Quote:
Originally Posted by Erick Estrada
That's such simplistic thinking. The entire experience is different in a new building and that's not just for the fans as it's for the players too. Better locker rooms, better training facilities, etc. This stuff matters to players because they play on the road and get to play in all the other new arenas. Conroy mentioned it's always part of the discussions when trying to attract players. The biggest issue with the dome is the roof. It may have seemed like a good idea at the time but it's simply no good for concerts and it's just no good in general as it makes for a bit of a claustrophobic feel when sitting up at higher levels because you are separated from the other side of the arena. It's just a straight up bad design and when you factor in how dated the rest of the facility is inside and out, it's really a no-brainer to replace it. Even with the jacked up pricing in Rogers Place, there are very, very few if any people in Edmonton that miss Northlands Coliseum as the game experiences are night and day better in the new arena.
|
Who is going to miss the Northlands and Saddledome experience? Everyone that has been priced out, or will be priced out of attending more than the odd game moving forward.
Publicly funding this to the tune of ~70% so that we as fans can now basically exclude ourselves from regularly attending games (at least most fans) is just a bad move. Many markets in Canada and the USA have privately funded a substantial portion of their new buildings, if not entirely, so you can't say there is a precedent here either.
I suppose the city should be preparing $3B to fund the next new event center as early 2055? Modern engineering and construction now has a lifespan of only 30-35 years? It's all very needless and first world to be whining about this building that COULD be touched up and renovated to continue operating for a long while yet. If the team was going to front 50-60% of the cost it would at least be palatable, but these deal in Calgary and Edmonton are nothing short of highway robbery. Flames ownership must just be laughing all the way to the bank.