potential for a larger fan base from those who would be more apt to go while downtown? After seeing all those other parks, more than ever i want this done downtown. It would almost be in a class all its own (though Bricktown is pretty nice), which is something the NCAA would no doubt have to agree with.
I live in a suburb joeglow, I live near 180th and pacific and I love the area!
But, I am big, big, big when it comes to stacking downtown, and as Omaha is reaching it's growth limit the time is NOW that we do what we can before we hit any boxed-in growth problems as the tax revenues spill over to the burbs in other counties..
Omaha would be in deep if we don't establish as strong of a core as possible.
The OWH Website wrote:What's the difference between Rosenblatt Stadium and a new downtown ballpark?
Think restored 1950s-era Buick versus a sporty new Porsche.
Both look good and will get you where you need to go, but there's no way for the Buick to match the Porsche when it comes to all the bells and whistles modern engineering can provide.
The OWH Website wrote:Pregame
Out-of-towners would have the option of staying at a downtown hotel and walking to the stadium. Local residents would drive into downtown and pay $10 to park in the lots around the Qwest Center Omaha.
That would replace the longtime CWS ritual of scanning for an open parking spot on the neighborhood streets around Rosenblatt or paying $10 to $20 to park in someone's yard.
The OWH Website wrote:The concourse
A ramp or stairs at the stadium's entrances would take you two stories up, depositing you on the much-hyped open concourse.
This concourse would be starkly different from what CWS regulars are accustomed to at Rosenblatt.
The concourse would wrap around the field, allowing you to stroll around the whole facility if you wanted to stretch your legs. That's not an option at Rosenblatt, because its concourse extends along the infield but does not connect to the outfield concourse.
The concourse in the new stadium would be spacious, allowing for improved pedestrian flow and more room for food concessions. The main Rosenblatt concourse is 20 feet wide; the new one would be a minimum of 36 feet wide.
The OWH Website wrote:
The seats
It would be a little easier to squeeze past the people who already are seated in your row. The space between rows in the new ballpark would be 36 inches, as opposed to the 30- to 33-inch spaces at Rosenblatt.
Your seat in the new stadium also would be several inches wider than at Rosenblatt — and it probably would have a built-in cup holder.
Boy, the World-Herald has suddenly jumped right in step with the stadium-wanters in beginning the
marketing program....
I am disappointed in all the local media not investigating the next part of the stadium plan - how do
we get a tenant for the other 350 days of the year? No one is asking these questions and getting
subsequent answers:
What is the Omaha Royals position?
How are negotiations preceding between the Royals and MECA? (I assume MECA is handling this now rather
than the City.)
How far apart are the parties?
Is MECA/the City looking for a new minor-league baseball tenant?
Is there a timeline on when the Royals and MECA must come to an agreement? Or are we going to let
this hang into the future?
Many of the same questions could be applied to the Bluejays.
Are we negotiating with the NCAA to have regionals, sub-regionals, and in-season college tournaments
here to add another 15 days of tenancy?
Vince Furlong wrote:Boy, the World-Herald has suddenly jumped right in step with the stadium-wanters in beginning the
marketing program...
Yeah, it almost makes me wonder if the Durhams and Gottschalks ever might possibly run into one another at events, and if one of those families might stand to make a bunch of money off a new stadium and if one of them has any influence at a certain newspaper which could maybe sway public opinion, and if either of said families might be considering backing a certain mayor for a potential Senate run at some point so said mayor can't look stupid for botching a new stadium proposal...
in the paper today, they gave the figure for what the Royals actually pay per year for using the old stadium ($5,000...that's right: $5,000. Brad may have said that actual number a while ago, but i didn't remember it). The Royals said that they understand that they would most likely not get a deal like that, but would be very willing to move downtown if parking isn't expensive (right now people pay nothing to park, and that typically in minor league parks, parking is $2-$3...they said $6 may be appropriate). The World Herald also said that they get $100,000 from the city each year for vacation the stadium for the college world series (since June is typically the most profitable month for baseball), and that they get 9% of concession proceeds during the world series. The Royals said they understood things would be different but again, would be more willing to move if the contract with MECA were fair. They're going to meet with minority share holders (Buffett is one of them) to see what they'd want to do, since all parties involved have expressed their desire to stay in Omaha. I hope it works out for the Royals to move...but the city and MECA said the stadium would work and be profitable without them involved.
thenewguy wrote:in the paper today, they gave the figure for what the Royals actually pay per year for using the old stadium ($5,000...that's right: $5,000. Brad may have said that actual number a while ago, but i didn't remember it). The Royals said that they understand that they would most likely not get a deal like that, but would be very willing to move downtown if parking isn't expensive (right now people pay nothing to park, and that typically in minor league parks, parking is $2-$3...they said $6 may be appropriate). The World Herald also said that they get $100,000 from the city each year for vacation the stadium for the college world series (since June is typically the most profitable month for baseball), and that they get 9% of concession proceeds during the world series. The Royals said they understood things would be different but again, would be more willing to move if the contract with MECA were fair. They're going to meet with minority share holders (Buffett is one of them) to see what they'd want to do, since all parties involved have expressed their desire to stay in Omaha. I hope it works out for the Royals to move...but the city and MECA said the stadium would work and be profitable without them involved.
I never knew the numbers, I just said that they would not get as good of a deal from MECA.
