Dome Stadium...... (Birmingham, Greenville: new home, stores, bill)

[BishopRidge]

Originally Posted by wetdawg

Well it has always been that way in Montgomery as far as Birmingham goes. They have always treated Birmingham as a red headed step child. I think it is the Napoleon complex that they have they want to be better and bigger than Birmingham so they don't help.

It also doesn't help that Birmingham Government is usually useless and corrupt.

To me Bentley is the lesser of the 2 evils and there isn't another candidate that is viable.

I have not yet seen any policitcal adds or signs for the Governors race. There may have been some ads during the football games last Saturday but I tend to leave the room during commercials and take care of whatever I need to. I am trying to recall if I have heard of the Griffith guy. I would assume he has been active in politics before but I don't recall him.

It would be great if state government as a whole tried to be supportive of all areas of the state. I realize that they do tend to do more for the areas that vote for them than others but it should not be that way. Of course it has always been that way and I doubt it will change any time soon. I remember the Wallace day's! Oddly enough my parents took me to Laurleen Wallace's inaguration in Montgomery. That's my first recollection of anything dealing with politics. She died while I was in 2nd grade I think it was.

At this point in the process what is needed from the state in relation to the dome/complex in Birmingham? Would they prefer it be a state project?

[Tourian]

There are a lot of clouds hanging over UAB football right now, so this does not bode well for a possible co-lease agreement for a future venue or their own southside stadium. The latest non-answer from the president doesn't put any fears to bed:

Watts responds to concerns over UAB football program - Birmingham Business Journal

After concern arose from the UAB football boosters, Watts met with members of a new nonprofit, the UAB Football Foundation, founded by Birmingham businessman Jimmy Filler, to discuss matters last Friday.
Filler was not in the meeting, but some in attendance were not satisfied with the answers Watts provided, prompting the group to pen the letter you can read here.
Filler said that by not extending Clark's contract beyond its three-year term, and by not scheduling non-conference games past 2016, UAB is sending a message it anticipates the program will be dead in three years.
"They've already made the statement UAB football is on its way out," Filler said during an interview today.

[cpg35223]

Originally Posted by Tourian

There are a lot of clouds hanging over UAB football right now, so this does not bode well for a possible co-lease agreement for a future venue or their own southside stadium. The latest non-answer from the president doesn't put any fears to bed:

Watts responds to concerns over UAB football program - Birmingham Business Journal

That would be a tragedy, regardless of your football affiliation.

[Tourian]

...but we are most likely going to be hosting the 2017 Senior Games, so it is still time to get crackin' on the facility.

National Senior Games has projected $36 million economic impact - Birmingham Business Journal

"We could not be more pleased that the National Senior Games Association has chosen the Greater Birmingham Community to host the 2017 National Senior Games," said Jim Smither, president of the Greater Birmingham Convention and Visitors Bureau.
All 19 sporting events in the games are Olympic events.
They include archery, badminton, basketball, bowling, cycling, golf, horseshoes, pickleball, race walk, racquetball, road race, shuffleboard, swimming, table tennis, tennis, track & field, triathlon and volleyball.

[steveklein]

the university of alabama board of trustees has never liked the fact that uab has a football program. they have handcuffed it at every chance they got... whether it is denying funding for a stadium, or rejecting the plan to hire jimbo fisher.

uab football should go one of two ways... either go all-in with new facilities and the support of the university system, or just get rid of it and focus the money elsewhere.

as it stands now, it is just a disaster. nobody goes to the games. nobody follows the team. the product on the field is consistently poor. the facilities are lacking, and it is a money pit.

[Tourian]

Originally Posted by steveklein

nobody goes to the games. nobody follows the team. the product on the field is consistently poor. the facilities are lacking, and it is a money pit.

Not quite... Attendance is up because they are a better team and are one win away from being bowl eligible:


Former UAB football players concerned the program may be shut down | AL.com

The news about the study and its potential aftermath comes at a time when Clark has reinvigorated the UAB program. After winning just five games in two years under former head coach Garrick McGee, who left in January to rejoin his mentor Bobby Petrino as offensive coordinator at Louisville, the Blazers are 5-4 in their first season under Clark. They are one win away from becoming bowl eligible.
Since moving to the Football Bowl Subdivision in 1996, UAB has played in one bowl game, the 2004 Hawaii Bowl.
Attendance also has increased under Clark. The Blazers are fifth in 13-team Conference USA with an average of 23,309 fans per home game, an increase of more than 130 percent from last season.

The private group led by boosters and the City of Birmingham want to build them an indoor practice facility.

[raj kapoor]

I wondered why all the negative comments in the face of things looking up.

[steveklein]

Originally Posted by Tourian

Not quite... Attendance is up because they are a better team and are one win away from being bowl eligible

Is UAB a little bit better this year? Sure, I guess. But I am just speaking over the last 10-20 years. They haven't had more than 30,000 at a game since 2006... and that was when Mississippi State came and provided a lot of the fans.

[Tourian]

Originally Posted by steveklein

Is UAB a little bit better this year? Sure, I guess. But I am just speaking over the last 10-20 years. They haven't had more than 30,000 at a game since 2006... and that was when Mississippi State came and provided a lot of the fans.

Originally Posted by steveklein

as it stands now, it is just a disaster. nobody goes to the games. nobody follows the team. the product on the field is consistently poor. the facilities are lacking, and it is a money pit.

Sorry, I'm not much of a mind reader. I can only interpret people's thoughts based on the meaning of their words.

As it stands now, the program is in good shape and getting better. Birmingham wants to support it to make it even better.

[steveklein]

Originally Posted by Tourian

Sorry, I'm not much of a mind reader. I can only interpret people's thoughts based on the meaning of their words.

As it stands now, the program is in good shape and getting better. Birmingham wants to support it to make it even better.

How can you say the program is in good shape? 20 years and they haven't won a bowl game yet. I think they've only been to 1. The program consistently loses money. They play in one of the worst stadiums of any FBS team, and it will take a very big investment to change that.

Like I said, decisions have to be made. I'd love for the UAB program to succeed, but without the full support of the university system, it won't happen long term so I can understand the decision if they do decide to shut it down.