Quote:
Originally Posted by GioforPM
Metro Calgary is 5,107 square kilometers in size.
The numbers usually given for Metro Calgary are a bit misleading because that's the size of the CMA. Unfortunately, there are some big areas which you'd consider to be metro Calgary (the whole counties of Rockyview and Foothills which includes Springbank and all the other areas around of Calgary for example) who are not members of the CMA. In other words, while Cochrane is counted, all of the land between Calgary and Cochrane is excluded in the number.
I believe though that even with all that land included Phoenix would be bigger.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calgary_Region
It does include Tsu T'ina though and I'm not sure if the Phoenix number includes Indian reservations
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According to the wiki you posted, the Calgary CMA includes Rocky View County which includes all those lands you excluded. The wiki repeats my claim that Calgary CMA is 5,107 square km, with
Calgary itself being 825.29 square km. For local comparison sake,
Edmonton CMA is 9,426 square km, and
Edmonton itself being 684.37 square km. Both pale in comparison to
Phoenix, which is 1,338.26 square km in size. An interesting contrast is the
graphic in this article comparing Edmonton and Phoenix.
That should give everyone a little more insight into the size of just Phoenix, which is a small chunk of the metro area, which is much larger than the map presented in this thread.
I don't believe that the Indian reservations are included in the metro Phoenix area as they are considered sovereign entities. They do include some real vast areas though. There are stretches of land west of town that are pretty barren, but they are included in the metro area. It is really strange being a half hour away from what you would consider the last off ramp to civilization and then seeing a street sign for 376th Ave, because that is the only place the metro area can grow. It is mind numbingly huge.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hockey Fan #751
So it is west, I was wrong. But the arena is definitely two miles north of Phoenix as you can see on the map. That's what I remember is driving two miles south and suddenly being in Phoenix. I was surprised it was that close to the city.
For a new arena I still think somewhere more central, even downtown Scottsdale, would be much better than Talking Stick Resort (which would be close to that "Fountain Hills" area on the map).
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The interesting thing about Phoenix is there is no room left. It is constrained by each and every municipality that surrounds it. The only thing the city can do is to re-purpose lands or use eminent domain to grab the real estate the city needs to expand up or improve infrastructure. For the city of Phoenix to provide lands for another arena they will have to likely go south of Lincoln and grab lands from some of the poorer people in town. This would be the equivalent of Calgary doing that to Victoria Park.
The idea of going into downtown Scottsdale is a non-starter. Scottsdale doesn't have a downtown to really speak off. It is the original tourist trap with the highlights being the fashion square and Old Town. There isn't room in Scottsdale for an arena, and the road system could not support the traffic for it either.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DoubleK
Isn't the Metro population north of 4M?
The physical size of Phoenix is completely mind boggling.
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There are various reports of the metro population. The city has a very large transient - nee snowbird - population that it could easily swell to that 4 million mark. Which ever number you want to take, and I prefer the more conservative one, it is a big freakin' city.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GioforPM
The baseball and basketball entertainment area is nice. I didn't think there was more room though.
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The city will have to go south of the ballpark, which puts it south of Lincoln, and into some really depressed parts of town. They could do it using eminent domain, but that would really piss off a lot of people and would probably result in more recalls. The Suns and Coyotes really have to look for vacant land that is big enough for a new arena and build something on that. Based on the constraints placed on the various municipalities, this is almost an impossible task.