Crew planning a world-class facility. Working to create an amazing experience #ForColumbus! pic.twitter.com/1NO7FQ9x4L— The Crew (@ColumbusCrew) July 29, 2019
Sorry if these questions have been answered, but is this a done deal? Has the land needed been acquired? Has government signed off? How close are we to shovels hitting the ground? And now I'm going to have to come back to Columbus to visit the new stadium.
Yes. Nearly. Yes. 1-3 months (Sept/Oct). From what we are hearing the last hurdle is a bit of a tug of war between Nationwide Insurance (who owns the last parcel needed) and ownership/architects over what the stadium should look like. Word is Nationwide favors something that matches the style of the surrounding neighborhood & baseball & hockey arena's (brick exteriors), whilst ownership/architects favor something more unique. Of course, once Nationwide sells that parcel, no one will care what they think. But this issue is what will the stadium look like, not if they can get the land.
https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2019...-miamis-two-stadium-projects-theres-no-plan-b At the end of this reasonably good update on Miami's stadium plans, Mas says "We’re anticipating that within the next 60 to 90 days we’ll have something in front of the commission. That’s taken a few more months than I would have liked, but I’m extremely confident that in the next 60 days we’ll be able to get that through and begin construction." I think he may not know the history of 60-90 day announcements in MLS.
Something similar happened in DC with the developer owners of a portion of the parcel that United's stadium is now on insisting that more retail be added to United's plan. Retail spaces were added and a private road was re-routed as a result. None of the spaces have been filled yet, but the changes to the design made the stadium look a lot better.
Yes, it's a done deal. From what I have heard, the former CEO of Nationwide, owner of the plot, wasn't happy they had their hand forced a bit in agreeing to sell the land, but in the end it will get done. NRI wants to have a bit of design input to fit with the rest of their developments locally and that is being negotiated like any huge business deal. We are expecting designs to be released in September followed by the start of construction. Hopefully we can have a mild winter and be able to get real work done without any delays!
I hope Nationwide looses the tug of war on the stadium design. That end of the street has nothing else there anyway, and all that brick is boring. Give them a sweetener of some kind elsewhere.
Yeah, I'd be made if they were delaying the land transfer for the stadium because they didn't like the design of the office complex to be built on land presently owned by the city.
How Detroit’s MLS expansion bid went from sure thing to stalled (and why there’s a glimmer of hope) An impasse over the proposed stadium effectively killed Detroit’s chances for a team, unless one side buckles – and it’s unclear that either side is interested in relenting. MLS said in 2015 that it would add four cities. It has been clear that it wants soccer-specific stadiums for its new teams. Detroit’s bid backers initially proposed such a stadium but later abandoned the billion-dollar plan and instead said a new team would play inside a retrofitted Ford Field, the massive enclosed home of the Lions. MLS’ response: Nope. They have two multi-billionaire owners, land in downtown Detroit is cheap and plentiful relatively speaking... don't let them in without a new SSS.
Seattle, Atlanta, NYCFC, NE, Chicago.. Who else doesn’t play in a SSS? That’s an absurd opinion unless you are going to force the rest into complying.
Well...not all markets are created equal. It's why NYCFC plays in a baseball stadium...and why we have suffered through the...what, seven? year saga that has been Inter Miami...while Minnesota got an ultimatum and a deadline. There are gotta have markets...and nice to have markets. Detroit is a nice to have market. So the rules are different.
Compared to Detroit, yes. The Don made it pretty clear something somewhere in the Five Boroughs was a necessity.
Looks to me from the telecasts that a lot more people attend the games in Minnesota than do in the Five Boroughs combined, or New Jersey for that matter.
I'm not being obtuse. There's no need for a second MLS team in New York City and environs, especially as a long-term second tenant to the Yankees in a baseball stadium, while bypassing much of the heartland. It's "not a good look" for MLS, to use your phraseology.
Seattle is the only one of those metro areas smaller than Detroit, and it will likely be bigger within 10 years. The other 4 are much larger, NYC is more than 4x as big as Detroit, and widening the gap. The only top 20 metro areas growing more slowly (by percentage) than Detroit are Chicago and St. Louis. Chicago is still closing in on 10 million population while St. Louis will likely fall out of the top 20 at the next census with 4 more cities that could pass it by 2030. Chicago had to initially build a SSS way out in the burbs, Detroit can't get into the league, and St. Louis can't get into the league. Stagnant cities/metro areas aren't attractive, which hurts places like Pittsburgh and Cleveland from having a chance in the current MLS landscape, especially when many of the fastest growing areas aren't highly saturated with pro sports.
Bronx County has a population on par with OKC, Raleigh, and Memphis with an obviously much larger overall population base to draw from. You're either being obtuse, or you're just plain dumb.
Then the team in the Bronx has no excuse for not selling out. But they always have lots of empty seats notwithstanding a winning team.
Considering the next two in are likely St. Louis and Sacramento, your rebuttal kinda falls short. I think MLS needs a new commissioner.
Not that I'm on any sort of "Don Garber for Sainthood" bandwagon... But the argument could be made that The Don is the best of the five current commissioners in professional team sports. I fully acknowledge that may not be the highest of bars.