missed opportunity of not making the roof into a giant pizza
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Buffalo has developed something similar as well. Its got a hotel, bars, restaurants, and 2 ice surfaces where they hold practices and lower level tournaments like the World Juniors. Also has a stop on Buffaloâs light rail/subway.
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That development came well after the arena was built however⌠if I remember wasnât that just empty lots and what not when whatever it is called now used to be HBSC Arena was built?
There was a plan to construct a practice facility / multiple ice sheet complex at the stadium complex in Raleigh but it seems that ship has sailed⌠or sunkâŚ
And right behind the Arena is River Works - which has outdoor rinks, more bars, a zip line between the old silos, and a concert venue. The whole area is pretty great.
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The lot where the Harbor Center sits is where the old Memorial Auditorium used to be.
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I went to a Sabres game at HSBC years ago. The locals referred to it as the âHot Sauce - Blue Cheeseâ Arena
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A couple of very crude sketches of what Iâm talking about. The towers backing the grandstands are livable/workable/hotel(?) space with restricted access for residents or suite ticket holders. FWIW, I could also see something like this rimming the edges of a soccer stadium. 
I also like that it pushes the suites up above the upper deck, and pushes the UDâs closer to the action like the old school parks (Ebbets, Shibe, Crosley, Forbes, Comiskey, etc). You were literally on top of the field and felt like you were part of the game in those old parks!
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I too mourn the fact that baseball fans are getting pushed further and further away from the action in order to accommodate more and better luxury suites, but there is a reason why the profit-maximizing institutions that run Major League Baseball teams are very, very adamantly against bringing the hoi polloi back closer to the field like they used to be.
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Yeah I agree. I guess I was born in the wrong century!
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What, no more holes in the outfield fence to peek through?
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For those interested in the PNC arena negotiations.
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Condensed soup. PNC arena was a great idea, could have it been built in Downtown in 1985? No one was willing to offer additional funding to do that. Itâs a great idea whenever that happens. They wonât. Lack of development around the arena has been disappointing but it will get there (35 years later lol).
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Totally understand why itâs located where it is, given the circumstances when it was builtâŚjust canât help lamenting that the proposed renovations will serve to keep it there for a few more decades.
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They did estimate that the PNC Arena only has 15 or so year before it should likely be replaced. Who knows! If Jeff Bezos canât buy a team in DC or Seattle, Raleigh is a short flight from DC to own a sports team.
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MLS commissioner Don Garber said Friday that the leagueâs next expansion announcement is very likely to come in âthe next number of monthsâ and that Charlotte, North Carolina, has moved to the front of the line in terms of candidates.
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Well, that gives Charlotte another opportunity to finally catch up to Raleigh in the number of pro sport national championships.
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Iâm apparently going to be screaming this until my hair turns the color of salt-n-pepa, but there is absolutely no reason for anyone here to be in any way sad or mad or feeling bad thinkinâ 'bout the things that we never had just because Charlotte is getting an MLS team, because this really in no way complicates the effort to bring an MLS team to Raleigh. There can be one team in Charlotte and one team in Raleigh. Iâm sure that would be perfectly fine from MLSâs perspective.
EDIT: Apparently we have access to a salt emoji, but not to a black pepper emoji. This feels horribly wrong to me.
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Raleigh wanted a soccer team and was creating buzz about it, so Charlotte pursued a soccer team. Raleigh has a Snohetta designed library, so Charlotte had to get a Snohetta library. See a pattern here?
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Cross-Carolina Derby, any body? (Pronounced âdarby,â of course 
)
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