Stadiums and Arenas of Canada

[Dwils01]

I think Tim Horton's field could be completed on the schedule as long as the weather cooperates. This winter has been brutal and I'm sure it has slowed down a lot of construction projects in southern Ontario.

[FrankieFlowerpot]

Per Migs in the New Riders stadium thread

Originally Posted by Migs

Announcement of the winning bid is confirmed for Friday.

[esquire]

While looking for a pic of the Commonwealth Stadium end zone for another thread I came across this classic photo that I've never seen before:



Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tindra1/6824053014/sizes/l/in/photostream/

Judging by the fact that the stadium is fully built out with corner seating but still has the pre-BC Place 25 yard end zones (bring 'em back!), I'm going to guess that this photo was likely taken in 1982.

I love how Commonwealth looked back then, all clean lines and unadorned with clutter and advertising everywhere. The only people on the sidelines were the ones who needed to be there without the army of bystanders and hangers-on.

When Commonwealth is filled up like that it has a big-time feeling that only Olympic Stadium among Canadian sports venues could match.

[FrankieFlowerpot]

MLSE are asking the City, Provincial and Federal governments to kick in $10million each for the proposed BMO Field expansion

[elly63]

Will be interesting to see their excuse for trying to get money out of the feds. Hmm, just thought of it, upgrade for Pan AM Games.

[FrankieFlowerpot]

The City gets a cut from the stadium profits as well. Is the outlay worth the return?

The city's portion of stadium revenue will increase from $396K per year to over $850K under this new agreement

[Welkin]

Originally Posted by esquire

While looking for a pic of the Commonwealth Stadium end zone for another thread I came across this classic photo that I've never seen before:



Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tindra1/6824053014/sizes/l/in/photostream/

Judging by the fact that the stadium is fully built out with corner seating but still has the pre-BC Place 25 yard end zones (bring 'em back!), I'm going to guess that this photo was likely taken in 1982.

I love how Commonwealth looked back then, all clean lines and unadorned with clutter and advertising everywhere. The only people on the sidelines were the ones who needed to be there without the army of bystanders and hangers-on.

When Commonwealth is filled up like that it has a big-time feeling that only Olympic Stadium among Canadian sports venues could match.

Great picture. Thanks.

[Steveston]

Originally Posted by esquire

While looking for a pic of the Commonwealth Stadium end zone for another thread I came across this classic photo that I've never seen before:



Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tindra1/6824053014/sizes/l/in/photostream/

Judging by the fact that the stadium is fully built out with corner seating but still has the pre-BC Place 25 yard end zones (bring 'em back!), I'm going to guess that this photo was likely taken in 1982.

I love how Commonwealth looked back then, all clean lines and unadorned with clutter and advertising everywhere. The only people on the sidelines were the ones who needed to be there without the army of bystanders and hangers-on.

When Commonwealth is filled up like that it has a big-time feeling that only Olympic Stadium among Canadian sports venues could match.

http://cfl.uploads.mrx.ca/league/images/en/gallery/2011/12/1600234.jpg

This is pretty darn close, I'd say.

[isaidso]

Ahh, when the CFL was in its hey day! It says a lot that Edmonton could fill that stadium 32 years ago when their population was much much smaller.

[Coldrsx]

Amazing what a real team can do...

[esquire]

Originally Posted by Coldrsx

Amazing what a real team can do...

Very true... the 1978-1982 Eskimos were arguably the CFL's greatest dynasty. A good chunk of the players on those teams made it to the hall of fame.

[tomthumb2]

Those were the glory days for Edmonton but not really for the rest of the league. Montreal was dead and Calgary and Sask almost folded. Still a great pic though! (and real grass too)

[esquire]

Originally Posted by tomthumb2

Those were the glory days for Edmonton but not really for the rest of the league. Montreal was dead and Calgary and Sask almost folded. Still a great pic though! (and real grass too)

1982 would have been the beginning of the end of the peak years for the CFL... western teams were still flying high with large crowds and profitable teams (Calgary and Sask were still in good shape), but the eastern teams entered in a decline that to this day they have never really managed to get out of.

The Argos still drew respectable crowds but had definitely slipped from their long-time status as the city's number two team, and the Ticats and Rough Riders were no longer drawing sellout crowds. As you pointed out, Montreal was entering a period of turbulence under Nelson Skalbania that would result in the team folding.

It's actually pretty amazing how sharply the CFL declined in a relatively short time span... in 1980 it was flush with cash and the future was bright, and by 1986 the bottom was falling out and it was a fight for survival that would last for a good 15 years or so.

[EdFromOttawa]

Originally Posted by esquire

1982 would have been the beginning of the end of the peak years for the CFL... western teams were still flying high with large crowds and profitable teams (Calgary and Sask were still in good shape), but the eastern teams entered in a decline that to this day they have never really managed to get out of.

The Argos still drew respectable crowds but had definitely slipped from their long-time status as the city's number two team, and the Ticats and Rough Riders were no longer drawing sellout crowds. As you pointed out, Montreal was entering a period of turbulence under Nelson Skalbania that would result in the team folding.

It's actually pretty amazing how sharply the CFL declined in a relatively short time span... in 1980 it was flush with cash and the future was bright, and by 1986 the bottom was falling out and it was a fight for survival that would last for a good 15 years or so.

The CFL has one of the most interesting histories of rise, decline, and rising again. I would interested in comparing the current rise against the 'glory days' of the 1960s-1980.

[Migs]

Originally Posted by FrankieFlowerpot

Per Migs in the New Riders stadium thread

http://www.leaderpost.com/news/regina/Builder+Regina+stadium+revealed+tomorrow/9614626/story.html

There ya go. The design itself will be revealed later this month. I'm told to imagine something kinda similar to a 33,500 seat version of Red Bull Arena Leipzig, Germany.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by EdFromOttawa

The CFL has one of the most interesting histories of rise, decline, and rising again. I would interested in comparing the current rise against the 'glory days' of the 1960s-1980.

The CFL is in good shape these days, but it is in the NFL's shadow much more in a way that I'm not sure will change in our lifetimes.

Recall that in that late 70s-early 80s peak, the league was building and filling stadiums on par with anything in the NFL at the time... Montreal, BC, Toronto and Edmonton all played in stadiums that would have been the envy of any NFL team in that era, and had it lasted a few years longer I'm sure a couple more would have been built in other cities. Nowadays, the thought of building and filling something on the scale of MetLife Stadium or Cowboys Stadium for a CFL team is downright impossible.

Player salaries were much more competitive then too... a CFL team could snag the odd high-profile player whereas these days it's virtually impossible given the enormous payroll gap that exists.

So even though the CFL is in much better shape than it was during the 90s and the on-field action is as good as it ever was, I'd argue that the economic gap between it and the NFL has widened significantly which is obviously to the CFL's detriment.

[CorbinW]

Speaking of the CFL's history, does anyone know of a good book discussing it in detail? I'm young so I've only experienced the most recent years of the league but it's still a very interesting subject to me. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[thurmas]

CorbinW probably the best book is "a passing game" by Frank Cosentino which chronicles the league from 1970 to 1995

[J.OT13]

From the Ottawa forum;

Originally Posted by Ecriptic

[IMG][/IMG]

Originally Posted by EdFromOttawa

Hey guys there is a comprehensive picture update on the TD Place facebook page, but here are some highlights. Pictures taken today (Monday, March 10).

This stadium is really coming along and will be an absolutely fantastic place to catch Ottawa Fury and Ottawa Redblacks games...

I can't emphasize enough how proud I am at this project, both for our city, and for our pro sports scene. This is something every Ottawan should be excited about. What an opportunity to get our city on the map like never before.

Enjoy.













And for those curious about TD Place Arena (formerly Civic Center), this is what it currently looks like. Scaffolding city. The whole place is getting a complete and total refresh. Gonna be the crown jewel of the OHL no doubt about it.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by Migs

Builder of Regina’s new stadium to be revealed tomorrow
There ya go. The design itself will be revealed later this month. I'm told to imagine something kinda similar to a 33,500 seat version of Red Bull Arena Leipzig, Germany.