Saturday, November 14, 2009

New Stadium Location

For my first choice, I would rather Ivor Wynne be renovated, but that doesn't seem to be in the cards so I am going with the Rheem site down by the waterfront. Getting the Rheem site cleaned up as part of the stadium process is a double win for the city, as with the Pan Am stadium going there, the site would likely stay as is, a haven only for urban explorers for fifteen years or more. Transit and parking wise, I don't think it is any worse than Ivor Wynne is presently (although admittedly Ivor Wynne is better accessible from both the East and the West. There already is some parking down at the Harbour, plus walking down Bay from downtown passes some lots as well.

Why Bob Young mentioned an Aldershot location in the Spec (even if the naming rights are worth more there) is a bit of a mystery, considering the city is contributing a big chunk of funds to the stadium as part of the Pan Am bid.

Confederation Park is too far away from most of the city and virtually no spinoff effects would be gained from the stadium and too many teams already stay at Burlington hotels when they play the Ticats, a Confederation Park would mean none would ever stay at a Hamilton hotel or eat at a restaurant.

There does seem to be some NIMBYs down in the Northend that are putting pressure on Ward 2 Councillor Bob Bratina, who made some weird location suggestions in this article. Hopefully this can all be overcome.

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