Agreed Scorp. There is no comparison between Calgary and Phoenix. The scale just doesn't click for most people.
Calgary's urban landmass (Calgary proper) is around 240 sq miles. For future reference, Red Deer is 40 sq miles in size. Phoenix is 520 sq miles., and that is all concrete jungle. Phoenix doesn't have growth potential because it is surrounded by other municipalities or tribal lands. And that is just Phoenix. The bordering municipalities include Avondale, Glendale, Peoria, Anthem, Cave Creek/Carefree, Scottsdale, Tempe, and Chandler. This whole urban area is then constrained by reservation lands (both treaty and military), national forests, and geographic features making expansion impossible. The only directions the metro area can really expand is the far west towards Buckeye and Tonopah and to the far southeast towards San Tan Valley and Florence/Coolidge.
When you start looking at where the interest and population that would support a hockey team, you are looking at the east valley. Those areas encompass parts of Phoenix, including the most affluent neighborhoods that border Camelback, Scottsdale (184 sq miles), Tempe (40 sq miles), Chandler (65 sq miles), Gilbert (69 sq miles), Mesa (140 sq miles), and Queen Creek (40 sq miles). Yes, the area of Chandler/Gilbert/Mesa is larger than Calgary in landmass and almost equal in population. This should start to provide some scale.
From the economic standpoint the east valley is where the money is. The most affluent municipalities in the state of Arizona are mostly packed into the east valley of Phoenix. Through a combination of income and property values the top cities have been identified and Paradise Valley (NE Phoenix bordering Scottsdale) at #1 in the state (median income of $202K), Gilbert is #2 (media income of $105K), Scottsdale #3 (media income of $97K), Queen Creek is #7 (media income of $111K), and Chandler is #9 (media income of $91K).
More importantly you also have to look where the game is being played and where the grassroots of the sport are growing. For metro Phoenix the only ice to be played on are in Peoria (AZ Ice), Scottsdale (the Ice Den), SE Phoenix (AZ Ice in Arcadia), Chandler (Ice Den), Tempe/Mesa (Oceanside), Tempe (Mullet @ ASU), and Gilbert (AZ Ice). The only rink outside the east valley is out in Peoria in the far NW corner of Metro Phoenix, beyond Glendale.
The east valley is the place for the Coyotes. The Mesa site is not great IMO, but it is vastly better than Glendale and would be in the middle of where the support would be.
|