Calgary's new arena

[Ruffgrouse]

So whats wrong with KING ?

Why does he want to stay down town Calgary.
If it was me (and I know it's not up to me), I'd give Nenshi about 5 min to make up his mind !
Then I would tell him, " We just bought land at Balzac for a 1/64 of the price".
We will build a 5 star hotel that all the teams will want to stay at.
The Airport is 5 min away.
Deerfoot can easily handle the C train extension.
The Stony ring road can handle the traffic from the South.

Stay away from the Stampede board and down town Calgary.

They dont want to play nice so time to leave them behind.

Whats the best bang for your buck .... out of that downtown core !

2nd choice would be the old Firestone lot just East of Deerfoot.

Im glad I have all the answers lol

And - It's never flooded in Balzac !!!!!!

Just my 2 cents !

[fitzy]

Couple things jump out at me.
1. This is a great idea if for no other reason than all the Balzac - flames jokes that Oil country can hammer out.

2. Balzac is fun to say.



I seriously think it's the best idea I've heard yet.

[bb356]

Originally Posted by fitzy

Couple things jump out at me.
1. This is a great idea if for no other reason than all the Balzac - flames jokes that Oil country can hammer out.

2. Balzac is fun to say.



I seriously think it's the best idea I've heard yet.

[WillyOneStyle]

This would be great for Airdrie, Red Deer, Olds, Innisfail.....

[WillyOneStyle]

Much like 'The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim'

The 'Calgary Flames of Balzac'

[WillyOneStyle]

One day greater Balzac will absorb Calgary. Then it will be known as The Greater Balzac Area, or the GBA. So possibly the GBA Flames.

[Talking moose]

Originally Posted by WillyOneStyle

Much like 'The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim'

The 'Calgary Flames of Balzac'

Los Angeles angels?

[Talking moose]

Ha! Had to google it. Don't follow baseball. Interesting.

[bb356]

Headline ... The Boy's Blown Out In Balzac !!!

Balzac Scratches Out a Win !!!

Balzac really took a lickin last night !!!

[bb356]

Change the name to the Balzac Blade's .... Gillette can sponser the arena .

[58thecat]

Oilers leaves Balzac hanging...either way time for a new barn.

[KWO]

I like the Balzac idea!

[nick0danger]

Think of all the taxes Nenshi ran out of city too! There to worried about rabbits right now to think about anything else.

[booboo74]

Could get the whole Arizona/Phoenix/Glendale thing happening, fans will start to complain it's too far, Corp $$ wants it to stay in the downtown core etc.

Seems like a simple enough solution, probably wouldn't even need to go all the way to Balzac either but since when is simple ever followed for these corporations.

[Big Sky]

Originally Posted by bb356

Change the name to the Balzac Blade's .... Gillette can sponser the arena .

That would be a good option. However, I think that they would keep the 'Flames' moniker. The team would be known as the Balzac Flames ...... Absorbine Jr can sponsor the arena.

[Benelli1]

Balzac Billy could oust Harvey the Hound as the new mascot.

[Puma]

Originally Posted by Big Sky

That would be a good option. However, I think that they would keep the 'Flames' moniker. The team would be known as the Balzac Flames ...... Absorbine Jr can sponsor the arena.

I can see the Team Logo now ....

[Bigwoodsman]

Does the land come with a Balzac cup?

Sounds like the Phoenix situation, next will be a name change for the club. Balzac Flames and they can call the arena Gold Bond!

I sure hope they move to Balzac... this would be to easy!

BW

[bigskinner]

Originally Posted by Ruffgrouse

So whats wrong with KING ?

Why does he want to stay down town Calgary.
If it was me (and I know it's not up to me), I'd give Nenshi about 5 min to make up his mind !
Then I would tell him, " We just bought land at Balzac for a 1/64 of the price".
We will build a 5 star hotel that all the teams will want to stay at.
The Airport is 5 min away.
Deerfoot can easily handle the C train extension.
The Stony ring road can handle the traffic from the South.

Stay away from the Stampede board and down town Calgary.

They dont want to play nice so time to leave them behind.

Whats the best bang for your buck .... out of that downtown core !

2nd choice would be the old Firestone lot just East of Deerfoot.

Im glad I have all the answers lol

And - It's never flooded in Balzac !!!!!!

Just my 2 cents !

l bin telling everyone about the bare land at FIRE PARK since this argument started , city owned land , c-train adjacent , parking right there plus station , handy to zoo , max bell , the perfect place.
NOW they want to take away all parking at Victoria park to build a new Arena .

[bigskinner]

Originally Posted by KWO

I like the Balzac idea!

Nope , to far , south patons wouldn't go

[DevilsAdvocate]

Great Balzacs of Flames

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IjgZGhHrYY

[Gray Wolf]

Originally Posted by DevilsAdvocate

Great Balzacs of Flames

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IjgZGhHrYY

Devil's music!

[The Elkster]

The Flaming Balzac's playing at the goldbond arena. I like it.

[JB_AOL]

While I agree with moving it out of the city (not necesarily Balzac, as Rockyview county is a bitch), but there are many reasons why it won't happen.

first, is transit, if you move the arena out of the city, now you need to transport people, so either LRT extension/buses/whatever. Remember, most people have drinks at the game, usually in excess.

second, a large part of the tickets are from businesses (usually in the core), who like to entertain after work. So now some of those businesses wouldn't bother, as it's a 30-45 min trip out of the core to go to a game. Which doesn't seem like much, but when you hit up the nice restaurants downtown, then have to catch a cab out to the arena (30-45mins vs 5-10 now), it's a hassle that most businesses wouldn't bother with.

3rd (as already mentioned), you are limiting your audience, for example, right now, it's a $55 cab ride from cranston to the arena. Now basically double that out to Balzac. No thanks, and I'm sure I'm not the only one that thinks that way.

Not to mention the other audiences (concerts/shows/etc) that the new arena will be hosting. That's intentionally cutting off alot of calgarians.

Businesses in the core will also see a reduction in business.

IMHO, the arena needs to be more than a "one horse pony". Make it more of a "tailgate" type thing. Create a street where food trucks/buskers/etc can entertain, add some restaurants that people might go to (aside from on game night), right at the arena.

[tallieho]

I like the Balzac idea.If for no other reason than to keep my city taxes out of paying for it.Also the exspansion of c-train,would work for the largest ever built oriental mall ever in Alberta.Bass pro,Horse racing etc.I like the NO FLOOD thing HAHA..

[Okotokian]

Originally Posted by Ruffgrouse

So whats wrong with KING ?

Why does he want to stay down town Calgary.
If it was me (and I know it's not up to me), I'd give Nenshi about 5 min to make up his mind !
Then I would tell him, " We just bought land at Balzac for a 1/64 of the price".
We will build a 5 star hotel that all the teams will want to stay at.
The Airport is 5 min away.
Deerfoot can easily handle the C train extension.
The Stony ring road can handle the traffic from the South.

LOL And Neshi and city council would reply "That's GREAT! Congratulations! Good luck. Glad to see you building an arena all on your own."

An arena with no transit. Why would the CITY pay to build transit to an arena outside of the city? With no bars or nightlife around it. An arena like every other team is dying to get out of. One built out in a field....

[Okotokian]

Changing gears.... exactly why do we need a new arena? I'm not a regular, but I've been to more than a few games and other events there. Seat is nice and comfy. I can buy all the drinks I want. No debris falling on me from the roof. Why is a new arena required? Are the Flames losing money with it, o do they just want to make more money with a new building?

If I were the city and was being asked to contribute hundreds of millions of dollars, I'd want to look at the Flames' books. Any bank in the world would get that.

Calgary Flames... Bombardier... Difference? Bombardier employees more people... and their execs don't make as much, even with bonuses, as many Flames players... I'm just sayin'

[Big Sky]

The player interviews would sure be more interesting.

Gene Principe - "So, are you ready for tomorrow's matchup against the Flames?"
Random Oiler - "You bet. I've never had a problem getting up for Balzac."


On a serious note.....
Rockyview (that's how you say Balzac in polite company ) is just too far away from the majority of the fan base. People are correct when they draw comparisons to the Coyotes' arena situation.

The Vic Park/Stampede location ties in with East Village redevelopment. Proximity to downtown, access to c-train, better parking and a smaller price tag make it a better option than Calgary Next. IMO, there was no Plan A. Plan B was always Plan A.

[Dan Foss]

Originally Posted by JB_AOL

While I agree with moving it out of the city (not necesarily Balzac, as Rockyview county is a bitch), but there are many reasons why it won't happen.

first, is transit, if you move the arena out of the city, now you need to transport people, so either LRT extension/buses/whatever. Remember, most people have drinks at the game, usually in excess.

second, a large part of the tickets are from businesses (usually in the core), who like to entertain after work. So now some of those businesses wouldn't bother, as it's a 30-45 min trip out of the core to go to a game. Which doesn't seem like much, but when you hit up the nice restaurants downtown, then have to catch a cab out to the arena (30-45mins vs 5-10 now), it's a hassle that most businesses wouldn't bother with.

3rd (as already mentioned), you are limiting your audience, for example, right now, it's a $55 cab ride from cranston to the arena. Now basically double that out to Balzac. No thanks, and I'm sure I'm not the only one that thinks that way.

Not to mention the other audiences (concerts/shows/etc) that the new arena will be hosting. That's intentionally cutting off alot of calgarians.

Businesses in the core will also see a reduction in business.

IMHO, the arena needs to be more than a "one horse pony". Make it more of a "tailgate" type thing. Create a street where food trucks/buskers/etc can entertain, add some restaurants that people might go to (aside from on game night), right at the arena.

But this.... this post right here outlines all the reasons why the city should be contributing to the new arena. People spend money on transport, food, drink. Businesses spend more money. Service industry profits which mean the city profits via tax revenue. The benefit of having a facility in the core is not just limited to the flames and their workers. It impacts all aspects of city business. I would like to see some analysis on the economic impact (both direct and indirect) in jobs as well as revenues on the city with the flames here. We know they wont leave the city, but hypothetically if they did, what would happen to the city and businesses? How many indirect job losses and how much revenue loss to the city? I bet most people would be stunned at the number of businesses that would shut down and how much money the city would lose.

Put me in the flames' owners shoes and tell me to pay for it myself... I would but it certainly wouldn't be on land costing 10million per acre to the benefit of a city not willing to work with me. It would be where i can get land for a reasonable price, probably closer to 100k/ acre. maybe chestermere which is closer than Balzac. With less debt and cheaper operating costs (property taxes), I would be able to lower ticket prices and still make more money than being handicapped by a city that doesnt appreciate what the organization brings to the table in terms of indirect revenues. I wouldn't be too worried. Wherever i go, businesses will follow. Someone will think it a good idea to build a hotel by me to cash in on visiting millionaires. And restaurants that want to make money off of the crowd, even if it is a smaller crowd. I could build a state of the art facility for a fraction of the price.

Or the even cheaper option. Call up a city with a new facility ready to go. Even better profit margins for me there. Quebec City Flames!

[nick0danger]

Originally Posted by Okotokian

LOL And Neshi and city council would reply "That's GREAT! Congratulations! Good luck. Glad to see you building an arena all on your own."

An arena with no transit. Why would the CITY pay to build transit to an arena outside of the city? With no bars or nightlife around it. An arena like every other team is dying to get out of. One built out in a field....

except they would literally lose millions in taxes every year vs building in calgary.