Comment 58938

By rscheffler (anonymous) | Posted January 31, 2011 at 17:21:26

Regarding Brian Timmis - what's to say the field/pitch of the new IWS couldn't serve the purpose for both types of football?

I've heard Timmis described as the best pitch this side of BMO Field. Why not make it the best pitch in Ontario? (though IMO it would need to be real turf rather than synthetic).

I believe one of the reasons Timmis is disappearing is not only to accommodate additional parking, but because the south grandstand will be rebuilt farther south than the present location to allow a wider runoff area around the field. Therefore it will encroach into the current Timmis location. With the current IWS design there is very little room along the sidelines. It has always been an issue and will certainly be addressed, though one benefit was that fans got to sit very close to the action. The external south side of IWS is also a no-go zone on game days without the correct credentials and I can imagine that the renovation and removal of Timmis will open up this area for additional uses, such as retail, that could operate throughout the year.

It always perplexed me why more events didn't take place at IWS. Perhaps the cost is excessive for field rental? But if the goal is to make IWS more tightly integrated in the community, I feel there must be a greater effort made to make it accessible to community level events. Back a year or two ago when the stadium debate was still fresh, the Spec ran some stories about how European cities have built professional calibre stadiums yet make them publicly accessible on non-game days for community use. While the Ticats practice in IWS on off days, they don't use the field the entire day and late afternoons and evenings are typically available. Why can't we do that here? Taxpayers are paying for this reno, the Cats are the tenants and should share the facility. I'm sure there is a way to accommodate more uses than is currently the case.

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