CPL General

[BringBackTheBlizzard]

1 minute ago, mpg_29 said:

I mean Ottawa is already a member, correct? Is Edmonton still...?

Yes, this was mentioned on here not too long ago as Paul Beirne is said to have highlighted this fact at a supporters meeting in Edmonton back in March. 

[DoyleG]

4 hours ago, Alex D said:

Here is Rochester at Frontier field. 

It's not the best but the layout in Edmonton is a little better. 

Actually not.

Re/Max Field has a much more elevated structure due to the decision to have ground level suites at the stadium.

It also has much more of bend in the main stand which would allow it to fit as closely. The left field line is actually shorter than that of Frontier.

[Watchmen]

2 hours ago, BringBackTheBlizzard said:

Almost 100% certain that Paul Beirne mentioned the six as the minimum actively participating to launch thing again as recently as his visit to Edmonton in March.

He did, and it always seemed odd.  Six seems amateurish. They wouldn't start a full season with less than eight.  In reality, it's the bare minimum they could start with while looking professional.  And based on the announcement, that's exactly what they seem to be doing.

[mpg_29]

49 minutes ago, DoyleG said:

Actually not.

Re/Max Field has a much more elevated structure due to the decision to have ground level suites at the stadium.

It also has much more of bend in the main stand which would allow it to fit as closely. The left field line is actually shorter than that of Frontier.

You mean it wouldn't allow it to fit as closely? Because yeah if you look on google maps it has a bend. I feel like if it was a 90 degree angle you could at least shove the field into the corner at have one side of stands and one end of stands....but you can't even have that properly.

This would be far from ideal in person and probably look downright amateurish on TV...

People talk about amenities but you would not really be able to charge premium seating in this like a normal soccer stadium(which is important aspect of maximizing revenue these days)

I look at things like NYCFC and Rochester playing in baseball stadiums as things to avoid...not emulate.

Not to mention aren't there guidelines for stadiums in CPL. Weren't we just debating if stadiums with tracks were allowed or not? Now we are talking about baseball stadium?

There's been a few times when Clanachan has said stuff that seems more of speculative optimism than what Beirne would say...and I wonder if suggesting a baseball stadium is just that.

[Gopherbashi]

4 hours ago, Rheo said:

 

How does this list compare to the Halifax map that had us all in a tissy when the Wanderers made their presentation to council?

[Alex D]

2 hours ago, DoyleG said:

Actually not.

Re/Max Field has a much more elevated structure due to the decision to have ground level suites at the stadium.

It also has much more of bend in the main stand which would allow it to fit as closely. The left field line is actually shorter than that of Frontier.

I wasn't aware of the field level suites, I was just looking at the satelite view. The stands in Edmonton wouldn't "pinch" the soccer field as bad as Rochester and it would be nothing like that aboniation in the Bronx. Obviously a nice cozy Clarke stadium would be preferable. 

[stevensandor]

3 hours ago, BuzzAndSting said:

I was wondering this myself. Maybe @stevensandor knows?

David said "8-10" to me on Friday. So, with FCE already having its sanction in place, and IF Ottawa moves, that's eight. So, going on the word from the commissioner, there must be an ability to get the board together to vote on a sanction if need be.

[baulderdash77]

This is a good starting 8 though.  I think everyone will agree on that.  It’s great to see some more official progress.

[Symp_Res]

35 minutes ago, stevensandor said:

David said "8-10" to me on Friday. So, with FCE already having its sanction in place, and IF Ottawa moves, that's eight. So, going on the word from the commissioner, there must be an ability to get the board together to vote on a sanction if need be.

I mentioned this a few days ago.  The CSA really needs to relinquish control of the santioning of Pro clubs for the CPL to the CPL board.  They can't wait until May every year to accept new members.

[Complete Homer]

2 hours ago, stevensandor said:

 there must be an ability to get the board together to vote on a sanction if need be.

Are conference calls foreign concepts for the CSA? 

[dyslexic nam]

26 minutes ago, Complete Homer said:

Are conference calls foreign concepts for the CSA? 

Yeah, I don't know about the CSA specifically, but special board meetings can be (and are) pulled together for all sorts of reasons.  I find it hard to believe that a club/owner that was ready to go would be told to wait a year because they missed the last meeting.

That isn't to say that there wouldn't be a cut-off for more pragmatic reasons that would make it impossible to accommodate a late entrant, but an inability to convene a special meeting of the Board wouldn't be one of them.

[masster]

8 hours ago, mpg_29 said:

You mean it wouldn't allow it to fit as closely? Because yeah if you look on google maps it has a bend. I feel like if it was a 90 degree angle you could at least shove the field into the corner at have one side of stands and one end of stands....but you can't even have that properly.

This would be far from ideal in person and probably look downright amateurish on TV...

People talk about amenities but you would not really be able to charge premium seating in this like a normal soccer stadium(which is important aspect of maximizing revenue these days)

I look at things like NYCFC and Rochester playing in baseball stadiums as things to avoid...not emulate.

Not to mention aren't there guidelines for stadiums in CPL. Weren't we just debating if stadiums with tracks were allowed or not? Now we are talking about baseball stadium?

There's been a few times when Clanachan has said stuff that seems more of speculative optimism than what Beirne would say...and I wonder if suggesting a baseball stadium is just that.

PGE Park worked very well for the Portland Timbers in their D2 days before they renovated it for MLS. It all depends on the set up of the baseball ground and how a soccer pitch would fit in there.

I remember a few years ago @Unnamed Trialist posted some pictures of the Baseball Stadium from the Barcelona Olympics that was turned into a nice soccer ground. It can be done.

[masster]

12 hours ago, Complete Homer said:

Looks like Dean Shillington is on the right, so that wild theory worked out

Edit:

Time to crowdsource figuring out who is who:

Left to right...

1. Tommy Wheeldon Jr., technical director for Calgary Foothills academy. Has previously denied being involved in ownership of a Calgary team but was interested in some sort of partnership

2. ? 

3. Paul Beirne, league president

4. ? 

5. David Clanachan, league commissioner

6. Rob Friend? Rumoured as an owner for BC

7. Martin, owner of SEA/Halifax team

8. Preben Ganzhorn? 

9. Jim Brennan, one of the York 9 owners. Not pictured is Carlo Baldarrasa, likely the main York 9 owner

10. Guessing Dean Shillington, founder of Knightsbridge Capital, rumoured owner of the BC team

Here is another picture that may help...

Derek Martin‏ @DerekBySEA

FollowingFollowing @DerekBySEA

Excited to a) join these fine gentlemen in growing the beautiful game in Canada and beating them in front of our fanatics @Wanderers_SG + @SoccerNS Can’t wait to get home and get to work...what a day!!!

[masster]

^ Look at that hat in the middle. CPL merchandise exists!!

[Blackdude]

15 hours ago, Complete Homer said:

Looks like Dean Shillington is on the right, so that wild theory worked out

Edit:

Time to crowdsource figuring out who is who:

Left to right...

1. Tommy Wheeldon Jr., technical director for Calgary Foothills academy. Has previously denied being involved in ownership of a Calgary team but was interested in some sort of partnership

2. Ian Allison, senior VP of Spruce Meadows

3. Paul Beirne, league president

4. John Gibson, CPL director of inter-provincial affairs

5. David Clanachan, league commissioner

6. Rob Friend

7. Derek Martin, owner of SEA/Halifax team

8. Preben Ganzhorn, president/woner York9FC

9. Jim Brennan

10. Dean Shillington, founder of Knightsbridge Capital

Fixed your post According to matthew from what is below

https://juneof86.com/2018/05/06/four-more-clubs-get-csa-approval/

[BringBackTheBlizzard]

Good to see this finally starting to approach resolution. The big questions that we should soon start getting solid answers on (assuming that the upcoming 6 or 7 weekly announcements will be all bar Ottawa and possibly Edmonton) are related to stadiums. Can Calgary use the Spruce Meadows showjumping arena or would it be a quick pop-up build at Spruce Meadows in an area already zoned for that sort of use, which city is "Port City" given that looks like a placeholder and there have been rumbles from well-connected members of the Southsiders and Steve Milton of the Hamilton Spectator about the initial BC team possibly being Victoria rather than one of the Fraser Valley municipalities, can Hamilton sort out the litigation soon with the City of Hamilton that is preventing lease negotiations on pro soccer use at THF, is there a viable temporary option for York prior to building at the Keele/Kirby location given the available options are less than ideal and would probably not be considered in any of the other markets, can Edmonton sort out a primary tenancy at Clarke Stadium and is that a deal breaker from Tam Fath's standpoint, and can NIMBYs be fended off in Halifax from adding damaging conditions of use at the Wanderers Grounds like those tacked onto the original 2017 council resolution?

Edited May 6, 2018 by BringBackTheBlizzard

[mpg_29]

4 hours ago, masster said:

PGE Park worked very well for the Portland Timbers in their D2 days before they renovated it for MLS. It all depends on the set up of the baseball ground and how a soccer pitch would fit in there.

I remember a few years ago @Unnamed Trialist posted some pictures of the Baseball Stadium from the Barcelona Olympics that was turned into a nice soccer ground. It can be done.

Right and go look at pictures and google maps and tell me how workable it really is. If it had less of a bend/v-shape I might agree.

To me trying to refurbish/reuse existing structures is only good when it's very clear that it's workable. I don't really see it with Re/Max. You could end up spending 75% or more of what you would have spent on a SSS anyway. Which would be much more ideal.

[BringBackTheBlizzard]

Definitely looks difficult to use from a soccer standpoint:

https://www.google.com/maps/@53.531824,-113.4967957,307m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en

The problem is that it wasn't designed for possible Canadian football use so the stands are at too tight an angle around the infield.

Edited May 6, 2018 by BringBackTheBlizzard

[Complete Homer]

1 hour ago, Blackdude said:

Fixed your post According to matthew from what is below

https://juneof86.com/2018/05/06/four-more-clubs-get-csa-approval/

That's a pretty huge deal confirming that Spruce Meadows/the Southern Family is behind the Calgary team. Barring Baldarrasa being worth than I'm guessing (no public net worth stated but his comparables listed in some real estate trade articles list his peers in the ~1 billion range), the Southern Family might be the wealthiest group in CPL. 

The ownership of this league is looking more and more solid

[mpg_29]

1 hour ago, Complete Homer said:

That's a pretty huge deal confirming that Spruce Meadows/the Southern Family is behind the Calgary team. Barring Baldarrasa being worth than I'm guessing (no public net worth stated but his comparables listed in some real estate trade articles list his peers in the ~1 billion range), the Southern Family might be the wealthiest group in CPL. 

The ownership of this league is looking more and more solid

I'd say if you could get 4 super wealthy owners in this league it would do a lot for stabilization.

[Kent]

So we have been hearing about these weekly team announcements coming up, and that they will include team names, colours, logos. Could these announcements include proper announcements for Winnipeg and Hamilton, since we don't have all that information for them yet?

I feel like people are expecting Ottawa and Edmonton to get announcements in the next 6 weeks, but it could be that the "6 to 7" could include Winnipeg and Hamilton, and potentially Ottawa and Edmonton could come later? Anyways, I'm interested in finding out more about the original teams, as well as the new teams.

Edited May 6, 2018 by Kent

[Complete Homer]

18 minutes ago, mpg_29 said:

I'd say if you could get 4 super wealthy owners in this league it would do a lot for stabilization.

Baldarassa - ~1 billion by my guess. His peers listed were in the 800-2 billion range in real estate trade articles but his net worth was left blank

Southern Family - 2.3 Billion as of 2017

Young - I seem to remember an article from the late 2000s quoting a figure just under a billion, all I see on a quick Google search is "a few hundred million" as of 2005

S|E|A - Hard to pin down. It's also never been made clear if there's other investors in S|E|A outside of Martin

?OSEG - No official number, I remember an article saying Jeff Hunt sold his original company for around 100 million in the early 2000s, obviously has grown since then

Winnipeg Blue Bombers - Community owned

Dean Shillington - Not exactly clear. Knightsbridge's website talks about doing 300 million in financing over the last decade to give a ballpark on the company's size. 

Fath - Always heard a "100-200 million" number thrown around for him but have never seen a source 

Probably looking at around half of the owners being in the extreme end of ultra wealthy, one half maybe a little less sk

Edited May 6, 2018 by Complete Homer

[BuzzAndSting]

2 hours ago, Complete Homer said:

Baldarassa - ~1 billion by my guess. His peers listed were in the 800-2 billion range in real estate trade articles but his net worth was left blank

Southern Family - 2.3 Billion as of 2017

Young - I seem to remember an article from the late 2000s quoting a figure just under a billion, all I see on a quick Google search is "a few hundred million" as of 2005

S|E|A - Hard to pin down. It's also never been made clear if there's other investors in S|E|A outside of Martin

?OSEG - No official number, I remember an article saying Jeff Hunt sold his original company for around 100 million in the early 2000s, obviously has grown since then

Winnipeg Blue Bombers - Community owned

Dean Shillington - Not exactly clear. Knightsbridge's website talks about doing 300 million in financing over the last decade to give a ballpark on the company's size. 

Fath - Always heard a "100-200 million" number thrown around for him but have never seen a source 

Probably looking at around half of the owners being in the extreme end of ultra wealthy, one half maybe a little less sk

OSEG have to have the highest net worth. Hunt’s partners, Shenkman, Greenberg and Ruddy, own the three largest real estate development companies in Eastern Ontario..

[Complete Homer]

18 minutes ago, BuzzAndSting said:

OSEG have to have the highest net worth. Hunt’s partners, Shenkman, Greenberg and Ruddy, own the three largest real estate development companies in Eastern Ontario..

I was under the incorrect impression that Hunt's partners in OSEG were relatively minor, good to know. 

[shermanator]

Meanwhile in Calgary, leg 2 of Al Classico was yesterday.