Sports

Pan Am Stadium: A Bad Location is Worse than Nowhere

By Jason Leach
Published July 06, 2010

As is always the case in Hamilton, when someone proposes a vibrant, urban vision for our downtown or waterfront area, a small collection of antiquated people with various political or business interests insist on treating our city as though it is a 1960s suburb.

If the Ticats think plopping a stadium down beside a highway outside of the core of a city is such a great idea, perhaps they should have put in a bid on the recently-sold Pontiac Silverdome outside of Detroit.

It sold for one percent of what it cost to build. Of course, there is no need for it anymore since both the Lions and Tigers play in new parks in tight urban quarters in the middle of a redeveloping downtown neighbourhood.

Let's let someone else take our Pan Am Stadium until we can drag our city's power brokers out of the '60s and replace them with folks who have vision and a basic understanding of city-building.

Jason Leach was born and raised in the Hammer and currently lives downtown with his wife and children. You can follow him on twitter.

19 Comments

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By Hunter (anonymous) | Posted July 06, 2010 at 19:17:18

What A FUCKING NIGHTMARE.

I will cancel my seasons tickets if they build there.

Hunter

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By Highwater (registered) | Posted July 06, 2010 at 19:31:05

The thing that really kills me about this whole thing is that they wouldn't have treated any other city like this. Can you imagine Bob Young holding a gun to the head of Ottawa or Halifax and forcing them to build suburban stadiums? How dare he play the "life long Hamiltonian" card when it's clear he has nothing but contempt for this city. We're always stuck with the dregs. I don't think I'll be able to remain civil the next time I get an email from the cats exhorting me to buy tx. F*ck those bastards.

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By J Morse (anonymous) | Posted July 06, 2010 at 19:32:31

I'll cancel mine too. How can we get other seat holders together?

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By nm (anonymous) | Posted July 06, 2010 at 19:48:33

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By stormysky_dw (registered) - website | Posted July 06, 2010 at 20:18:07

What a wasted opportunity. I really wish someone would have the stones to stick up to these guys. I'm a lifelong football fan, but if they want the stadium in a stupid area, then they can pay for it without any government assistance. Wait until the provincial funding for this project dries up since it's not a city-building venture and the city will be stuck picking up the remaining tab.

Seriously, who do these guys think they are? How sweet of a deal can they ask for when a non-hockey Canadian sports team is not only getting funding from they city they are located in but other levels of government as well.

I say let them try to take the team somewhere else...good luck finding as sweet of a deal as we're offering in a market that makes any semblance of sense.

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By SadDay (anonymous) | Posted July 06, 2010 at 21:22:56

It is a very bad day for our city....and who caved? The politicos is who.

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By frank (registered) | Posted July 06, 2010 at 22:31:38

someone needs to check out the definition of 'blog entry' lol.

i'm actually in agreement with the heading. my opinion is this: if you're not going to build a stadium downtown, then don't build one. Let someone else fund a suburban nightmare. I don't want my tax money going to a wasteful development because Bob Young can't see past his own spectacles.

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By frank (registered) | Posted July 06, 2010 at 22:36:43

In this article Young says he's willing to commit 74 million to the alternative site...

My response: really? how about we just leave you playing in the crumbling venue you're at now instead of wasting my money to build you a new sandbox to play in so you can abandon it in a few years and you can put your 74 million into subsidizing your own team?? forget using my tax money to prop up some lame lack-of-visionary's team when he has 74 million to blow on a location that by all indications elsewhere is an incredibly poor location!

http://www.900chml.com/Channels/Reg/News...

or even better, invest your 74 million in a property that you can build your own little stadium on sometime in the future, surrounded by parking lots that are empty 350 days of the year! BUTT OUT BOB YOUNG!!! THIS ISN'T YOUR STADIUM TO BUILD!!!

Comment edited by frank on 2010-07-06 21:43:04

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By Jason (registered) | Posted July 06, 2010 at 22:44:27

FWIW the politicians haven't caved... Yet. Tomorrow should be interesting.
The cats are doing a great job losing this fan I'll tell ya.

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By Earl (anonymous) | Posted July 07, 2010 at 06:43:02

There is no need for a stadium at west harbourfront, the land is too precious there and close to a lower income area in James St N where kids and families deserve more green space, they aren't trekking out to cottages like some more affluent people who live in the region.

As a season ticket holder for our Hamilton TigerCats, thank you Mr. Young for your contributions to this project and we want to keep the TigerCats in Hamilton at a site that makes sense to the team. By the same token, this will give an opportunity for the Mayor and council to move forward to remediate the Rheem site and adjacent brownfield and turn it into a green oasis for families to enjoy who not only live there who are in need of green space, as I say the lower income bracket. I trust that the Mayor and coucil will see that a stadium and parking lot in the west harbourfront is not the best way to serve this area.

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By Falsy (anonymous) | Posted July 07, 2010 at 07:09:06

Dear Bob - I mean, "Earl" - your concern troll isn't very convincing.

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By frank (registered) | Posted July 07, 2010 at 08:22:15

Take the Spectator's poll today...

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By ceesvang (registered) | Posted July 07, 2010 at 08:34:44

I'm with Bob and Earl!!! Waterfront stadium, a really stupid idea serving football yahoos and politicos who should be focusing on badly needed solutions to infrastructure problems this city is facing.

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By JM (registered) | Posted July 07, 2010 at 08:44:01

The city should just go ahead full steam on the West Harbour, with or without the Tiger Cats.......... if they try to build somewhere else to satisfy them, we will LOSE the government funding and in turn wont be able to afford a stadium to be built next to the highway. That would end up in a loss of the cats anyways, because they won't pay for it..... so why not just go ahead and build at West Harbour? BOTH options see the "risk" of Tiger Cat flight....... at list the Harbour will see some benefit in City building.

JM

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By JM (registered) | Posted July 07, 2010 at 08:48:53

By the way... not enough green space in the North End? How much is enough? Obviously bayfront, pier 4, pier 8, central park, eastwood park, and all the other neighbourhood parks aren't enough........... Personally, i think there's too much green space (parks). PArks are too big in many places (especially in the 'burbs), and are seldom used..... but the second someone wants to use the greenspace for something practical (even take a small piece), and that would save taxpayers money, people get upset!

I'm gonna stop ranting before i say something silly...........

JM

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By Catmanstue (anonymous) | Posted July 07, 2010 at 18:32:59


The only reason the pan am stadium is coming to hamilton is the Cats . Some of you people do not have a clue without the Cats no stadium period . Bob Young deserves admiration for thinking of the long run . You need parking to make this work . Love with BOB.

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By lorne (registered) - website | Posted July 08, 2010 at 10:05:55

If we look at the $74,000,000 that Bob Young claims to be offering the City toward the new stadium site, only about 20% of that ($15,000,000) is 'real' money. Factoring in the upgrades to the Red Hill Creek Expressway and the construction of the ramps required to provide the “driveway-to-driveway” experience the Ticats claim everyone wants, plus the need to expand the stadium to house 25,000 spectators, the taxpayer is likely to be on the hook for another $50-100 million. Inevitably this will lead to even higher oppressive residential taxation and nothing for revitalization of the North End, which I thought was the main reason Hamilton was so excited about getting a slice of the Pan Am pie.

All for a mere 10 football games per year.

Comment edited by lorne on 2010-07-08 09:07:54

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By tuftsdacat (registered) | Posted July 13, 2010 at 10:37:39

I think it is time for Hamilton to rally for the 'West Harbour' location.

I live in the core and the core really needs the stadium to spearhead development. We need more business and condos - not more social housing projects and a stadium may bring in the development we need.

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By givemeabreak! (registered) | Posted July 13, 2010 at 20:51:25

Build it on the East Mountain and the fan base will grow. I will gladly buy up those season tickets if and when the EM location is completed.

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