boban1 Posted September 25, 2008 Share Posted September 25, 2008 quote:Originally posted by Bill Ault ^ I believe the teams involved would be: Anschutz Group: LA Galaxy, Houston Dynamo in MLS and LA Kings in NHL MLSE: Toronto FC and Toronto Maple Leafs Hunt Sports: Columbus and FC Dallas in MLS and Columbus in NHL Kroenke Sports: Colorado Rapids in MLS and Colorado Avalanche in MLS Sports Capital Partners: Real Salt Lake in MLS and the St. Louis Blues in NHL In that case then you have to take out the MLSE vote away from the MLS board. There is a genuine despise between MLSE and Melnyk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Ault Posted September 25, 2008 Share Posted September 25, 2008 ^ Not when it comes to making money there isn't.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boban1 Posted September 25, 2008 Share Posted September 25, 2008 quote:Originally posted by Bill Ault ^ Not when it comes to making money there isn't.... You're right. But MLSE could just as easily make the money with Montreal as opposed to Melnyk, ergo Ottawa doesn't get Toronto's vote. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Ault Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 quote:Originally posted by boban1 But MLSE could just as easily make the money with Montreal as opposed to Melnyk, ergo Ottawa doesn't get Toronto's vote. True but as far as I know Saputo unless Gilett comes on board cannot support MLSE on NHL matters... and at these levels that matters most. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest speedmonk42 Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 I will support this team if they put the stadium on that big lawn in front of the parliament building. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Ault Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 ^ How many fields do you think we could squeeze in their for a National Soccer Day? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex M Posted September 26, 2008 Share Posted September 26, 2008 quote:Originally posted by boban1 In that case then you have to take out the MLSE vote away from the MLS board. There is a genuine despise between MLSE and Melnyk. Uhh, there is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulV Posted September 30, 2008 Share Posted September 30, 2008 The Ottawa Rapidz (sic) Can-Am baseball team is folding, so the baseball stadium once again has no tenant. Wonder if this might work its way into the MLS bid? Much more central than the proposed location, and right on the Queensway. http://www.ottawasun.com/Sports/Baseball/2008/09/29/6923261.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norton Posted September 30, 2008 Share Posted September 30, 2008 I'm not sure that could work -- They would have to double the seating capacity and there is no parking as it is. Actually, I believe the old Lynx owners still have a lawsuit pending against the city for selling off the stadium's parking lots for development, which broke the city's contract with the Lynx and had a big impact on their gate revenue. Any time they did attract a decent crowd, there wouldn't be any parking nearby and the Lynx ended up losing out on a lot of potential fans who just got frustrated and left instead of buying tickets. I guess we'll see if it comes into play, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Ault Posted September 30, 2008 Share Posted September 30, 2008 ^ Field will not quite fit - close very close but not quite I've measured it myself... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peachgrinder Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 gotta love this city: "We're going to jack your rent from 100000 to 1000000. Enjoy". I think Mr. Hall called their bluff. Now there is no tenant for the stadium. What a farce. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe MacCarthy Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 Group unveils plan for football and Lansdowne Park Revitalized stadium, aquarium, soccer pitches, hotel all part of the plan DEREK PUDDICOMBE, Sun Media A proposal to bring a professional football team back to Ottawa includes giving Frank Clair Stadium a major facelift — and lots of underground parking. The game plan will also include keeping the farmers market which is growing in popularity among Ottawa residents and lots of green space. There are also plans to renovate the Civic Centre — home to the Ottawa 67s hockey club. The proposal for the 18-hectare property situated along the historic Rideau Canal in the upscale Glebe neighbourhood doesn't include any residential development. Other details of the proposal: - a 25,000-seat state-of-the-art stadium for pro and amateur football, soccer and community events and major concerts. - refurbished arena and exhibition hall - an aquarium to be housed in Aberdeen Pavilion - soccer pitches - an ultimate disc field, - formal gardens and ponds, - a 2,000-seat outdoor amphitheatre, - a 200,000-square-foot retail and restaurant complex located where the Coliseum now stands. - new hotel The developers say they're prepared to secure $120 million in private funding to make it happen. The Sun has learned that the group of local businessmen, Bill Shenkman, chairman of the Shenkman Group of Companies, Roger Greenberg, chairman and CEO of Minto, John Ruddy, president of Trinity Development Group and Jeff Hunt, owner of the Ottawa 67's, the group behind the plan to revitalize the park, are also looking for a longterm agreement with the city. The group wants the city to maintain its current level of investment in Lansdowne Park but without any added burden to the city taxpayers. The businessmen were awarded a Canadian Football League franchise earlier this year on the condition that fans have access to an appropriate stadium by 2010. When the CFL announced the franchise opportunity last spring, the group said Frank Clair Stadium was the only place to have a professional football team play ball. They want to restore the stadium to its glory days. They are not considering building a modern sports facility anywhere else in the city. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSoccerFan Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 Very tactical on their part. Saying it is also being built for soccer and with soccer fields around it is a blatant attempt to kill Melnyk's chances of getting any government funding. Now city councillors will have a bunch of legit arguments up their sleeve to kill any stadium deal for Melnyk and divert any public funds to Landowne. Not that it matters because Ottawa has no prayer of getting into MLS anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe MacCarthy Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 Perhaps another type of power play. Remember the Leafs/Raptors dueling arena battle? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 Just watching a replay of the Lansdowne news conference on local Rogers station. The group planning the revitalization gave some interesting information. -Though the group primarily is interested in bringing the CFL back to Ottawa, the new stadium would be soccer friendly to the point of having natural grass (if necessary for a MLS franchise) although this group will not be bidding for such a franchise. -Millwall FC will be coming to Ottawa (and Boston) next summer and will play a match at Frank Clair. Don't know who the opposition will be. -A new 8-team semi-pro league will be starting in Quebec next year and will have a team in Gatineau. In the future that team might play out of the new stadium if it is built. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 Just watching a replay of the Lansdowne news conference on local Rogers station. The group planning the revitalization gave some interesting information. -Though the group primarily is interested in bringing the CFL back to Ottawa, the new stadium would be soccer friendly to the point of having natural grass (if necessary for a MLS franchise) although this group will not be bidding for such a franchise. -Millwall FC will be coming to Ottawa (and Boston) next summer and will play a match at Frank Clair. Don't know who the opposition will be. -A new 8-team semi-pro league will be starting in Quebec next year and will have a team in Gatineau. In the future that team might play out of the new stadium if it is built. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 ^ Will this new Quebec semi-pro league be associated in any way with the CSL out of Toronto or will it be an independent venture? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe MacCarthy Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 Ottawa's ownership group unveils stadium plans By Chris Yzerman, THE CANADIAN PRESS OTTAWA - With the clock running on Ottawa's bid to bring the CFL back to Canada's capital, its potential ownership group made its latest play Friday by unveiling plans for a revamped home for the team. A group of area developers is proposing an ambitious $120-million makeover that would see Lansdowne Park and its dilapidated Frank Clair Stadium converted into a 25,000-seat sports facility with an adjacent amphitheatre, aquarium and hotel as well as retail, office and green space. It could accommodate professional football and soccer events, as well as concerts for up to 40,000 fans. It's also the latest development in what's turning out to be a battle between competing bids for pro franchises between the two sports. "There's been a lot of public sentiment about what should be here. What we've tried to do is represent that input," said Jeff Hunt, owner of the Ontario Hockey League's Ottawa 67's, following a news conference to reveal the CFL group's proposal. Since the demise of the Ottawa Renegades prior to the start of the 2006 season, any attempts to revive pro football have faced the hurdle of finding either a new home or convincing the city to allow for the redevelopment of the current stadium. In the spring, the CFL granted Hunt's group a conditional franchise pending its ability to get the matter resolved. The league's offer is set to expire in March, so the Ottawa group is keen to get the ball rolling. It's scheduled to meet with the city on Monday, when it will present a more detailed proposal. Roger Greenberg, chairman and chief executive of Minto Developments Inc., said the plans were just "Step 2 of 122" in the process. The group was hoping to be in play for 2010, but meeting that date might prove too ambitious. "We haven't formally ruled out the 2010 season," Hunt said, "but as this goes on, it may not be reasonable to hit that date." There are many other potential stumbling blocks in the group's way. Hunt's group is proposing a 30-year lease of the land and has to convince the city to agree to pay for the cost of the facelift and maintaining its current operating and repair costs, while it will up the money for the rest. At the urging of a local city councillor, a large number of residents of the downtown neighbourhood in which the stadium sits hijacked the news conference to voice their concerns, ranging from transit and parking troubles to problems with the land's soil. More interesting, however, is the competition that's emerging between the CFL group and Eugene Melnyk's Senators Sports & Entertainment. Earlier this week, Melnyk, owner of the NHL's Ottawa Senators, officially submitted through his group a bid for an expansion Major League Soccer franchise. Tied to that bid is a $100-million soccer-specific stadium near the Senators' Scotiabank Place home. With the city unlikely to back both, it's essentially become a choice between pro football, pro soccer, or neither. Although both facilities have said they could accommodate both sports, they've ruled out any partnership and there appears to be no love lost between the two sides. Asked about the possibility of a partnership with Melnyk's group, Bill Shenkman, chairman of the Shenkman Group of Companies, said representatives from the groups met and ruled out the idea. Both Shenkman and Hunt said they have no interest in bringing an MLS club to Ottawa, although soccer would be accommodated in other ways. Shenkman is a shareholder in Millwall FC, which plays soccer in England's League One, and plans are already in place for that club to play a pre-season friendly in Ottawa next August. "We're not asking him anything. He had his press conference, very short on details," Shenkman said in reference to a news conference Melnyk held last month to launch the MLS bid. "They were absolutely clear they were not interesting in sharing or participating in any partnership. "It was Scotiabank Place or nothing and MLS or nothing." Shortly after Friday's news conference by the CFL group, Melnyk issued his own statement, which appeared to highlight some of the potential flaws in the downtown plan. "Today's proposal gives our community another alternative to consider in resolving the city's future for a multi-purpose outdoor stadium. Today's option will provide healthy and constructive debate on a vitally important issue for our city," it read. "Proper, modern-day stadium planning must take into consideration a number of key variables, including access to public transit, a site development plan to manage high vehicular traffic, access to a minimum of 7,500 parking spots, experienced large-scale facility operators, and a fully integrated organization with a proven track record of attracting and maximizing the diverse range of sporting and entertainment opportunities fitting of a world-class venue. "I'm confident the City of Ottawa and our community will carefully and fully evaluate these and many other factors as it plans the future location of our city's stadium." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VPjr Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 quote:Originally posted by Richard ^ Will this new Quebec semi-pro league be associated in any way with the CSL out of Toronto or will it be an independent venture? very good question....this is the first I've heard of a Quebec semi-pro league. I'll ask around and report back Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBZitch Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 http://www.lansdownelive.ca/gallery.asp Looks pretty decent (possible soccer setup) Weird that they want to have those small endzone stands, there wouldn't be any room for temp. bleachers if they host the Grey Cup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boban1 Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 This stadium is a joke. There is really nothing new about it. Landsdowne stays the same with basically minor aesthetic changes to make one believe its actually a new stadium. Looks at the North Grandstand. It doesn't change except the roof if is rounded to give the effect that the look of the stadium is different. The structure is existing!! And the south grandstand which is where all the current problems are? Its back to a two tier stand, although modernized, which only very slightly contours to the field. Its basically a straight grandstand as before. I must say I am disappointed. With a stadium renewal I was under the impression we would see something different. Its same old cheapness that I see. Why is it that for a large part (Regina, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Calgary), stadiums in Canada are built with basically only sideline stands. Nothing about making it more intimate and endearing to atmosphere that an encircled stadium would make it - At least let's have one end properly closed in this renewed stadium. Sorry, but purely based on looks, I would take Melnyk's stadium in a heartbeat. Its not even close. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSoccerFan Posted October 19, 2008 Share Posted October 19, 2008 Check this out from the FAQ section quote:Could your proposed stadium be used for MLS Soccer? We believe so. The seating could be expandable in the end zones, which means it could be configured to intimately surround the field, which is an MSL stipulation. We have also received permission from the CFL to install natural turf if that's one of the requirements for soccer. Have you spoken to Mr. Melnyk? Are you willing to work together on one stadium proposal? Our proposed stadium is part of a major downtown revitalization, not just about where to play football and/or soccer. Lansdowne Live is where we want to work and where we want to play. Would we be able to accommodate Mr. Melnyk's team if he should secure one? It's something we're very open to discussing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brettinhalifax Posted October 19, 2008 Share Posted October 19, 2008 bobfan1 Only the lower south stands were a problem, the upper deck is fine. They were never talking about building an entirely new stadium at the old site, AFAIK it was always about replacing what needed to be replaced and renovating the rest. The 25,000 best seats are on the sidelines between the endzone, so generally Canadian and American football stadiums put the first 25,000 seats there. In soccer, end stands are about 120 yards from a score at the other end. In Canadian football, end stands can be over 150 yards from a scoring play. I agree that this stadium isn't ideal for soccer, but at least it isn't in Kanata. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray Posted October 20, 2008 Share Posted October 20, 2008 quote:Originally posted by Richard ^ Will this new Quebec semi-pro league be associated in any way with the CSL out of Toronto or will it be an independent venture? From what was said at the news conference, it sounded like the new league was not associated with the CSL. I wonder if the Quebec franchisees in the new league would have considered joining the CSL if their expansion fees were not so high. Edit: Here is a link to a story on the Gatineau franchise: http://www.cyberpresse.ca/le-droit/sports/200809/23/01-22884-gatineau-alignera-une-equipe-semi-pro-de-foot.php It is owned by Pierre Donais who MCed the Lansdowne news conference. The article says the league will start in 2010, so I may have misheard regarding a 2009 start. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luis_Rancagua Posted October 20, 2008 Share Posted October 20, 2008 quote:Originally posted by ray From what was said at the news conference, it sounded like the new league was not associated with the CSL. I wonder if the Quebec franchisees in the new league would have considered joining the CSL if their expansion fees were not so high. If this new league is NOT associated with the CSL, then this whole project is a DOA from the start. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.