CalgaryNEXT Discussion pt. 2

[RM14]

Hopefully the stampede board comes up with an epic stadium combo rink concerts rodeo chuckwagon football facility. I think we need a mock-up! who's got time to kill?

[getbak]

If CMLC is going to be involved with Stampede development, I wonder if that opens the door for any kind of CRL funding? If it does, you'd have to think that would make the Stampede Grounds a lot more attractive for the Flames.

[RM14]

Originally Posted by getbak

If CMLC is going to be involved with Stampede development, I wonder if that opens the door for any kind of CRL funding? If it does, you'd have to think that would make the Stampede Grounds a lot more attractive for the Flames.

I don't think it would. Victoria park is already a desirable place to develop residential and commercial properties. There are several other proposals in addition to the 10-12 towers that have been been built there over the past decade.

[Joborule]

Hopefully this leads to the arena being built on the park lands and a football stadium north of the grounds. I'm really not on board with the Fieldhouse/Stadium combo.

[getbak]

I've always thought it would be interesting to build a new grandstand (or renovate the existing one) for the Stampede to be able to double as a stadium for the Stamps. They could keep the existing grandstand (which I believe is still in good shape and handles the crowds pretty well), and reconfigure the infield seating to be like a mirror image of the grandstand on the other side.

In Houston, the rodeo is considered a co-tenant of the stadium along with the Texans. The Stamps never play home games during Stampede week anyway, so there would never be scheduling conflicts (depending on how long it would take to go from turf to dirt for the playing surface).

[Bunk]

Originally Posted by getbak

If CMLC is going to be involved with Stampede development, I wonder if that opens the door for any kind of CRL funding? If it does, you'd have to think that would make the Stampede Grounds a lot more attractive for the Flames.

I think it at least opens up the possibility of a different kind of relationship between Stampede and the Flames, particularly as it relates to potential development.

By the way, this is a fantastic move to have CMLC manage Stampede expansion. Things will actually happen and it will be done very well.

[Mister Yamoto]

Originally Posted by getbak

I've always thought it would be interesting to build a new grandstand (or renovate the existing one) for the Stampede to be able to double as a stadium for the Stamps. They could keep the existing grandstand (which I believe is still in good shape and handles the crowds pretty well), and reconfigure the infield seating to be like a mirror image of the grandstand on the other side.

In Houston, the rodeo is considered a co-tenant of the stadium along with the Texans. The Stamps never play home games during Stampede week anyway, so there would never be scheduling conflicts (depending on how long it would take to go from turf to dirt for the playing surface).

Cool idea. Could you still have the Chuckwagons?

[Cappy]

Originally Posted by Bunk

I think it at least opens up the possibility of a different kind of relationship between Stampede and the Flames, particularly as it relates to potential development.

By the way, this is a fantastic move to have CMLC manage Stampede expansion. Things will actually happen and it will be done very well.

Less stampitecture!

[getbak]

Originally Posted by Mister Yamoto

Cool idea. Could you still have the Chuckwagons?

Here's a quick mockup of what I'm thinking...



The ends could be left open for the chuckwagon track.

[Table 5]

CMLC getting involved in the Stampede (whether with a Flames component or not) is fantastic news. They bring professional credibility and ability, and will hopefully drag all those geezers into the 21st century.

The idea of incorporating a CFL stadium and the Stampede grandstands is an interesting one. Im not sure if you could create a space that wouldnt be a clunky hodge-podge for everyone involved (not unlike the current CalgaryNEXT fieldhouse plan), but the location is fantastic, and it would be a much more efficient use of the grounds.

[calgarygeologist]

Originally Posted by getbak

Here's a quick mockup of what I'm thinking...



The ends could be left open for the chuckwagon track.

That would be kind of cool but I think it would be tough to execute. The infield suites are a huge money maker for the Calgary Stampede. I personally know the folks that run the infield suites and they have told me that they are the most profitable business unit in food and beverage. They already have plans to expand the infield suites facilities. Having the suites right in the action of the rodeo and chuckwagons is a huge draw for the corporate clients. If they couldn't keep the suites trackside they would lose a lot of appeal and excitement.

[getbak]

Yeah, it wouldn't just be a complete mirror image of the existing grandstand because you'd need to have the rodeo chutes and everything on that side like it already is. The infield suites would be perfect for the Stamps' games too, so you wouldn't want to remove them.

Really, what I imagine would be more of an extension to the existing infield seating (although, I think to fit the football field, the whole structure might need to move back some). The chutes and infield suites would be a permanent part of the new grandstand and I'd put the Stamps' bench right in front of the chutes because I think that would look great.

[powderjunkie]

A ton of reasons why it would never happen, and it would probably wouldn't be any better than McMahon, but it would be a pretty darn unique set up. A field could just fit even with the infield as built today.

The Lazy S and Ranahans are very unique premium seating venues, though I don't know that they would have the same cache and could fetch as much money outside of Stampede time.

Infield only has about 1800 seats, and I imagine that is included in the 17000 number for the grandstand as a whole. They would have to build substantial end zone stands, probably with a big hole/tunnel to accommodate the track to go under. Those would be great seats for the rodeo.

The biggest issue would be converting a football field to rodeo grounds/track and back again within a week on either side of Stampede. Even two weeks would be tough, and that would mean 6 weeks of no home dates.

Even tougher and more important is the grandstand stage infrastructure. Of course, a large part of the stage is pulled in via tractor, but the permanent section has hydraulic lifts underground, and there are a bunch of underground tunnels that facilitate the production of the grandstand show. It is entirely possible that the Stampede will squash the chucks within the next 30 years, but then the stage show would become even more important.

Lastly, the current facilities are shut down and winterized. Hard to say how well they would hand November weather.

The funny thing to consider is that the Grandstand is already used at near capacity twice as often as McMahon (ignoring U of C, high school games, etc.) - 20 events over 10 days vs. 10ish events over the rest of summer/fall. There's not much incentive for them to make major adjustments to their set up.

[Cappy]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgar...gary-1.3399275

CBC has a little more detail on the partnership. It seems to be focused around Olympic Plaza and connecting EV to the Stampede area through Vic Park as opposed to the CMLC touching Stampede lands.

It's a great partnership either way and could end up benefiting the Flames in any arena search. A potential redevelopment of Vic Park could make the North Stampede Park more attractive for an NHL Arena

EDIT

On further inspection, it looks like there is talk of CMLC getting involved in the Stampede lands:

"We might even act as their land agent if they needed to sell land and sell the land for them, come up with a creative design," said Veres.

The CMLC would like to "add horizontal infrastructure" to the district north of the existing Stampede Park, said Veres, which "would allow the Stampede master plan vision to attract investors and business operators."

Veres said they hope to reach a final agreement with the Stampede later this year.

[Ashasx]

Apparently King is going to announce something at 1pm today.

If it's nothing genuinely new (like, a complete overhaul of the project, or at the very least, better renderings of the "vision" they have for the plan), I will be mad.

[Canehdianman]

Fool me once....

[Bring_Back_Shantz]

Originally Posted by Ashasx

Apparently King is going to announce something at 1pm today.

If it's nothing genuinely new (like, a complete overhaul of the project, or at the very least, better renderings of the "vision" they have for the plan), I will be mad.

Awesome. Though it will be kind of hard to wait until October of 2021 to hear what Ken King has to say today.

[Weitz]

Some sort of luncheon at the Westin downtown I think I heard on the news?

[CroFlames]

Originally Posted by getbak

I've always thought it would be interesting to build a new grandstand (or renovate the existing one) for the Stampede to be able to double as a stadium for the Stamps. They could keep the existing grandstand (which I believe is still in good shape and handles the crowds pretty well), and reconfigure the infield seating to be like a mirror image of the grandstand on the other side.

In Houston, the rodeo is considered a co-tenant of the stadium along with the Texans. The Stamps never play home games during Stampede week anyway, so there would never be scheduling conflicts (depending on how long it would take to go from turf to dirt for the playing surface).

I'm no architect so I'm not sure how the mechanics of that would work, but that makes a lot of sense. Combine the two venues to make one awesome one that is basically used year round.

That makes too much sense though, so it's out of the question.

[Otto-matic]

Don't get your hopes up..

@CTVCalgary Mr. King's presentation today is his standard presentation on #calgarynext.There are no major updates on project. #yyc #yyccc