Triple A Baseball Coming to El Paso! (Socorro, Portland: sales, buying)

[Chuco]

Freaking great news!! It's not 100% done, but its almost there. They are saying that they expecting for the rest of the process to be straightforward and we should be getting our own team soon. Awesome!!

[katzpaw]

This article is damning.
Plenty of parking for ballpark - El Paso Inc.: Local News

1) It admits that there is not enough parking unless you include spots on the far side of downtown and use a shuttle bus to and from the distant parking.

2) It admits the stadium will not fit on the parcel unless Sante Fe, Durango and Missouri streets are closed or relocated. You can't just take 1/2 the street.

A baseball field should have at least 300 feet from home plate to the fence on the foul lines. Even taking over the surrounding streets will only give a 314' length on the left field side. This will be one of the smallest if not the smallest AAA field -even with the expanded parcel.

City Hall is stampeding to buy 2 new buildings. Once this is done it will be too late to raise objections about the field size, closing of surrounding streets, or other surprises that will spring up after contracts are signed.

[Ms Kitty 98]

I read this same article on El Paso Inc. this past Monday in which it does raise questions about if the stadium will actually fit at the city hall location.I really don't think that closing all Durango street and partially closing some lanes of Missouri, or Santa Fe streets would have any traffic impact since those streets are not busy downtown thoroughfares say as oppose to Oregon,Mesa,Stanton,Kansas and Campbell streets.What is not mentioned is the Bataan Memorial railroad tracks between city hall and the civic center,this parcel over the railroad tracks is going to have to be covered over in order to enable more stadium room.No one ever talks about these matters and the city doesn't say if the Railroad companies are going to allow such development over their rail road airspace. Parking is also going to be another issue of concern since spectators are going to have to park several blocks away to attend a baseball game.I'm all for the new stadium and baseball team,however I do believe that city council members negligently acted on impulse, they didn't even bother to explore other downtown sites including the one that I had mentioned previously over at Paisano and Cotton. This site is rarely ever used by the railroad companies,it has plenty of space for both stadium and parking, it is a great downtown location with great views of downtown. There are three large downtown rail road yards and this one is right inside downtown, why not use eminent domain to acquire this property instead? Because of all this poor planing and the relocation of city hall into several other buildings just don't make sense and has created an opposition to the whole project.We know that in El Paso the naysayers always have to have their say, wether it's a good idea or a not so good idea.The city better do further studies before they really make a terrible mistake and it will become a point of no return fiasco;Then the naysayers will rule what ever this city wants to build for decades to come.

[katzpaw]

Plenty of parking for ballpark - El Paso Inc.: Local News

I can't believe that The El Paso Inc article was posted 3 days ago and only has 2 comments. Both comments are positive. My comment has not been posted (awaiting moderation) and I suspect they are rejecting all comments from skeptics.

[Ms Kitty 98]

Originally Posted by katzpaw

Plenty of parking for ballpark - El Paso Inc.: Local News

I can't believe that The El Paso Inc article was posted 3 days ago and only has 2 comments. Both comments are positive. My comment has not been posted (awaiting moderation) and I suspect they are rejecting all comments from skeptics.

Every Monday I get my El Paso Inc on my e-mails, however I also posted a comment about the stadium last week and how former city rep, Alejandro Lozano is organizing a coup to derail the downtown stadium.
El Paso Inc contacted me asking for my identification so they could print my opinion on their editorial, but nothing happen.
Plenty of parking huh? good thing that most games are in the evening or on weekends so downtown traffic congestion might not be much of a problem:but I don't thing I would want to go park somewhere near the Federal Building and walk to and from the stadium.

[mistabinks]

Possible traffic and parking relief?

1. The Trolley System. Especially if it runs from downtown to UTEP. Three parking garages at UTEP. Hop on the trolley and get dropped off near the stadium.

2. Rapid Transit. It would be great if the Sun Metro offered direct routes from their hubs to the stadium.

3. Loop 375. Isn't Loop 375 supposed to be complete and go through downtown by 2014?

[katzpaw]

Making visitors park at some distance and then wait for public transit (& pay for both) will not help attendance numbers. The venue has to be car friendly. I don't know why (it is claimed) AAA insists the stadium be downtown. Local support for baseball is weak if fans are swayed by a new stadium downtown instead of an alternate location.

[mistabinks]

That's speculation at best.

[Ms Kitty 98]

I still think that this whole stadium issue should have been planed in a more appropriate manner than the way city officials went about it; Having a triple AAA baseball team would be a mile stone and building the downtown stadium would be a gem for downtown if they do it right.
There are better locations to build this stadium in downtown but city officials went with the idea that the city already owns the property so lets tear down everything that is there because we are city officials and we call all the shots in this town.
Yesterday I was in downtown after a doctors appointment,and I stopped for a while at Tom Lea Park,thereafter checked out the surrounding sites including the city hall location and I realized that this city has a long way to go,and it still looks pretty depressing.
Three years from now, there will be a stadium there at the city hall location, while city hall will be scattered in several downtown buildings, if you must go to city hall you will have to pick from door number one, door number two, or door number three and still asked if you are in the right building.
Then there will be a new trolley system with trolley cars replicas made in China breaking down more now than then;While a stock pile of broken unusable trolley car parts accumulate at some vacant lot somewhere in the city.Prove me if I'm wrong, I can already foretell what's up ahead; It's like when they were going to build that aquatic park at Ascarate Park back in the early nineties. First the city came out with all these brilliant indoor Olympic swimming pool plans, then at the end it was downsized to just a simple lame outdoor swimming pool.
Already as is, this new stadium will be built to small at 7000 seats for a triple AAA stadium, parking will be an issue and many people will just be discourage and get turned off when they approach the turnstiles only to find out there is room only for one more fan, that or there's nobody there.
Seriously people,I'm not not being negative but this city has the reputation of doing things wrong then realizing thereafter that they goofed tremendously and by then it's too late.Better planing gets better accurate results, but when they are in such a rush then the results are anyone's guess and plans don't come out the way they were meant to be.
People then get ticked off! I'll keep my fingers crossed and hope for the best but expect the worst.

[mistabinks]

Originally Posted by Ms Kitty 98

I still think that this whole stadium issue should have been planed in a more appropriate manner than the way city officials went about it;

How so?

The City, Hunt, and Foster have been planning this since they lost out on the Portland franchise two years ago.

Originally Posted by Ms Kitty 98

There are better locations to build this stadium in downtown but city officials went with the idea that the city already owns the property so lets tear down everything that is there because we are city officials and we call all the shots in this town.

That is a lot of speculation and even more opinion. The City spent good money on several surveys and all came back saying that was the best spot for the stadium. Not Asarco, not anywhere else downtown. The PCL already ruled out Cohen. Does Darth Joyce get what she wants (a new City Hall)? Sure.

Originally Posted by Ms Kitty 98

if you must go to city hall you will have to pick from door number one, door number two, or door number three and still asked if you are in the right building.

Or you can find out in advance where you need to go.

Originally Posted by Ms Kitty 98

Already as is, this new stadium will be built to small at 7000 seats for a triple AAA stadium

Has that been officially announced?

Originally Posted by Ms Kitty 98

parking will be an issue and many people will just be discourage and get turned off when they approach the turnstiles only to find out there is room only for one more fan, that or there's nobody there.

Are those the only options? Capacity crowd or empty stadium.