Soccer Stadium in Denver...

I don't know if there have been any formal proposals for a soccer-specific stadium. I know that it's generally common knowledge around here that the Rapids got a pretty decent deal for the use of Invesco Field.

It may not be a soccer-specific facility, but it's not too shabby a venue to catch a game. In terms of visibility and environment, it's a lot better than some of the other venues in MLS (seen Spartan Stadium?) and I think the Rapids improved their financial picture with the move from Mile High to Invesco Field.

I'm sure others here would have more details...

 

Have the Rapids ever looked into playing at Hughes Stadium? It has a grass field and capacity for 30,000. I dont know about the field dimensions though.

 

It's the CSU field, isn't it? That's two hours north of Denver in a "city" that is nearly deserted during MLS prime months (i.e. when college is out). Bad idea.

RS

 

Oh sorry, thought it was in denver.

 

I think most rapids fans are happy with invesco. as long as the rapids can make money there i dont see a need for a soccer specific stadium. Invesco Field is a great venue and a great stadium for soccer.

 

New Digs

Invesco is not bad at all. Sound system and big screens are top notch. It would be nice to get 100% of parking and consessions, but I think we're getting 1/3 now. Best share we've ever had. That includes, if I heard it correctly way back when, a cut of Broncos merchandise as well.

It would be nice to not be surrounded by 60,000 empty seats all the time though. Would look better on TV too.

I'm not itchin' for new digs just yet.

 

There were brief talks about it, but nothing formal. I really don't know where they'd put it, to be quite honest. Westminister area? I was never familiar enough with that area to know if it would good for a SSS.

 

Back in 1998 there were architectural plans and renderings drawn up, with a few key geographic locations determined (either already owned by Anschutz or available for peanuts) -- this was done before it was decided that the Broncos would get a new stadium.

From what I've heard, there is still a stadium in the Rapids' future; however the Rapids are currently in an excellent multi-year deal with Stadium Management Corporation for the use of Invesco. They're also drawing a number of fans to every game simply because of the novelty of the new stadium.

The day the Rapids build and move into a new stadium will be when Invesco is no longer seen as profitable as a new ground.

 

My understanding is that the Rapids are the second highest generating revenue for Invesco Field. Broncos come first. I think we are in a good position because Invesco is new, and the chance to just see the stadium alone is a treat in itself. So being able to see the Rapids (great priced tickets) at Denver's newest stadium is SWEET!

GO RAPS!

 

I can't really think of anyone else that regularly uses the stadium other than the Broncos and the Rapids so that would make sense.

I'd also like to say that I would be the fist to vote for a SSS in Westminster. I have no clue where they would put it anymore but theres a park here in Sheridan Green they could use

Garrett

 

Westminster? why would anyone want to put a stadium there? im voting for Aurora/ but seriously whenever they do decide to build a SS stadium it should be in denver as close to downtown as possible.
it has to be in a central area with easy access for all the suberbs. no one from westy wants to drive to aurora for a game and i wouldnt want to go out to westminster either.
by the way is there a site where we could see some of the designs they put out a while back? im kind of curious as to what they came up with.

 

Soccer stadium in Aurora...

There are a couple of good-sized chunks of land around Airport & Smith up for purchase.

Near I-70/Pena Blvd - bus service could be expanded (the 169X runs there, I believe) - existing rail lines - not RTD though...

I doubt it would ever happen, but the land could be there for it.

Jim

 

Platte River Valley

Sorry to burst the Aurora/Westminster/Lakewood ideas but if we have a SSS it really must be in the downtown 'stadium area' if we are going to have the MLS taken seriously and not considered a glorified minor league product. Suburban based sends the wrong message, IMHO. Chicago knows this and is going back to Soldiers Field once it is rennovated.

There's room..look at a map. The city would help out after scoring with all the other facilities. And yes it could be used for CU/DU/High School championships, too.

As for Mile High, we're up to 20K a game and had two or three games that would have exceeded a 30K stadium (7-4, USA/Mex doubleheader, and USA Womens doubleheader). I think that if we have a good opening to the season, we could build a base of more like 30K. I know it's considered wishful thinking by some, but keeping a long-term goal to fill up 60K to 80K isn't as silly as it was 10-12 years ago when we had the Foxes. Interest is increasing and the players/teams are better each year.

Riccardo55

 

Re: Platte River Valley

I also know for a fact that Chicago is exploring the possibility of building a SSS and making a permanent move to the suburbs. It may take a while, but I know for a FACT they have looked for land in Naperville. Hate to burst your bubble, but a suburban stadium could make tons of sense in most markets if placed in the right location. The reason? Well, take Chicago for instance. It is an enormous hassle for someone in Naperville, Wheaton, Glen Ellyn, Geneva or Saint Charles to go to Soldier Field. It is a breeze in the Western burbs. And for people North or South of the City, going somewhere like Downers Grove of Naperville is no more further than going downtown. Yes, it is easier for those who live in the City to go to SF. There is your trade off. Those people, however, also have a wealth of sports and entertainment options in their backyard. You can build your own loyal fanbase in the burbs without significant competition in terms of other local sports events.

If you were a parent would you want to drive an hour each way, deal with being downtown, parking etc. Or would you rather drive 20 minutes to a nearby suburb, eat at a nice restaurant before the game, etc. It isn't so far fetched when you frame this the right way to see why MLS may well view the burbs as their future.

 

Re: Platte River Valley

I think that's a pretty big stretch, especially as success on the pitch with the Rapids has rarely translated into surges in attendance.

The ticket sales folks at the Rapids last year did a remarkable job and I think it's going to be extremely difficult for them to match their product of last year. Without marquee Nats events, I'll say the staff will deserve a massive pat on the back if the end-of-season average is above 18K.


As for a potential stadium location, let's not forget two things:

This may have changed in the past 3-4 years, but if memory serves me correctly Anschutz owns a lot of the land that lies in the general vicinity of Invesco/Pepsi/Coors and the railyards. Throw in a tax break and land levy from the City and the possibilities can realy open up.

Denver is much more akin to LA than most other cities. Calling Aurora, Lakewood or Westminster "suburbs" is definition only; it's all really Metro Denver. The only significant factor with building away from downtown is making sure that the stadium lies on a major highway artery (which nixes Westminster, unless you plant a stadium over in Thornton somewhere near I-25). As the above poster alludes in his example with Naperville and the Fire, the number of people that are turned off are offset by the number of people that are suddenly turned on.

And remember, if you build it, they will come.

 

Re: Re: Platte River Valley

Having made the drive to Naperville from O'Hare airport and from Evanston for Fire games (I have a daughter at Northwestern), let me tell you that Naperville isn't a convenient venue. There are insufficient roads and parking. Areas by the freeway (for space) have no associated infrastructure (restaurants, etc.) like downtown Naperville. The Barnburner's bus (w/Leo driving) picks them up like 90 minutes early to get there thru the traffic and tollways. Sigh. This is like putting the Rapids SSS in Parker. Great for the southern suburbs, but totally screws the northern metro fans.

I would fully agree that if all the Rapids fan base was southeast, then Parker'd be great (or somewhere a bit closer in...). Look at the problems Foxboro and Pro Players stadiums have caused themselves with out of town stadiums. Look how cool it is to be walkable to Lodo pre/post game. Modern city planners want stadiums by their 'happening' food/drink/music areas.

I still believe that to be a MAJOR LEAGUE the MLS needs to act major league, like the other big boys, and put their stakes down in the Platte. So we can feel cool playing the Naperville Fire. As Greenie points out, Phil has some land there already, and if we cannot fill up Mile High enough to make it a good permanent venue, the SSS should go close to Mile High...all the better to move over to Mile High for the 50K games.

RLH

p.s. Grennie, be optimistic, we'll get a USA Nat's game this year, maybe in the spring, eh?

 

Where would that be along the Platte though? Certainly most of that land has filled up, when I think of all the development that has happened there in the past 5 years. Of course, isn't Ocean Journey struggling pretty badly? If that goes, a lot of real estate would open up in a very good location.

I agree that in order to be considered Major League, the MLS needs stadiums to be centrally located and the thought of a SSS tucked between the Pepsi Center and Mile High is every Rapids' fans dream. I believe for the city of Denver to embrace the Rapids as a Major League team, a new stadium will be a part of that scenario (the other piece being an MLS Cup).

However, a Westminister location doesn't seem like a bad second option, especially with all of the growth happening in the Broomfield/Superior/Boulder area. The bottom line may be that when it comes to a soccer specific stadium, anyplace is better than none at all.

 

Re: Re: Re: Platte River Valley

I may point out that Anschutz owns land in the area, but I disagree that the Rapids -- and other MLS clubs -- need to plant their stadiums in the middle of downtown areas. Columbus does quite well (except for weeknight Cup matches), as do the Revs and Fire. Bet on the Galaxy's stadium being pretty damn packed at every game this year.

As for acting like a "MAJOR LEAGUE," it's hardly about putting stadiums in rejuvenated downtown districts. Simply building the stadiums, regardless of locations, is a major step. More than a few of the newer "MAJOR LEAGUE" arenas, parks and stadiums have been built a good distance away from their associated hip downtown areas.

Denver is a driving city. Aside from a small minority that live in LoDo or Wash Park, everyone drives everywhere -- even if it's just to/from light rail (which most people take simply to avoid parking costs). Thus a stadium situation for Denver should not be compared to larger, more pedestrian cities in the east like Boston or Chicago, but rather to western sprawl cities like Kansas City, Dallas or Los Angeles.

Arrowhead is right on the edge of KC, yet I don't see how they benefit from that proximity.
Every time we've made a trip to KC -- and I'm also talking about going to Chiefs and Royals games -- we get in the car for 20+ minutes to drive to the bar scene where everyone else heads post-game. Hence KC folk being among the best at the art of the tailgate. I don't hear many complaints, either.

Same goes for any number of NBA, NHL and NFL teams throughout the country. Baseball remains an exception as most parks would die out if they played 81 home games (of 3-plus hours each) in a remote location.

Any advantage gained by locating in a downtown area can at least be offset -- if not dwarfed -- by the advantages of a more flexible location away from downtown. If nothing else, it's a lot cheaper, with the savings passed to the fans and/or reinvested into other important areas of the club.


And walk to LoDo from Invesco? Do you really consider a 30-plus minute walk "convenient?"

 

You can take the Light Rail from Invesco to Union Station, but when you consider the time spent waiting for the train, it's about a 30 minute timeframe from Invesco to LoDo destination (5 minute slow walk to light rail + 5-10 min wait + 5 minute ride + 10 min or so to LoDo bar).

Point being, although it could be worse, it's not exactly a 2 minute hop and jump from Invesco to LoDo.

 

Light Rail ain't walkin'. And who's gonna leave their car in the Invesco lot? Most people I know seem worried that their car will get either locked in (not that I've ever seen the gates closed) and/or broken into.

Quite honestly I think the bar/nightlife argument is fairly minor point anyway, as the significant majority of fans going to Rapids games are and will always be families. They'd rather stop at the Dave & Busters or Red Robin in the mall on the way to the game than take a walk downtown.

 

Re: Re: Re: Re: Platte River Valley

Mile High is a hike from downtown, but the CAN & the Rockies have it right.....being in an attractive pre/post game area.

Yes, we can screw up by placing the stadium in a poor downtown location just as easily as we can screw up the suburban locations. Since we don't need to build one right now we have the luxury of slowly settling in to an *ideal* location.

Ideal is different for all of us, but a stadium in the Platte that draws/dumps into Lodo and builds off of the Lodo energy would be great. I can see a suburban location, if done just as well would be great, too. Overall, I think the former is a better defined option with lower risks.

If I had all the chips I'd put it between the Can (Pepsi) and Coors. You'll see from any map that there's land around there, and some dumpy buildings that could be KO'd.

Soooo, Greenie, if you had all the chips where would you choose for an attractive suburban location? Between Denver and Boulder (on the 'convenient 36' access?) or in the southeast (like by Dove Valley, on that little travelled Arapaho Road)??? Hmmm. When I'm looking for a winner location in the 'burbs I always come back to two key points: 1) All areas with infrastructure and access roads have congestion as bad as downtown and 2) the opposite side of town is alienated. Listen to the Morrison folks talk about going to DIA.

Do you or someone else have a hot idea for the SSS location? If so, I am all ears & if it's a better choice, I'll be first in line to support it.

Riccardo

 

Same amount of time, as I was referring to the walkable/take forever comments.

Leave car in Invesco lot? Not me since I don't drive there in the first place.

 

Rumor has it that the large park in Auraria, between Speer Blvd and Tivoli Brewery would be an option.

Ocean Journey would be great too. There's a brewery right near there as well. Basically, any place next to a brewery would be an ideal location.

 

I think that the Ripley's Believe It Or Not people are going to buy Ocean Journey at a steep discount. The City is going to foreclose on some adjacent parking lots that it lent money for but these are not big enough for a stadium. I think that area is crowded. There is the Children's Museum near there then all that Platte stuff with REI, ESPN, ect.