Stadiums & Arenas of Canada, Part 3 - Page 97

Calgarian · #1 Posted **Nov 28, 2018, 11:34 PM**

How long of a drive is it from CTC into Ottawa? according to Google maps, it's only 23km to Downtown Ottawa. I thought Kanata was much further out than that...

JHikka · #2 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 2:04 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Calgarian

How long of a drive is it from CTC into Ottawa? according to Google maps, it's only 23km to Downtown Ottawa. I thought Kanata was much further out than that...

Now add traffic.

On a weeknight it's a 40ish minute drive from Downtown to CTC if you're lucky, before you have to worry about parking.

Quote:

Originally Posted by roccerfeller

Do fans from the Atlantic feel any inter-provincial rivalry for this team would be a factor in support?

Yeah, but it depends on the where and what. There's some animosity between the provinces but we've never had anything on a national scale that represents the region before.

Intraprovincial rivalries are a really big thing, too. Loads of people in Saint John hate Moncton and Fredericton for an endless supply of reasons. Likewise for Halifax and wherever.

EpicPonyTime · #3 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 7:19 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by JHikka

Now add traffic.

On a weeknight it's a 40ish minute drive from Downtown to CTC if you're lucky, before you have to worry about parking.

Honestly, if I was from Ottawa the drive wouldn't dissuade me as much as the paid parking would. I can put up with Sask Place's crappy location because at least it doesn't cost anything to park there.

Acajack · #4 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 1:56 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by EpicPonyTime

Honestly, if I was from Ottawa the drive wouldn't dissuade me as much as the paid parking would. I can put up with Sask Place's crappy location because at least it doesn't cost anything to park there.

Yes, the 20-dollar parking fee (in the middle of nowhere, as the yarn goes) has been a big irritant for Senators fans. I believe they finally cut it down to 12 dollars this season, as a result.

J.OT13 · #5 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 12:53 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Calgarian

How long of a drive is it from CTC into Ottawa? according to Google maps, it's only 23km to Downtown Ottawa. I thought Kanata was much further out than that...

Quote:

Originally Posted by JHikka

Now add traffic.

On a weeknight it's a 40ish minute drive from Downtown to CTC if you're lucky, before you have to worry about parking.

Getting a parking spot can take 20 minutes, getting out can take 40 to 60. So one must plan for a grand total of about 2 to 3 hours in the car. Getting in by bus isn't a whole lot better than by car because they get stuck in the same traffic, but getting out is much quicker since they added a bus only ramp out of the CTC a few years back.

https://twitter.com/CdnTireCtr/statu...30656044666881

Acajack · #6 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 1:58 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Getting a parking spot can take 20 minutes, getting out can take 40 to 60. So one must plan for a grand total of about 2 to 3 hours in the car. Getting in by bus isn't a whole lot better than by car because they get stuck in the same traffic, but getting out is much quicker since they added a bus only ramp out of the CTC a few years back.

https://twitter.com/CdnTireCtr/statu...30656044666881

I live 35 km door to door from the Canadian Tire Centre. Of those 35 km, just under 30 km are on freeways. And yet if I am going to or from a Senators game, it basically takes an hour and half between the time I leave and the time I arrive on foot at the door of my destination.

wave46 · #7 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 3:20 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acajack

I live 35 km door to door from the Canadian Tire Centre. Of those 35 km, just under 30 km are on freeways. And yet if I am going to or from a Senators game, it basically takes an hour and half between the time I leave and the time I arrive on foot at the door of my destination.

To rehash a point - arenas in the boonies tend not to do well. What can you do out in Kanata prior to/after a game?

At least on a transit line or in the city itself, you don't necessarily have to worry about these things, or the downside is mitigated.

For a venue that has only a few special events per year, most people will make the drive. For a venue that is reliant on 40+ games per year, you need to be accessible.

Hence, my assessment of CTC as a 'failure'.

roccerfeller · #8 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 12:27 AM**

Do fans from the Atlantic feel any inter-provincial rivalry for this team would be a factor in support?

Saskatoon may be a similar driving distance to Regina as Moncton is from Halifax, but Saskatoon and Regina are in the same province, whereas in Atlantic Canada you have the Maritimes as well as Newfoundland, all with varying degrees of rivalry (i'm originally from Newfoundland, and I feel we took pride in the distinction from the Maritimes)

I do understand that cities may have their own rivalries which can be comparable (i.e. Saskatoon vs Regina) and thus can play similarly to regional rivalries, but my question to those living there and who would be directly supporting the team is:
Does it make a difference given the inter-provincial distinction?
Or would it be like Saskatchewan?

MonctonRad · #9 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 1:31 AM**

I think it would have some bearing, yes, but I am uncertain as to how much.

Nouvellecosse · #10 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 4:21 AM**

I'm not aware of Halifax having any intraprovincial rivalries. Other than maybe Dal vs St. Mary's type stuff.

someone123 · #11 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 6:07 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse

I'm not aware of Halifax having any intraprovincial rivalries. Other than maybe Dal vs St. Mary's type stuff.

The rivalries tend to be specific. It would be hard for there to be a rivalry of the Atlantic Schooners vs. a nonexistent team elsewhere in the region. If there were another CFL team then I'm sure a rivalry could develop. I don't really see that happening in Atlantic Canada though. It will be 0-1 teams for the foreseeable future.

This is a bit controversial but people in Halifax tend not to reciprocate whatever sense of rivalry exists in other cities in the region. The relationship in that sense is something like Toronto-Hamilton (or Toronto-Calgary) rather than Regina-Saskatoon or Edmonton-Calgary.

The provincial boundaries in the Maritimes and Atlantic Canada are a bit less significant than elsewhere in Canada I would say. BC, Ontario, and Quebec feel more like the Maritimes than just Nova Scotia in terms of connectedness versus being little islands. Newfoundland is a bit less connected but then again it's no less connected than northern BC or northern Ontario.

J.OT13 · #12 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 4:57 PM**

To answer the question of what can one do before the game, many restaurants in the Kanata area, and even elsewhere in the city, offer their own bus service to and from NHL games (and maybe other events?) at the CTC. Options after the games are more limited, however.

I think the CTC served us well for the first 20 years or so, but with the Kanata area now having a population of 120,000+, adding to the congestion, we're reaching a breaking point. The anticipation around the downtown arena proposal didn't help. A lot of people, I think, decided to "postpone" their support for the Sens until the team moved. Now that the new arena dream is likely dead, I don't see any way of getting people back to Kanata until maybe the O-Train is extended to the Palladium.

Worth noting that the Province widened the Queensway (417) in Kanata to 10 lanes a few years back, including an HOV lane in each direction. That doesn't help much though because the biggest problem was always getting in and out of the parking lot, and the Queensway reduces to 8 and 6 lanes headed back downtown, which has a funnel effect slowing down traffic even more.

I would say that in 1996, the Palladium it was a workable compromise for a team that could not secure a downtown location. By 2016, the situation stared to fail, despite the best efforts of the team ownership and government (and were talking about the location and transportation issues, not the product on ice).

Acajack · #13 Posted **Nov 29, 2018, 6:13 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by J.OT13

To answer the question of what can one do before the game, many restaurants in the Kanata area, and even elsewhere in the city, offer their own bus service to and from NHL games (and maybe other events?) at the CTC. Options after the games are more limited, however.

I think the CTC served us well for the first 20 years or so, but with the Kanata area now having a population of 120,000+, adding to the congestion, we're reaching a breaking point..

Regionally-focused stuff like outlet malls, etc. have also opened in Kanata, which also contribute to congestion.

Coldrsx · #14 Posted **Dec 2, 2018, 6:23 PM**

https://twitter.com/kmoorephotos/sta...54496402096128
@kmoorephotos

J.OT13 · #15 Posted **Dec 3, 2018, 4:31 PM**

Looking Good Edmonton!

zahav · #16 Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 10:26 PM**

That Edmonton Arena looks amazing, from this angle especially

esquire · #17 Posted **Dec 7, 2018, 2:18 PM**

Local media are saying that an official announcement regarding the relocation of the Kootenay Ice of the WHL to Winnipeg is coming on Monday. It is expected that this will also involve details regarding the construction of a new 4,500 to 6,000 seat arena in the Rural Municipality of Macdonald, on a site just outside Winnipeg city limits in the southwest corner of the city.

In the meantime, the team is expected to play two seasons at the University of Manitoba's Wayne Fleming Arena.

It will be interesting to see how this venture goes. Winnipeg is a big hockey market but at the moment it's fair to say that it is fixated on the Jets given that they're doing so well. Getting the attention of local fans will be tough, especially when the new team will be stuck playing in such a sub-par venue for the first two years.

megadude · #18 Posted **Dec 7, 2018, 5:04 PM**

That's too bad. I have no connection to Kootenay but I like to see CHL teams in small markets. Just like how I have a greater appreciation for college ball teams in the US in non-pro markets.

I went to the 2011 Memorial Cup and watched Kootenay play the home town team, Mississauga. I had no idea what Kootenay was and had to look it up. Cool name for a cool looking region.

The family in front of me were from the region and travelled to watch the team. I talked to them about the Jays, because they had just rushed over from watching a game at the Dome, and then talked about their beloved Ice.

I feel sorry for the true fans of these junior teams who lose their beloved club. Just like when someone I know from Belleville lost the Bulls. She was a STH and sometimes travelled to watch the team (I watched a game with her playing at Guelph). The Bulls were replaced by the Sens' AHL team, but it wasn't the same and she couldn't care less.

Ya it's gonna be tough to keep all three hockey teams in Winnipeg.

esquire · #19 Posted **Dec 8, 2018, 4:59 PM**

^ No apology necessary, I don't think anyone here has ever regarded Manitoba as part of the PNW region.

Andy6 · #20 Posted **Dec 8, 2018, 9:40 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by esquire

^ No apology necessary, I don't think anyone here has ever regarded Manitoba as part of the PNW region.

Or, to my knowledge, Saskatchewan, Alberta or even all of B.C. (or any of it, really, since PNW is an American term). Vancouver is in Canada's Pacific Southwest, or, on a North American scale, the Central Pacific.