Stadiums & Arenas of Canada, Part 3

[elly63]

Originally Posted by thurmas

If I were Legault I would spend 100 or 150 million to renovate and make stade saputo at Olympic Park as a 24,000 seat home to the Alouettes and CF Montreal as its appropriate sized for them. Then for the big O I would spend required to replace the roof and technical ring and maybe spend 50 million on the interior for some new plastic seats and other minor improvements. This way the big O becomes an event centre for concerts grey cups big mls games ect.. where its large size warrants use and stade saputo can be the Montreal version of BMO field with a suitable size for its tenants.

That may be as reasonable a solution as there is. Maybe also allow the Big O to become a training facility for both teams to add to its use. The Als had a contract for it to be their training facility, I don't know if it still is (just checked, it is).

The problem for the Als is to leave an ideal location, but one that is cramped and won't allow for expansion (I'm referring to other amenities aside from seating) for a not as ideal location that does have room and is closer to their practice facility.

I leave it those here who are familiar with the area (I haven't been to that site when I was in Montreal) to say if it is an inconvenience to get to (even though it is on the subway line). Is the location an issue, even a small issue?

[Oilkountry]

Originally Posted by northernlights99

Another rush of asylum seekers due to Civil war breaking out in Mexico or the U.S. ? If Trump wins there might be a Civil war. The United States is very unstable right now.

Are you just trying to troll? What are you going on about? As the veteran (10+ years) resident thorn in everyone's side on this forum, Even i am shaking my head reading just about everything you post, Theirs no logic people can even argue against because its total nonsense.

Secondly, have you been hired from the Swift team to rally the troops in montreal to get the stadium in working order? Or are you just a crazed fan offended that your hero pop star cant play in a city that would further line her pockets? I was going to play a drinking game of everytime you've mentioned taylor swift but unfortunately I would have died 2 pages back.

Why is it so important to you that the city invests the bare minimum $100 Million into a lackluster open air stadium so the city of Montreal can see a boost of 100-120M into the economy with a swift concert? Were talking about 25M in taxes that's a pretty terrible ROI when you consider the lack of other opportunities it will bring when you do a renovation that regresses the place from where it is today.

The whole point of a stadium is to serve the community. And in most cases that service comes in the form of sports and entertainment. If they can manage to get 26 guaranteed home games between the CFL and MLS + Playoffs. It makes more sense to invest 400-600 million and have a year round asset capable of hosting anything the city is presented with. Why do a 150M lipstick on pig job for a Grey cup once every 6-8 years and a Habs game once every second decade?

Nobody here is suggesting that approaching a half billion dollar renovation with any form of carelessness is the right move. But to suggest that an open air version with shiny new seats is going to revive the place or see any net positives is Ludacris.

New roof, New lower stands and a complete Modern Upgrade. Or you might as well let the Pig rot. You're absolutely delusional if you think FIFA would have even blinked at Montreal if they just removed the roof and replaced the seats and called it good enough. To them Commonwealth would look like SoFi stadium in comparison to the BIG O. And if you think the ALS or CFM Are moving to the Big O in its current form or open air version of its current form you're equally delusional.

2-3 years of design work for some lower stands? What planet do you live on?

But your comment about a civil war is what got me. You clearly don't think logically, So your meaningless ranting is actually on brand for you. This isn't a political thread so please don't come back with a response about it

[Tvisforme]

Originally Posted by Oilkountry

....I was going to play a drinking game of everytime you've mentioned taylor swift but unfortunately I would have died 2 pages back....

You'd have survived until only two pages back? That's pretty impressive given how many posts they've made. I'd be down long before then.

[northernlights99]

well I guess with no Taylor Swift concert then this will be the end result, they might as well do the implosion as they did in Seattle, this is probably what they will announce, sad :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yt2ekbkDVv4

[EpicPonyTime]

No lie, if Taylor Swift somehow got Olympic Stadium renovated, I'd jump on the bandwagon. That'd be a pretty huge accomplishment.

In non-Olympic Stadium news, it was announced today that IG Field has been renamed to Princess Auto Stadium. I suspect Rogers decided they have enough venues named after them?

[elly63]

Originally Posted by northernlights99

well I guess with no Taylor Swift concert then this will be the end result, they might as well do the implosion as they did in Seattle, this is probably what they will announce

If you spent less time trolling and more time reading you'd know that can't be done to the Big O. It would have to be disassembled.

Isn't Taylor Swift a grown 🞵🞵🞵 woman who sings songs like she's still a teenager. Isn't that kinda pervy?

[Rollerstud98]

Originally Posted by elly63

If you spent less time trolling and more time reading you'd know that can't be done to the Big O. It would have to be disassembled.

Isn't Taylor Swift a grown 🞵🞵🞵 woman who sings songs like she's still a teenager. Isn't that kinda pervy?

I hope you don’t like blink 182.

[Djeffery]

Originally Posted by elly63

Isn't Taylor Swift a grown 🞵🞵🞵 woman who sings songs like she's still a teenager. Isn't that kinda pervy?

Better than being a teeny bopper and singing songs meant for a grown 🞵🞵🞵 woman. LeAnn Rimes at 14 singing a song called Commitment with such lyrics as "I want a man with staying power that makes me go week in the knees". Yeah, and then gets arrested after lol.

When my daughter was home over Christmas, we rented the Eras Tour video and I enjoyed it. Sure, she's outgrown the teen country school love song phase of her life, but that's what made her a star to begin with and half her audience wants to still hear those songs from all of 17 years ago.

[ScreamingViking]

Originally Posted by EpicPonyTime

In non-Olympic Stadium news, it was announced today that IG Field has been renamed to Princess Auto Stadium. I suspect Rogers decided they have enough venues named after them?

Thank you for introducing something completely different!

I love Princess Auto. Hence, I stay away. Because in those stores I will ALWAYS find something I like but do not really need.

Anyway, it will be odd to make the new connection, but it's nice to see something that's more offbeat in a corporate name, in Canada.

[craner]

Yeah - gonna take some getting used to it not being IG Field.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by ScreamingViking

Anyway, it will be odd to make the new connection, but it's nice to see something that's more offbeat in a corporate name, in Canada.

And as was posted in the CFL thread, finally good to see some new artificial turf.

FieldTurf Vertex Core 1, wlth CoolPlay TPE infill, FIFA Quality Pro certified in May 2024.

[WhipperSnapper]

They gotta find a place for price wreckers in the branding. Best slogan ever!

[Mr. Drumgold]

Lurker surfacing...

I was interested to see the discussion of retaining the tower but not the stadium, as I've always wondered why that never seems to be voiced as an option (cost of demolition aside). Seems possible to construct a new stadium to aesthetically match the tower. As mentioned it is somewhat analogous to the CN Tower as a partner structure to the Dome, and could be used for lighting installations and other entertainment suspensions.

Either way, the future of the stadium has to be multi-purpose: international soccer, concerts, Grey Cups and CFL playoffs, MLS playoffs, even hockey. This eliminates baseball, which I reluctantly say as someone who became an Expos fan at the Big O--but MLB is a fickle partner which also demands a single-use facility. Having the Als and FC Montreal as major tenants would be great, but even with party decks, will it still feel simply too cavernous?

This may be fantasyland, but I wonder if it would be possible to build a stadium-within-a stadium so the spectator structure is new and more intimately nestled under the ring, and open up the old shell so it becomes more of a concourse with a relationship to the outside plazas rather than a barrier that makes them feel dead. This is an engineering question I can't answer. But while a tunnel entrance from the Metro was handy for those April baseball games, I would have loved to have glimpsed the sky even once between entering the Metro an hour before the game and emerging an hour after it ended.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by Mr. Drumgold

This may be fantasyland, but I wonder if it would be possible to build a stadium-within-a stadium so the spectator structure is new and more intimately nestled under the ring, and open up the old shell so it becomes more of a concourse with a relationship to the outside plazas rather than a barrier that makes them feel dead. This is an engineering question I can't answer.

I have thought that exact same thing, that's why I posted wondering about putting temporary stands in there while the long term work was being done (a stadium within a stadium)

While the situation is very different, Red Bull Arena (Leipzig) was built within the former stadium as it was large enough to have a new stadium built inside, also similar to Chicago's Soldier Field

In 1997, the city of Leipzig decided to build a new stadium within the old stadium, a modern state of the art stadium only for football. Construction of the new stadium took place from December 2000 to March 2004. A similar endeavour of constructing a new stadium within the confines of an historic stadium's exterior was completed in Chicago's Soldier Field, which similarly built a modern stadium while preserving the exterior of the original structure. (Wikipedia)

Not quite the same as the Big O but the present would be tenants (Als/CFM) are looking at a seating of half of what the stadium holds and much closer to the field. Again, I know it's not the same scenario but I am just pointing out the difference in stadium sizes and what is possible.

[Mr. Drumgold]

Originally Posted by elly63

I have thought that exact same thing, that's why I posted wondering about putting temporary stands in there while the long term work was being done (a stadium within a stadium)

While the situation is very different, Red Bull Arena (Leipzig) was built within the former stadium as it was large enough to have a new stadium built inside, also similar to Chicago's Soldier Field

In 1997, the city of Leipzig decided to build a new stadium within the old stadium, a modern state of the art stadium only for football. Construction of the new stadium took place from December 2000 to March 2004. A similar endeavour of constructing a new stadium within the confines of an historic stadium's exterior was completed in Chicago's Soldier Field, which similarly built a modern stadium while preserving the exterior of the original structure. (Wikipedia)

Not quite the same as the Big O but the present would be tenants (Als/CFM) are looking at a seating of half of what the stadium holds and much closer to the field. Again, I know it's not the same scenario but I am just pointing out the difference in stadium sizes and what is possible.

I was so glad that they were able to save the exterior of Soldier Field. The Leipzig example is very inspirational as well

I guess the difference in scenarios we have to acknowledge is the viable lifespan of the concrete. The technical ring will be new, but everything else is halfway through its life, if not more, based on problems already present in the 90s. So likely they'll replace the ring and the roof--half to save it and half to avoid the cost of demolition--and continue down its road to being condemned.

But if they do open up the sightlines, replace the seats, and re-orient the field, that's something. Lighting and acoustic treatment could go a long way, too.

[northernlights99]

Teeny bopper music, really ? How clueless is this community ? Go to her shows, watch her DVD, there are lots of adults at her shows.

Taylor Swift is a solid performer, show some respect for what she has accomplished instead of taking shots.

What boggles my mind is how people want to spend $ 700 a seat (as they have done at BC Place) to watch the Rolling Stones in July, watching 80 year old performers ? 80 year olds on stage. Ok whatever.

quote:

"I guess the difference in scenarios we have to acknowledge is the viable lifespan of the concrete. The technical ring will be new, but everything else is halfway through its life, if not more, based on problems already present in the 90s. So likely they'll replace the ring and the roof--half to save it and half to avoid the cost of demolition--and continue down its road to being condemned."

BC Place was completed in 1982, Olympic Stadium was opened in 1975, that's a difference of only 7 years. I don't look at BC Place being an "old building", unless the concrete mix used in the two stadiums was different.

Rogers was opened in 1989 and that isn't considered "old".

The only way I can see that the Lower bowl would be ripped out at Olympic and reconfigured (such as what's going on at Rogers) is if Long term leases are signed with the two teams.

I should caution that that is a Huge Lower bowl in Olympic, bigger than the lower at Rogers, it would be a massive project. I'd imagine the lower bowl holds 30,000 plus maybe more, total capacity is 56,000 but they had 66,000 for a Grey Cup.

There would have to be solid leases in place with the two teams before that cost could be justified.

So a project like that can happen further down the line after roof replacement, assuming the stadium will be saved from demolition / implosion, however you want to call such deconstruction.

I still think they can Winterize the stadium and leave the roof replacement till late next year 2025 or 2026 to accommodate Summer Concerts and a Winter Outdoor hockey game.

It will be the last opportunity to have the stadium as truly Open air, if they decide to keep it.

[ericmacm]

A trademark has been filed for the Brampton Steelheads as of January 17. Looks like the Mississauga Steelheads might be leaving Paramount Fine Foods Centre in the near future, leaving Mississauga without an OHL team once again.

I hope this makes Mississauga start rethinking the location of the arena and start planning for its future replacement along the Hurontario LRT or in MCC.

[Dalreg]

Why is this posted in the Olympic Stadium thread? LOL (SARCASM).

Seriously is it mandatory for Toronto area teams to relocate every decade or so?

[Tvisforme]

Originally Posted by northernlights99

....show some respect....

I'd strongly suggest that it is you who needs to demonstrate respect for this community by not relentlessly obsessing about Ms Swift every time you post.

[elly63]

Man arrested again outside Taylor Swift’s townhouse less than 48 hours after prior arrest there
John Miller and Celina Tebor CNN January 23, 2024

Can somebody check an IP?