Goodbye Amway Arena

The home of the Orlando Magic from 1989 to 2010 was imploded on Sunday. They began to take down the inside last fall, and then detonated the rest of it at 7:30 in the morning Sunday. The Magic moved into the new Amway Center which might be the best arena in the US, and it hosted the 2012 NBA All-Star Game.

But this is what you all wanted to see, the implosion video!

One guy actually got hit by debris and was injured! But there is no more eyesore arena next to the really cool one.

Stadium Report Card: Charlotte Sports Park

It's been far too long since we've had one of these.

Team: Charlotte StoneCrabs(Tampa Bay Rays Spring Training)
Location: Port Charlotte
League: Florida State League(Grapefruit League
Built: 1987(Renovated 2009)
Capacity: 7,000
My event: Spring Training Game, vs Boston Red Sox

1. Outdoor Design

I thought it was pretty bland. Along the stands, it just had an overhang with the cement look. But to be honest, it looked pretty good. I didn't know till just now that they renovated the park, and not rebuilt. Worth noting. 6/10

2. Indoor Design

The inside was pretty nice. It was simple in the stands, then a nice press box building behind the plate. The outfield had a deck running the entire length of the outfield, and there were berms in the left field corner. They had a party deck thing overlooking right field, too. 8/10

3. Prices
Pretty average, I thought. Spring training tickets were 22 dollars, but that was sitting in the actual stands. The food prices were cheaper than at the Trop, so that was nice. 7/10

4. Food
I had my favorite meal the Rays do, the chicken finger basket. They had kettle corn, pizza by the slice, tropical smoothies, and root beer floats. 8/10

5. Staff
I didn't have any problems with them! The guys behind the counter at concessions were helpful, and the lady who i bought my StoneCrabs cap from was nice 7/10

6. Cleanliness
Really clean! It was a new park, and they wanted it to look nice. 8/10

7. Parking
The only parking lot was packed when we got there. My sister, and I walked a mile down the road to get there. There was so much traffic, and only one exit to a main road. 4/10

8. Atmosphere
Sure, it was very Pro-RedSox, but what are you gonna do? They sold out the park, and it was a good atmosphere 8/10

9. Playing Surface

 

The field crew kept the infield really really nice. I did notice that the pattern from the infield didn't go to the outfield, and it didn't really even have a pattern. 7/10

10. Scoreboard

 

The scoreboard wasn't anything special. It was basically the same as the one in Dunedin. The only actual video board was one that showed player stats in right center. 4/10

67, which sounds about right. It surprised me to be honest. I didn't know what to expect, and I was pleasantly surprised. Sure it could be improved upon, but it was a great place to watch a game.

New Detroit Red Wings arena part of mall complex?

With a ton of real-estate activity at the rumored site of a new Detroit Red Wings (NHL) arena, the talk is a new facility could be part of a larger mall complex. The area between Woodward Avenue and Cass near Temple, a blighted area, has emerged as a hot real-estate market in recent months, with several properties changing hands or in the midst of negotiations for a sale. Red Wings coach Mike Babcock may have let the cat out of the bag during a radio interview with the local 97.1 The Ticket station:

 “If you want the city to come back, you got to revitalize downtown. A big part of that’s going to be the new arena, and the mall and the stuff going around it,” he said. “And that’s very important. That’s why we need the state to jump onside, and the sooner the better, if we’re going to revitalize Michigan. It’s got to start right here in Detroit.” 

 With developer Al Traubman rumored to be looking at a downtown shopping center, the outlines of the plan become clearer: a new arena as part of a much larger development. And this is the same site where a stop was added to light-rail plans several months ago, despite the lack of any current need for a stop.



I think that would be a great move. Detroit's downtown would get a boost with the best team in hockey for the last 20 years having a shiny new arena in the middle of downtown. I also think it would do justice, because Joe Louis Arena seems pretty crappy. It was opened in 1979, and Detroit is home to one of the nicest stadiums in the MLB and NFL. Also, the Pistons play about 25 miles away from downtown. Who knows? Maybe they can have all 4 teams together downtown.

Vikings Stadium news

As you know, the Vikings are currently stuck in one of the worst stadiums in America. The long stadium drama may have just had a resolution. Minnesota's governor Mark Dayton has announced that an agreement was reached to build a new stadium on the site of the Metrodome. The 975 million dollar plan would be modeled after Lucas Oil Stadium, which you can see from the above picture.

If they build it on the spot the dome is now, they would have to play at TCF Bank Stadium, on the campus of Minnesota during the final year of construction.

Atleast they have their plan together! They were a team with a good chance to move to LA, or have a stadium not even in the Twin Cities(A surrounding suburb). Hopefully someone down here can do figure it out for the Rays.

First Look: Marlins Ballpark

Here is about 100 pictures of the Marlins Ballpark for you guys!

http://www.stadiumpage.com/construction/MarlinsPark_201200302.html

I think it looks REALLY good. I have some friends going there when the Rays are in town, but unfortunately they play the same weekend I graduate. So I'll get them to do a report card for you all.

Now, I have some stuff planned. I'll try to do 3 spring training ballpark report cards this month. I'm going to Port Charlotte for the Rays in two weeks, and our friend Neil will be in Ft. Myers, and do the Twins and BoSox' park. Should be cool.