Sports in Austin

[Scottolini]

Cedar Park Center photos







The Texas Stars will be part of the West Division of the American Hockey League. Here are the teams in their division.

Texas Stars
Houston Aeros
Milwaukee Admirals
Peoria Rivermen
Rockford IceHogs
San Antonio Rampage
Chicago Wolves

On September 30, the Dallas Stars of the NHL will come to Cedar Park for an exhibition game.

http://www.texasstarshockey.com/

[Scottolini]

Not really sports news, but it pertains to the arena in Cedar Park. On September 25, George Strait will have a concert at the new arena for it's grand opening.

http://www.cedarparkcenter.com/Newsroom.aspx?id=7

[Scottolini]

Big time soccer at Myers Stadium on July 18th.



http://www.gahcc.org/State-Farm-Copa...paaztex.0.html

[Scottolini]

Next Aztex home game against the Montreal Impact on Sat. July 25th at 7:30.

http://www.austinaztex.com/schedule/calendar/?act[v]=graphical&frm[d]=2009-07-01&frm[e]=29

[NThomas]

HOLY &^%$

That place looks so much better then the renderings! (And I thought the renderings looked good).

[KevinFromTexas]

Yeah, it looks nice. I love the color and material contrasts.

[the Genral]

I like it, but it looks more like a Performing Arts Building than a sports arena.

[MichaelB]

Originally Posted by the Genral

I like it, but it looks more like a Performing Arts Building than a sports arena.

I would consider that a good thing!

[NThomas]

Originally Posted by the Genral

I like it, but it looks more like a Performing Arts Building than a sports arena.

Condsidering George Strait is opening the building, that's very appropriate .

[brandon]

I know it's not always a popular issue on these boards but what are y'alls thoughts on Major League Baseball eventually becoming a reality in Austin. I think we can all agree that NFL is out (Longhorns) and NBA wont happen because of the Spurs close proximity. Of all of the major sports, I would say that Baseball would match Austin's vibe the most being outdoors and laid back. There are going to be people that say Austin doesn't need/want pro sports but with the city growing at an amazing rate the demand should be there eventually.

[verybadgnome]

Originally Posted by brandon

I know it's not always a popular issue on these boards but what are y'alls thoughts on Major League Baseball eventually becoming a reality in Austin. I think we can all agree that NFL is out (Longhorns) and NBA wont happen because of the Spurs close proximity. Of all of the major sports, I would say that Baseball would match Austin's vibe the most being outdoors and laid back. There are going to be people that say Austin doesn't need/want pro sports but with the city growing at an amazing rate the demand should be there eventually.

Since you put it that way baseball does seem to be the only thing viable here. Can't imagine a pro hockey team either. I can foresee a huge backlash against a taxpayer-supported private enterprise like a pro baseball team. Now if the city had some land they couldn't decide what to do with in some area that wasn't good for much else then maybe an incentive like that could be digestible to the locals. I also like baseball b/c there are what 80 some games per year vs. 8 for football (pre-season hardly counts in my book). Could have some great state rivalries too.

[KevinFromTexas]

Big article in tomorrow's paper about it:

http://www.statesman.com/news/conten...arkcenter.html

Cedar Park Center scheduled to open in September

Facility will be third-largest mixed-use indoor venue in Central Texas.

By Miguel Liscano
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Thursday, July 16, 2009

In a few months, Cedar Park officials hope the blue seats stacked in boxes in the middle of what soon will be a 200-foot-long ice rink will be filled with cheering Texas Stars hockey fans.

The 181,640-square-foot Cedar Park Center, at New Hope Drive and the 183-A tollway, is about 70 percent complete and on track for a late-September opening, officials said. It will be the third-largest mixed-use indoor venue in Central Texas.

And the project is expected to be completed under budget, partly because city officials, adjusting for rising construction costs, temporarily removed certain features they wanted in the facility, Cedar Park Economic Development Director Phil Brewer said. For example, planners eliminated a wooden basketball court that was expected to cost $25,000 to $100,000.

[Scottolini]

I would guess they wanted the basketball court in their facility to lure the Austin Toros away from the Convention Center.

[MichaelB]

Originally Posted by Scottolini

I would guess they wanted the basketball court in their facility to lure the Austin Toros away from the Convention Center.

It would also make it useable for High School events. Basketball, danceteam and Winterguard tournaments, etc

[the Genral]

If they build it later, they may come. Considering the total cost of the arena, 25k - 100k in savings, big whoop!

[paulsjv]

I wish someone would build something like this some where in central Austin or just out side of central Austin.

[Scottolini]

I always thought Mueller would have been a good place. It's probably a long-shot, but I think a top notch soccer stadium for the Aztex, as well as other soccer matches would be sweet built as a focal point in an urban section of Mueller. Imagine VMU surrounding the stadium with ground-floor restaurants and pubs. Streetcar/Lightrail for easy access from other parts of town. I know I'm dreaming, but that would be awesome!

There was a story in the Austin Chronicle about the possibility of Highland Mall being a location when it's redeveloped.
http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrob...oid=oid:790023

Then there's a link to an organization dedicated to getting a soccer-specific stadium built in Central Austin.
http://www.austinstadium.org/

This is an example of the size of stadium they're proposing. This one seats 13,500. Just for comparison's sake, U.T.'s football stadium seats nearly 100,000.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skagerak_Arena

[paulsjv]

Originally Posted by Scottolini

I always thought Mueller would have been a good place. It's probably a long-shot, but I think a top notch soccer stadium for the Aztex, as well as other soccer matches would be sweet built as a focal point in an urban section of Mueller. Imagine VMU surrounding the stadium with ground-floor restaurants and pubs. Streetcar/Lightrail for easy access from other parts of town. I know I'm dreaming, but that would be awesome!

There was a story in the Austin Chronicle about the possibility of Highland Mall being a location when it's redeveloped.
http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrob...oid=oid:790023

Then there's a link to an organization dedicated to getting a soccer-specific stadium built in Central Austin.
http://www.austinstadium.org/

Mueller is "high density" (not really though but better with regards to other neighborhoods in Austin) so I kind of doubt they would ever put a stadium in there.

Highland mall... Now you're talking that would be the PERFECT spot for it! W00T! I say bring it on!

[Scottolini]

It would be just fine for Mueller in my opinion. Mueller is 711 acres. This graphic shows how much space is in one acre. With structured, and/or off-site parking you would probably only need five or ten acres, possibly less.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acre

We believe that to attract concerts and sporting events there is a need for a stadium with a seating capacity of 11,000 to 15,000. This is roughly the same capacity as the larger shared school district stadiums in the area (Dragon Stadium, Nelson Field) but the footprint would be smaller as the seats would wrap all the way around the playing field.
http://www.austinstadium.org/FAQ/faq.html

I think you're over-estimating the size of the stadium being proposed. It would not take up a whole lot of space.

[Scottolini]

But it would be sweet as part of a redeveloped Highland Mall.