Downtown Stadium (lofts, buying, construction)

[jd2008]

Just wondering if anyone has heard anything about the planned stadium for the Dynamos? I thought the plan was to build the stadium across 59 on the east side of downtown. But today I heard that the league is basically getting angry at the city because of the delays in building the stadium. I guess the city promised to build the stadium when the team moved from San Jose.

Anyway, just interested if anyone has heard anything.

[Mustang1]

My city is moving very slow on buying the land and the MLS commissioner called them out yesterday. The deal should definitely be further along at this point.

[JJG]

I was watching the news some time ago, and I heard that an old mall was going to be demolished and they were going to build the stadium there.
Is that a fact or what?

[jd2008]

Originally Posted by JJG

I was watching the news some time ago, and I heard that an old mall was going to be demolished and they were going to build the stadium there.
Is that a fact or what?

My understanding is that the stadium was planned on what is now a giant parking lot north of the Lofts at the Ballpark. I think that would be a great place for it; hate all the surface lots downtown.

But, it sounds like the original plans are up in the air. Thanks for the update!

I'm not much of an MLS fan. I follow the Premier League and European football. But I have been to some games and I want to support the development of the sport here in the states. Hope the Dynamos stadium is up and running soon.

[Poltracker]

The team owners have apparently changed their blueprints about construction and upped the price by 40 million dollars. They want the city to contribute even more money to the construction and Mayor White is balking rightfully. Personally, I think that if you want a stadium, you should finance it yourself. I'm tired of paying for other people to earn millions when the tax money should go to improving the horrible streets and sewer system problems as well as other infrastructure issues that are on the back burner because of this.

[jd2008]

Originally Posted by Poltracker

The team owners have apparently changed their blueprints about construction and upped the price by 40 million dollars. They want the city to contribute even more money to the construction and Mayor White is balking rightfully. Personally, I think that if you want a stadium, you should finance it yourself. I'm tired of paying for other people to earn millions when the tax money should go to improving the horrible streets and sewer system problems as well as other infrastructure issues that are on the back burner because of this.

Interesting, I did a little research and didn't read anything about the change in blueprints. Most of the blame seemed to be placed on the general rise of commodities. But, I may have missed something.

On your larger point, I see the argument but unfortunately, it's one of the "free market" arguments that works well in economics class but not as well in the real world. I see it comparable to a park or public transit. Subsidies are required, of course finding the right balance is the difficult part. The city can also use it to help revitalize the area surrounding the stadium, a process already underway after the baseball park was built.