Man, I'm soooooooooo not thrilled to start up a fourth one of these, but you people insist on continuing to talk about it. Bastids. Copying the post I used to start off threads II and then III. Just a refresher, the original post was on 12/7/10 (listed first) and Alan's countdown clock from 3/22...
Nice! We actually only need about 4 or 5 more of these ongoing topics and you can turn off the option for starting any new threads ... Countdown to Elimination 2012 When Should The Revs Fire Nicol Burns Bilello XI Front Office Feck Ups XXV Revolution Stadium Groundbreaking "12-24 months" XXV and finally as a catch all ... Thoughts That Don't Require Their Own Thread XVII Brilliant!
I'd say that nearly all of the time the thoughts used to create a new thread don't require their own thread. Five sticky threads should be enough for anyone.
Without any decent fact-checking or further diligence of any kind, here's a spot I think would make an ideal place for an urban Boston SSS: Carter Playground, bordering Northeastern, in Roxbury (click for proposed stadium footprint) if you don't want to click, here's a diagram: - directly on the T (2 Orange line stops), and close to Green and bus routes - in the city's "core" - less than a mile from 90, 93 and about a mile to Back Bay for commuter rail - could be shared / funded in partnership with Northeastern - historic and current home of sporting arenas/fields, including Matthews Arena and the historic Huntington Ave. Grounds, both in the direct vicinity, and, - directly adjacent to the former South End Grounds, a lost gem of early Boston stadia, which predated Fenway and Huntington. You could reference the amazing grandstand architecture in the new building... - replaces existing ballfields in underused, derelict condition - huge Northeastern parking garage next door - Fenway Park parking/gameday infrastructure can also be activated - surrounded by university and student housing, minimizing nimbyism - it's in Roxbury, in a a somewhat poorer area which would benefit from influx of event-related income and stadium jobs - and would look good for KSG - but which also directly borders the more affluent Back Bay / South End neighborhoods, ensuring good economic footing. I think you could squeeze a 18K arena into the existing park's current footprint (see the dark blue box in the diagram) - but to do it right, and this adds to the pipe dream nature, but what the hell, negotiate the air rights over the Orange line tracks and connect it directly to Northeastern's campus. (With air rights, add in the light blue box in the linked diagaram.) It could actually be a moneymaker for the MBTA if they were able to sell off those rights - something they desperately need. This would get you up to ~25K. Here's a rendering, at the same level of resolution, of 25K Red Bull Arena on the site, including using the space over the T tracks: Granted, it is an existing city parcel, but it's next to a university, it's in pretty bad shape, seems underutilized, it has a history of some discomfort (including shootings) all of which could be completely reset with this kind of development. If Kraft, the city, the neighborhood, the MBTA and Northeastern could realize their mutual benefit and come to an agreement that benefited all, it could be incredible. One more view of the site...