I’m option C: If Dundon wants to put up the money, then let’s have that discussion. As it is, I think most fans of the team are probably happy with the location of PNC for now.
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I’m kind of in this boat as well. As much as I selfishly want a stadium downtown based on living downtown Raleigh and having been to cities like Columbus, Pittsburgh, St. Paul, Nashville, etc, where their downtown+stadium experiences are amazing, I can’t see the justification with PNC being in place and asking tax payers to do it just because. I also don’t think you can ignore a number like 48% that are open to the idea.
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Name 1 city in America…where the team owner paid for a stadium outright, without incentives, tax contributions, ‘public-private’ cooperation, or some other financial shenanigans so the city could secure a new stadium and not lose their franchise?
Ya’ll ‘the billionaire should pay for his own stadium’ types are living in a fantasy-land…a delusional one.
That seemed quite assumptive. I didn’t say the only way I support this is if it’s 100% private money. I more intended to say I don’t think tax payers should pay 100% of it. We have a stadium that isn’t ready to be vacated and money is going into it. Believe me, if there’s a shift in actually bringing an NHL stadium downtown, I’ll be 1000% behind it. And I’m not saying the team owner has to pay for it, sorry you felt it necessary to put those words in my mouth. This clearly needs to be considered and discussed (given the 48% vote that is for the idea), but it’s not going to be 100% taxpayers and I seriously doubt it would be 100% Dundon or even Dundon+Investors.
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That’s where I’m at on it too. A downtown arena would be amazing, but PNC Arena is still top of the line and with regular improvements seems like it can stay useful. I think the biggest gripe is the area around it. And honestly that doesn’t seem all that difficult to fix if they can build some parking decks in some of the lots and then build some mixed-use buildings to create a more year-round entertainment district. Still keeps the majority of parking lots for tailgating. Best of both worlds?
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Yeah, I feel like that makes sense if they’re going to really update PNC to make it useful for another 20 years or so. The other option is just to keep PNC afloat for a few more years until it’s time for a replacement. In 2029, when the Canes lease expires, PNC will be 30 years old, and arenas just don’t last longer than 30 years now without an almost down-to-the-studs renovation. I’d hate for them to build a nice collection of restaurants and hotels etc. just to have PNC become obsolete in another eight years.
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Your initial response was clear to me.
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I know UncleJesse you are talking concerning Major League status sports stadiums but both High Point & Gastonia City government built their minor league stadiums .
‘minor league’…BIG difference from major league. Raleigh could build a minor league baseball stadium (i mean 'multi-purpose)…BUT the City will never fund a pro stadium (nor will any other city) in its entirety. My point was there’s no point in talking about Dundon paying for a new downtown arena by himself…CUZ it ain’t gonna happen…EVER!
A public-private partnership is what you will see so talking about how ‘billionaires should pay for their own stadiums…’ is a waste of oxygen.
Maybe i misunderstood OakCityDylan and if so, my apologies, but there are plenty on this site that love to start the same tired-ass rhetoric about how “these sports team owners should pay their own fare…blah, blah, blah”…
It WILL NEVER happen. Dundon will not fully fund an arena…period…nor does any other professional franchise owner across America…
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Yeah, stop objecting to things because they are financially or morally unsound, guys. Not cool
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My dude, no one is saying any of that right now. You’re arguing with yourself. Relax.
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All the No’s are NIMBY trying to hold Raleigh back.
Or maybe they just think that if the city is going to spend $500,000,000 to revitalize a downtown neighborhood there are ways to spend it that would benefit more people (and not primarily one team owner) and more frequently.
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That stadium should be paid by Malik itself, not the city. That stadium is pointless for Minor League. PNC Arena host professional hockey team National Hockey League top tier that worth the city putting its dollars.
I see both sides here. I think we’ve covered the no side pretty well.
But an area could in theory be the linchpin downtown that would bring in much more than the cost in events, economic development, hotels, concerts etc. having that downtown could do wonders.
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I’ve met a lot fans at games that don’t want it downtown because it’s harder to get in and out of in their cars. They want to go to the game and leave. I talked to several season ticket holders while tailgating at the recent playoff games and felt like I was in the minority of people who want the stadium downtown. I’ve been a STM for a couple of years and while I do get a lot of market research surveys from them, I don’t think I’ve ever been asked about stadium location.
I’m not caught up on this thread so I realize I’m probably beating a dead horse.
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Not trying to be a butt-head hear, but do you think the possible reason for wanting it specifically in the middle of a parking lot is due to the sport of Hockey itself?
And do you think that this group or type of fan will be happy with the current plan to add hotels, restaurants, shopping, etc.?
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Not sure I understand your first question, but the few people I talked to recently were mostly concerned with ease of getting in and out of games.
I think a DT stadium would bring in more STMs, but I wonder how many, if any, would cancel memberships. I would think it’s a net positive but I live in a bubble…
Can’t tailgate if the team leaves. So…there will be more fans anyways.
I think @RobertSanderlin’s trying to imply that hockey fans (stereotypically?) tend to stay inside, and not go out as much as fans of other sports -and that translates to a smaller clientele for nearby businesses. Think about how lots of people follow baseball games at sports bars, or college students wander around different restaurants to pregame or bar-hop after big ACC basketball games.
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