Quote:
Originally Posted by Benched
Came back to this this morning.
The other big issue, West Village. Until East Village is 'done' and the revitalization is complete, I just don't think we need to revitalize the other side of the city as well. I worry that this will split the 'revitalization' and that people may choose West over East and then we'll end up with a ghost town on the East Village. All those businesses and developers and people who moved out there on the promise of it being the new up and coming area get left holding the bag.
Seriously think, if the Stamps don't economically justify building a new stadium on their own (and they don't)....then scrap that part of the plan. They can continue to play at McMahon stadium, it'll continue to be old, we'll continue to be cold. So be it. The city sponsored fieldhouse is indefinitely on hold it sounds like, so again, no worries. It's debatable how much the city needs it right now anyway.
Project is an overreach. West Villeage doesn't NEED to be cleaned today, it's sat there for years already. Doesn't need to be revitalized immediately. Stamps don't support building a new stadium no matter how 'blah' the old one is. These extras are just sales wrapping on building the arena that the Flames need and can be justified, while trying to sneak in a stadium build on the cheap.
PS. I still have serious concerns about transportation to/from the site. "Just take the train". yeah not sure on the math, but 18,000+ people, about what 300/train?.....sure. I love standing around like a sardine for an hour on the platform, pushing and shoving with drunk people, so that I can go home after your event...
|
As KK mentioned, 5 years before cutting tape is a very optimistic goal. And this is not cutting tape on the entire area, but the facility itself. The idea is that the facility will prompt more private revitalization in the area, which which it's proximity to the core, it likely will.
But for your concerns on timelines, East Village should be up and running for a few years before any major revitalization happens in the West Village. Same for transportation. We should have a full set of 4-car trains by that time and, if this project is green lit, possibly and re-worked station for the arena which would include more space (maybe a two-tiered station?).
The point of the project pitch is not so much that the Flames and/or Stamps need it, it's that the city needs it. Can the Stamps use McMahon? Of course. But if Calgary wants to make pitches for things like Olympics, Soccer events, track and field competitions, tennis tournaments, etc.. then ya, we do need an up-to-date facility. Whether or not you are a person who wants those things is a different question, but if CALGARY wants those things, then we need something like this.