View Single Post
  #1063  
Old Posted Aug 26, 2010, 1:50 PM
MaritimeCFLFan's Avatar
MaritimeCFLFan MaritimeCFLFan is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Bridgewater
Posts: 121
Quote:
Originally Posted by ATL Stadium View Post
Hello Fellow Stadium Supporters!
I'm new and playing catch up on the previous posted info here. There is a couple of things that I would like to comment on from what I have read and heard in the past.

There seems to be a general "we would love to have a Stadium but...."

My feeling is remove the negative issues or deal with them and whats left is the positives.....

If a Stadium is going to be built in the next here is what needs to be resolved.

a) Cost...most Stadiums have a huge public funding formula, so the public wants to know the benefit to the expense. It becomes personal when a persons tax dollars a being spent. So keeping the cost/benefit understandable is essential for public support!

b) Location...Halifax is the key location. The Stadium will require revenue. That means population to buy tickets. The immediate market is 100km (1 hr drive) from the Stadium... the Halifax number would be around 500,000. So any event that wanted to sellout a 25,000 seat stadium would need to draw 5% of the population.

c) Timing!....many people might say the window has closed! Moncton has a stadium now! My argument would be the ability to draw over time (see b). Huskies Stadium was built for the 67 Canada Games to seat +/- 10,000 with temp seating. It supported a Preseason CFL game with about the same seating but....one would need a much larger capacity on a permanent basis to financially support event like concerts and CFL just like the new Moncton location would need to do.....so both Halifax and Moncton are pretty much at a similar junction.

d) Usefulness....nobody likes waste. A couple of points fall in here....certainly the prospect of national exposure, possible CFL, other sports like Soccer etc...Concerts are all things that make good use of a stadium.....but in a nutshell a stadium solves a few problems...one the use of the commons for concerts...we have no permanent facility for larger events....so what other functions other than the possible CFL (8 -10 games) could draw? What makes the stadium useful? Does anyone remember the Pope coming to Halifax...how about a public address by the Queen...or maybe Billy Graham, or attracting an outdoor NHL game......I think there many events that would be more willing to make use of a sizeable stadium.

e) Location within NS.....yeah its an issue....everyone has ideas. Traffic in residential areas is a big issue...20 -30,000 ppl moving into and out of anywhere in HRM is difficult at the best of events. Here is my thoughts....there is a quarry along the 102 by Kearney Lake Rd. close to the wilderness area the PC Govt set aside a couple of years. Its not ideal but hey the excavation already done is a big bonus. Lots of land for outside parking and highway access! I would say if one traveled from downtown it would take about 20mins....Micmac Mall/McKay Bridge/Joe Howe/102 I'd say about the same....Truro an hour...Bridgewater an hour....I do also believe there would need to be a public park and ride type of service from downtown areas....but hey lets not kid ourselves....dont you think the hotels would be getting packages together that would include some transport service....?

So here it is ....we need $50,000,000 and the public pressure to get it going now!
Welcome ATL Stadium!

The key is to get the public on board with a new stadium project. If enough people contact their elected representatives showing support for a stadium project then something will happen.