Stadium Report Cards: St. Pete TImes Forum

Team: Tampa Bay Lightning
Location: Tampa Bay, FL
League: National Hockey League(SE)
Built: 1996
Capacity: 19,758
My event: Regular season game, vs Washington Capitals

1. Outdoor Design
I think it's beautiful. Look above for a reference. On the other side, there is a big open fan plaza. I honestly cannot complain
9/10

2. Indoor Design
I think this was good for an arena. Big lower bowl, pretty big middle section, and an upper deck that has great views.
8/10

3. Prices
Prices are... decent. I mean, there is low prices on the upper deck, but lower bowl prices are shaky. So is merchandise.
7/10

4. Food

Quick, name a food. Well, they'd have it here. Above is just a picture I took of variety. I thought it was kinda funny. It's also pretty good, too.
9/10

5. Staff
No real problems actually.
7/10

6. Cleanliness
There was some trash on the floor from people who sat in our seats for the warm ups.
6/10

7. Parking
Parking is one place that is lacking. You have to walk about 3 blocks to the arena from where we park. It is downtown, so there really isn't any major lot.
4/10

8. Atmosphere
Tampa Bay is 21st of 30 in attendance last season. It was pretty decent when I went to a Bruins-Bolts game around Christmas.
7/10

9. Playing Surface.

It was well manicured during breaks, so thats cool. The best part is little lightning bolts in the red line.
8/10

10. Scoreboard

Coolest jumbotron ever. It is complete 360 degrees around. It can look like this^ or be 4 different images.
10/10

Overall 75, which puts it mid pack. Top rank of the two arenas in the list.

Stadium Report Cards: Tropicana Field

Team: Tampa Bay Rays
Location: St. Petersburg, FL
League: Major League Baseball(AL)
Built: 1990
Capacity: 36,973
My event: Regular season game, vs Texas Rangers

1. Outdoor Design
If you look at the picture above, you can see what it looks like. Again, it's a dome, but unlike most domes it's round. Also, it has tilted roof. So the architects back in the day atleast put some thought into it. Note, the stadium above is probably... late 90s/early 2000s
5/10

2. Indoor Design

In recent years, it's gone from a hollow crappy inside, into a more home feel. To be honest, I like it. It has some qualities similar to an outdoor stadium, but still has some remaining indoor things.
6/10

3. Prices
Known as the most fan friendly prices, this one doesn't leave you disappointed. Though food prices for a chicken tender basket, and a large coke can cost as much as upper deck tickets.
9/10

4. Food
Dang, the food here is actually really good. There are soooo many choices. From, Papa Johns pizza, Outback, burgers, fries, chicken, cubans, philly cheese steaks... I could go on.
9/10

5. Staff
The staff is always friendly, mingling with fans and such, it's really nice to have.
8/10

6. Cleanliness
People complain about the dome, but honestly, don't listen. I go to about 10 games a year, and don't think that it's terrible. Sure, theres some sticky stuff on the metal flooring in the left field bleachers, but thats just from the people there.
5/10

7. Parking
Big parking lot around the stadium. Bring 4 or more fans to a game, and you can park free. Though you may have to resort in parking in the shady area surrounding the stadium. Getting out is complained about, but if you know what you're doing, it's gold.
7/10

8. Atmosphere

Rays games are moody. If you get the Royals on a Tuesday night, then yeah the atmosphere will be crappy. A Yankee game on a Friday night, it's rockin'. The picture above was a Saturday night against Texas, with Big and Rich after the game. But since it can be crappy at times, I give it a 6.
6/10

9. Playing Surface.
It looks like crap. There, I said it. But it does have a complete infield, dirt wise.
3/10

10. Scoreboard

Another new feature from the last few years is the big scoreboard.
8/10

I tried not being biased here. Tropicana Field gets a 65. Just beating the Sun Dome.

I love this place, but Tampa needs a new stadium. Too much bitching about this stadium, so that leads people whose only trip was in 2005 to keep complaining.

Rays expand search for new stadium

Rays' owner Stewart Sternburg had an announcement last monday. The Rays' principal owner asked that all potential new ballpark options within the Tampa Bay area, including those outside St. Petersburg and Pinellas County, be explored. "The future of Major League Baseball in Tampa Bay depends on finding the optimal site for a new ballpark," Sternberg said.

Basically what that means is, it'll be in Tampa. Though, there are some premo areas on the St. Pete side. There is a location less than a mile off of the bridge that connects Tampa and St. Pete. People on the Tampa side complain the drive would be long, when you can actually hit that highway and be across in about 5. Stupid Tampa people.


Here's just a quick mock up of what I was thinking. It could be cleaned up, and provide a boost in that area for business. The problem with the Tropicana Field is that it is in a pretty bad part of St. Pete.

BACK!

So, I'm bringing this blog back, just for future operations. I will do more report cards, give more news, and try to get this blog kickin'.

Requests Posts

Comment in the comments below, for requests of stadium lists, news, or anything else

Stadium Report Cards: Turner Field

Team: Atlanta Braves

Location: Atlanta, GA
League: Major League Baseball(NL)
Built: 1996
Capacity: 50,096
My event: Regular season game, vs Philadelphia Phillies

1. Outdoor Design
Built for the Olympics, this was one of the better stadiums I've seen. A basic 90s ballpark made of brick.
8/10

2. Indoor Design

So very cool. Behind the scoreboard, there was a big plaza with the team shop, a kids park, bands, and other fun stuff. There was stuff all along the inside part under the seats.
10/10

3. Prices
I'm use to cheap Tropicana field tickets, so this was a little pricey. We sat first row, upper deck, on the first base side. It cost(I think) about 20 dollars. But on the lower part, it's up there in price.
6/10

4. Food
Meh, average ballpark foods. Got your hotdogs, burgers, ect.
6/10

5. Staff
From what I remember, the staff was pretty good. The mascot was fun, and the people checking tickets were too.
7/10

6. Cleanliness
No problems at Turner.
7/10

7. Parking
Before Turner, the Braves played at Fulton County Stadium, which was right next door. When they finished Turner, they demolished it, leaving a HUGE parking lot.
10/10

8. Atmosphere

The game I went to was a big division rivalry with the Phillies. It was a FOX Saturday game too, so that added to it. Everyone stayed till the very end, where we saw the Braves beat the Phillies on a walk-off single. A lot better than what I'm use to in Tampa
9/10

9. Playing Surface.
It was amazing. The crew got it clean fast, and it was mowed fantastically.
9/10

10. Scoreboard

It was huge, and HD. Very nice.
8/10

New high score! A score of 80/100 is what Turner Field receives. It'll be hard to beat.

Stadium Report Cards: Montgomery Riverwalk Stadium

Team: Montgomery Biscuits
Location: Montgomery, AL
League: Southern League(AA)
Built: 2004
Capacity: 7,000
My event: Regular season game, vs Mississippi Braves

1. Outdoor Design

This was really cool. Driving up, I had no clue where the stadium was. Fact is, the stadium is built from an old train station! I thought that was so cool. A train track runs along the outside of the stadium behind left field.
8/10

2. Indoor Design

How cool is that? Right field, there is an indent where a flag pole is. I random quirk to the field that makes it hard. Along the seat area, there wasn't much. Just seats, and stores. There was a playground in the left field corner.
9/10

3. Prices
Average prices for a minor league park.
6/10

4. Food
Yummy ballpark food, with chicken sandwiches, with biscuits! How fitting!
8/10

5. Staff
Really nice staff. Talked to a worker in the team store about the Rays(I was in Rays gear). No one stopped us moving around, and the people who got the fans into the game, with the little games were a lot of fun.
9/10

6. Cleanliness
From what I remember, there wasn't any problems with the trash.
6/10

7. Parking
There wasn't any lot for the stadium. You'd just park on the curbs in the area around the stadium. We parked about a quarter mile away. But it makes sense, because the stadium is near a river, downtown.
7/10

8. Atmosphere
Friday night, which was firework night, was pretty wild. There was a section in the outfield for the hunters convention in Montgomery that weekend. Lots of college kids were there too.
8/10

9. Playing Surface.
It was actually really good. A nice simple pattern on the outfield, and the infield was ideal.
8/10

10. Scoreboard

Pretty cool. The more biscuits the better. But pretty average talking about the minor league parks I've been to.
7/10

A final of 76/100. Out of 2, that's the best yet!