OTC: Does Sprint Center Need A Pro Team To Succeed?
Tags
- Adam Murphy
- Alex Smith
- Bill Self
- Bob Lefsetz
- Brandon Leftridge
- Brian McTavish
- Caitlin Donnelly
- Craig Glazer
- David Scott Whinery, Esquire
- Dwight Sutherland
- Greg Hall
- Hearne
- Hearne Christopher
- Hearne Christopher Jr.
- Jack Poessiger
- Jennifer Janesko
- Joe Miller
- Kansas City Chiefs
- Kansas City Royals
- Kansas City Star
- KC chiefs
- KC Royals
- Kelly Urich
- Larry Hovick
- Lawrence Journal World
- Lefsetz
- M. Donnelly
- Maria Juarez
- Mark Edelman
- Mark Valentine
- Matt Donnelly
- Matthew Donnelly
- Parolees
- Paul Wilson
- President obama
- Rich Steele
- Sam Brownback
- Shauna Swanson
- Sporting Kansas city
- Starbeams
- The Point 99.7 FM
- Tom Brady
- Tony Botello
- Tracy Thomas
- TV Time
Sections
John
“GH: We paid for Sprint Center with promises that a professional team would be calling it home soon after it opened. This October it will be three years since Sprint Center
Gavin
I’m not sure how reasonable your demand is that Mellinger refuse to take no for an answer when messages to Leiweke and Tinnen went unreturned. It’s not as if Mellinger only left them one message, fifteen minutes before his deadline or something. That piece seemed very well-researched and I have to believe Mellinger gave them both plenty of chnaces to comment and they just wouldn’t. “So Mellinger should walk to the Sprint Center and DEMAND that they speak to him,” you argue. Really? How well do you think that would have worked out. It’s not as if Mellinger, by virtue of a press pass, has access to all the offices in the Sprint Center or something. So you would have him go sit in the lobby and just tell the receptionist “I’m not going anywhere until Tim Leiweke comes out here and comments on the record about a story I’m writing!” Do you really think that would have worked? I have my doubts.
You are right, though, about Mellinger offering an apology on behalf of all the AEG people. That’s not really Mellinger’s role and if they don’t want to talk about it publicly, he should let their silence speak for them. Build your story and tell it as well as you can. If a principal player in the story refuses to comment, note that you tried to get him to speak but he refused. Let the reader draw his own conclusions.
One gripe I had about the story is that Mellinger makes it sound as if Kansas City was really a threat to land the Pittsburgh Penguins. No way. Kansas City was used like a dishrag whore by the Penguins’ management. We were never going to get that team and it was obvious we were being used as leverage. Mellinger says that team officials were “preparing” for a possible move to Kansas City. Well, what else WOULD the team say? No way they’ll cop to using KC to get leverage, especially years after the deal has been done. Why not just say “Kansas City got used, but it HAD to try and land the team if it really had the desire to actually get an NHL Team. So Sprint Center officials can be forgiven for trying so hard and what was always a longshot.” Nothing wrong with that.
Greg
P&L District was agreed to by Cordish five months before it was ever announced there was the possibility of an arena across the street. Cordish said they could make the entertainment district work without an arena. Cordish is now trying to rewrite history.
KC Fan
We were sold a bill of goods on the Sprint Center. That is the bottom line. No NBA or NHL team is coming anytime soon. There is no push to get a team here. It is very depressing. Can we agree that Kansas City is at the bottom of sports towns in America. We have a joke of a baseball franchise, run by David Glass. We have a football team that may turn around (Please don’t draft Bryan Bulaga, Please!!!), if Pioli doesn’t do a favor to his buddy ala drafting Bulaga for Kirk Ferentz. At least the Wizards are building a stadium, but who cares about MLS.
To sum up, KC pro sports BAD AND GETTING WORSE!!!
P.S. Kansas City should change its name to Bigger Omaha or Bigger Des Moines.
John
“P&L District was agreed to by Cordish five months before it was ever announced there was the possibility of an arena across the street. Cordish said they could make the entertainment district work without an arena. Cordish is now trying to rewrite history.”
Cordish maybe trying to rewrite history of the P&L District. But perception is reality. And right now the perception is that without an anchor tenant, P&L will fail and the Sprint Center will be a white elephant stealing our tax dollars. Barnes said if we build it a team will come. I bet many people voted for it simply because they thought we would have a NBA or NHL town in a year with it.
Sure it was also built to keep the Big 12 basketball Tournament in town. But, the tournament will never permantly stay here. Those days are long gone.
And yes, it also brings in concerts. But so was Kemper, Sandstone and the Music Hall in Swope Park. Sprint Center brings in about 4-5 more concerts a year then what the other three venues would attract.
So without an anchor tenant, looks like the Sprint Center was built for the tournament to come to town every three years in stead of every five years and a few more concerts and one Tyler Perry play a year.
jojo
the longer sprint stays empty the harder it will
be to get a team tenant.
AEG knew the chances of getting a team here
in kc were almost niol. If someone followed
these guys they would know that they skated
town after the comets fell apart and they
“papered” kemper with free tickets.
There is no team coming to sprint. So it will
hve to live with the one concert every 2 weeks
that it has. But maintaining a building like that
that stays empty makes it even more expensive.
We saw what they made p and l…hardly
a family place that was the vision of lie wicke
and barnes…its a pick up bar area geared to
dults 20-30 years of age.
Problem is that kc could support a team..not
a pro team but more college events at sprint.
Maybe like the old preseason big 8 tournament
thatwas at municipal. How would that work
between xmas and new years or the first week
of january….
or a mini tourney…brining in 8-10 mjor college
teams for a tournament.
We’re stuck with sprint…a cheap imitation of
the palaces being built elsewhere.
And with no local people with big bucks
to pay the bills forget it.
St. Louis is having the same problems we
are. American airlines is about to pull out of
st. louis. It will kill the city.
Like kc…corporate headquarters are leaving
st. louis. The top corporate guys at anheuser
bush are headed to new york. They are talking
about getting rid of the rams so they can bring
in more conventions usi9ng the dome building
floor as a wayto attract more dollars than the
rams are bringing in.
Our city is fine. We have baseball and
football and both appear pretty well set in
staying. Whether the p and l makes it ain’t
my problem. Its kcmo’s…and I could care less
if the place closes up…i never go there.
And everntually it will be filled with hip hop
bars.
The sprint center is nice but it can sustain
itself with concerts. I personally could care
less about the nba or the nhl…i wouldn’t pay
to watch them. How about mma/boxing/major
events…how about more events to bring in
epople…they’ve not been creative in ways
to use the buidling.
Maybe a massive christian rally or how about
filling it up with all those tea baggers
and sarah palin and rush limbaugh.
OUr city will survive. But for now, I like
most of the money people find everything I
need in johnson county so kcmo can become
a crp hole and I could care less.
barry
when talk of an nba or nhl team was being used to sell the sprint center, i was pretty cynical. there isn’t one market in the united states as small as kansas city that has successfully supported three major professional sports franchises. given what has happened to the economy, i think that had a team come here it could have been a disaster.
does anyone find it ironic that the local government can find the money to build a new arena but feels it has to cut back on services, including closing schools?
The Independent Rage
I’m just noticing that your column is back. That’s great to see. It’s been a few years.
___
GH: Glad to be reunited, I-Rage. Spread the word if you would. I’ve been posting my OTC here five times a week for 14 months. I have not done a very good job of letting everyone know where to find me but hopefully some word of mouth from my readers will get the news percolating on the web.
DonkeyPunch
Barry sed:
does anyone find it ironic that the local government can find the money to build a new arena but feels it has to cut back on services, including closing schools?
Donkeypunch sez:
Not a fair analogy. I’d love nothing more than to pound the KC City Council, however the Sprint Center’s funding was approved well before the economy tanked. I could listen to the argument that the writing was on the wall that the economy was about ready to take a nose dive, however that’s for another thread. However, the point remains that the Sprint Center was approved/built prior to Barry and his band of misfits turning this country into his pinko-commie version of Russia
jjskck
@John – Our perception doesn’t really matter. The facts are that Cordish signed a sweetheart deal with the city. This deal was based on highly flawed projections that wouldn’t have held up even in a good economy. It was not contingent upon a new arena at all.
A lot of people may have hoped the Sprint Center would land a 3rd franchise, but they voted for the arena because it was funded in small part by AEG private dollars and in large part by out-of-towners via hotel and rental car taxes. In other words, the construction burden did not fall on area citizens.
Oh – and the Sprint Center is profitable and is run by a successful management group.
Contrast that with the P&L, which will never turn a profit and was highly subsidized by the local tax base. It’s really apples and oranges.
Hammy
lets face it, the Sprint Center was built for the Big 12 tournament. Thats why I voted for it.
John
“lets face it, the Sprint Center was built for the Big 12 tournament. Thats why I voted for it.”
So you’re OK with the tournament only coming here every three years? Lets face it. It’s not going here every year. It has to go to Dallas, Houston, OKC and San Antonio as well.
KC Fan
Agree with John, having a basketball tournament every few years is not a reason to build an arena. I remember Lieweke saying that we might even get both the NBA and NHL. That was hyperbole to say the least, but we should be in line for one of them.
The fact remains that the mentality of KC as a small time sports town will forever kill any chance that we get an NBA or NHL team. The fans would rather follow college sports than support a pro team. That is the truth, listen to local sports radio. There is no grassroots push for another team. Oh well, enjoy the concerts, pathetic baseball franchise and hopefully a better football team
jojo
donkey punch: I know you don’t know shit so
stop trying to act like an even bigger
asshole in your final comment.
Remember…long before “barry” took over
we had the biggest financial collapse since
1932…the biggest fraud ever perpetrated on the
americans ever…government funds (yes government
funds) subsidizing such great project like
union station…sprint center…downtown
renovation…liberty memorial…power and
light…block buidling…kemper….a war(s)
that is never ending…wall street fraud….
the biggest fucking housingcollapse in history…
gov. debt skyrocketing….the biggest con schemes
in history…and this was in just the
3 years before barry took office.
The commies you hate have been in power a lot
longer than you think…the government has
been bailing us out…paying for crap…hiding
money….stealing money long long before
barry took office and they’ll be doing it long
after barry leaves in 2017.
The hate you spew and the words you use were
the same hateful spiteful deadly thoughts that
consumed mcveigh when he killed 170 “government”
workers…you are fillthy lying scum.
Go fuck yourself and the rest of your
teabagging low life lying piece of shit friends.
Barry had to and continues to be forced to
clean up the mess the real “criminals” before him
created. Without those bailouts you wouldnt
have your $8 and hour job washing out portable
toilets. Lucky you still clean upi shit because
you are shit.
DonkeyPunch
JOJO, I knew you were a Misery fan, though never pegged you for a liberal hippy. Sad that it took me a total of 15 posts to send you over the edge.
Oh, thanks for recognizing me for my $8/hr job. You almost have me figured out, numbnutz
Brian
4-20-2010
HALL’S UNFAIR SHOT DIRECTED AT MELLINGER (Or Hall gets called out)
Greg Hall, who blogs about local sports issues and reporters, has taken to task Kansas City Star sports columnist Sam Mellinger.
Hall basically called Mellinger lazy (or incompetent) for not getting quotes from Sprint Arena officials for a story he wrote in Sunday’s paper regarding a lack of a pro team relocating to Kansas City and housed at the Arena.
In his article, Mellinger, who was recently promoted to columnist to fill the position vacated by Joe Posnanski, quotes a variety of principals, including former KCMO Mayor Kay Barnes and current Mayor Mark Funkhouser, however, he reported two key individuals were not available.
“(Tim) Leiweke and Sprint Center general manager and senior vice president Brenda Tinnen did not return messages for this story
Stevo
Jojo, you’re first long-ass post has some good ideas, imo. I would go see some boxing at the Sprint Center. They could get fights of the Pavlik-Jermain Taylor level. And that fight was freaking awesome a few years back. Steal some of the fights from Memphis. Why not??? I think when you bring in the Christian rallies is the day you decide there is NO chance you’re ever going to get a team. If they could land some high profile MMA and high-as-possible boxing matches it could showcase the place. Concerts at the Sprint Center do NOTHING for me. Why would you ever want to watch a concert inside? I hate the morons that tore out the reserved seats at Sandstone. I enjoyed that place. Sprint isn’t even loud.
Cliffy
Really dumb shot at Mellinger. Gavin said it pretty well.
Do you have any training or education in journalism or are you a self-professed expert? Just curious.
asshall
hall: you’re an idiot. you can’t just summon people like brenda tinnen on the phone. you make appointments, days even weeks in advance. if it were so easy, why don’t you do it? moron.
Rainbow Man
KC will pay for letting go of the Kings. We are in NBA purgatory. Take note my KC friends, take note.
MandDShagger
An NBA team? That’ll make the Plaza riot(s) look like a tea party. The kid’s will have something to do they’ll just have to rape and pillage whitey to get money to afford the tickets. Or maybe they can have $10.00 off a ticket when you flash yo grill, gunshot wound or note from your PO.