Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The United Center isn't on the Fringe of Chicago. It just isn't downtown. It is about 10-13 more miles to the first western burb of Chicago from there.
It's 5 miles out Madison St. from the stadium to Oak Park. And 2.5 miles east to State St.
Last edited by Irishtom29; 06-13-2013 at 12:53 PM..
Arenas are much more versatile/multi-purpose: they can hold concerts, conventions and other large events that benefit from being in downtown. Most urban advocates don’t have a problem with arenas in a heart of the city—except for Brooklyn, which was a NIMBY and anti-Bloomberg issue.
Well in some ways the Farmer's Field was supposed to be an event center - building the stadium required that AEG renovate and upgrade the Convention Center in DTLA and the stadium was actually supposed to be part of the C.C. During events they would close the retractable roof and use the large field space as convention space.
It's not really clear why the stadium ended up DOA, probably a combination of all of these reasons, though I think a lot of it had to do with AEG's owner being a total cheapskate and wanting a large share of an NFL team at a discounted rate, which the NFL had no interested in. Add in the fact that LA residents won't tax themselves to build a stadium for the NFL and you can see why it is nearly impossible to get a stadium here. Basically the NFL doesn't think it needs LA that bad, and LA doesn't think it needs the NFL. Oh well, sorry this is a bit off topic.
The Patriots wanted to build their new stadium in South Boston, adjacent to downtown and the idea was shot down pretty fast. That's a good thing, imo.
If you look at what's over there now, including the abundance of existing surface parking lots, I can't help but think there could have been a creative, intelligent way to implement a football stadium in that vicinity without destroying much, if any, actual "neighborhood" in the process. Which is really too bad, because Foxboro is such a nightmare to get to (though you won't catch me wasting too much sympathy on Boston sports fans ).
Bloomberg tried to build the West Side Stadium—which would have been fully integrated into the Manhattan grid and have had no tailgating space. You can get away with that sort of thing in New York and San Francisco, but Atlanta? Not so much.
Who wants to go to a football game with no tailgaiting space? Most Jets fans are not the type who want to grab a cup of pudding from Rice to Riches after the big game.
It was good; it was bad. People did what they thought was right at the time.
Very fascinating stuff, thanks (actually remembered seeing the EL piece in print, but that was 13 years ago now so it was nice to read it again). And it is certainly prudent to keep in mind the myriad factors and stories that go into any large-scale planning decision, but good intentions still don't change the actual outcome.
I was really just responding out of surprise at your skepticism regarding the Arena's role in the decline of the Hill District. No matter how well-intentioned the people responsible were, no matter how much we may have enjoyed the Igloo in the subsequent decades...that doesn't mean we shouldn't acknowledge in hindsight that it did a good amount of harm.
Very fascinating stuff, thanks (actually remembered seeing the EL piece in print, but that was 13 years ago now so it was nice to read it again). And it is certainly prudent to keep in mind the myriad factors and stories that go into any large-scale planning decision, but good intentions still don't change the actual outcome.
I was really just responding out of surprise at your skepticism regarding the Arena's role in the decline of the Hill District. No matter how well-intentioned the people responsible were, no matter how much we may have enjoyed the Igloo in the subsequent decades...that doesn't mean we shouldn't acknowledge in hindsight that it did a good amount of harm.
One of those links described the housing in the Hill at the time. There is no doubt much of it, though not all, was what we would call "substandard" as in, dirt floors, rat infested, non-working or barely working plumbing, heating, and so forth. People look at the Hill through these rose-colored glasses and see only the good, and think, "those evil urban renewalists". Even when I did my public health clinical rotation at Pitt in 1970, the Hill was pretty rough.
Is this hill in Pittsburg the one where Grant's Highlanders were whipped by the French and Indians in 1758?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
).
