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Post by hfxfan09 on May 17, 2022 19:56:39 GMT -4
Checking out my first Match on Friday, just wondering if similar to the Mooseheads the Wanderers sell Popcorn/Water at Wanderers Grounds? Thanks and what else to expect. I don't mind watching Soccer sometimes, but since it's outdoors for 3 hours maybe dress a bit warmer!
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Post by Futuremoosefan on May 20, 2022 13:45:44 GMT -4
Oddly enough, I'll be going to my first Wanderers game tonight too. My initial thought regarding your food question was of course they do...they (sports teams/venues) make a tonne of money from food/drink sales. Then I checked the team's website and there was no mention of it at all and I started to doubt it. I then did a search online, and the following is the only thing related to food at the games I found: eatnorth.com/helen-earley/halifax-wanderers-grounds-raises-bar-stadium-diningSo they do sell a variety of food; but there's no mention of water or popcorn. So I guess we'll both find out together. |
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Post by Futuremoosefan on May 21, 2022 9:25:21 GMT -4
I somehow still don't know. I never bothered getting anything at the concessions, but I looked around from my seat, and I didn't see anyone with popcorn or water. Most were drinking beer; but I did see someone with a hot dog.
As for the game, my friend who has season tickets said that was the worst he's ever seen Halifax play. So hopefully, the next gam I get to they will play better.
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Post by MikeC on May 21, 2022 12:20:47 GMT -4
They play TFC on Tuesday, so unlikely to see a Halifax win there.
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Post by trueblue on Sept 14, 2023 19:48:00 GMT -4
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Post by Reesor on Sept 15, 2023 7:29:56 GMT -4
Were there details in the proposal on how the costs would be shared between team ownership and the city/province? That will probably be the determining factor on whether this gets done or not. It is a nice proposal but it's tough to get excited when this city has a tendency of crushing hopes and dreams. I know the organization will pitch the economic spinoffs from having a permanent venue capable of attracting other sporting events and concerts. But the city has to realize timely profit from their long-term investment, especially with the given challenges like homelessness, transit etc.
I hope it gets done. I'm skeptical though.
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Post by Jacques Strap on Sept 15, 2023 7:45:37 GMT -4
Why go half way with a stadium? I would rather have a larger venue where soccer and football can be played. If this goes through we will never get a larger stadium or a CFL team imo. I would rather watch football than soccer. I do like soccer though but football more.
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Post by Reesor on Sept 15, 2023 8:00:26 GMT -4
Why go half way with a stadium? I would rather have a larger venue where soccer and football can be played. If this goes through we will never get a larger stadium or a CFL team imo. I would rather watch football than soccer. I do like soccer though but football more. The 40 million price tag is a lot easier to swallow than the 9-figure price tag for a CFL-sized stadium. The Wanderers are a success with a pop-up stadium with awful seating, no amenities and porta-potties. They will absolutely be more of a success with this stadium, whereas building a CFL-sized stadium and profiting off of it is not nearly as much of a slam dunk. Plus that stadium could not be built on the Wanderers Grounds so the location would be worse. This venue is scalable as well, so they could add up to 7,000 more seats down the road bringing it up to 15,000. If they were to hold a 2026 World Cup exhibition game I'm sure they could put temporary seating in to bring it up to the standard necessary to do that. They'd probably have to outbid Moncton for it though and Moncton's venue is better already. Having an outdoor concert venue that isn't muddy AF would be nice. The option for an inflatable dome in the winter would allow for kids and adults to have soccer leagues all year. I like their pitch (pun definitely intended). I just don't know if the city is ready for that commitment. Or a better phrasing would be: I don't know if the city is ready to justify the cost of that investment over other priorities. |
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Post by trueblue on Sept 15, 2023 8:26:56 GMT -4
Were there details in the proposal on how the costs would be shared between team ownership and the city/province? That will probably be the determining factor on whether this gets done or not. It is a nice proposal but it's tough to get excited when this city has a tendency of crushing hopes and dreams. I know the organization will pitch the economic spinoffs from having a permanent venue capable of attracting other sporting events and concerts. But the city has to realize timely profit from their long-term investment, especially with the given challenges like homelessness, transit etc. I hope it gets done. I'm skeptical though. Quote from Waye Mason: The Wanderers are committing to be the long term anchor tenant on a 30-year lease which should give the city some cost certainty, while providing a multi-sport field in the middle of the peninsula for community use. Keep in mind that they are about to spend $110m+ on the Forum, which won't have a pro team supporting the costs - Wanderers Grounds is just over a third of that ask. I've heard rumors that there's provincial dollars available as well for the playing surface itself - there's some reserve funds earmarked to build a turf field for Citadel High who currently play home football games off the peninsula. |
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Post by trueblue on Sept 15, 2023 8:33:50 GMT -4
Why go half way with a stadium? I would rather have a larger venue where soccer and football can be played. If this goes through we will never get a larger stadium or a CFL team imo. I would rather watch football than soccer. I do like soccer though but football more. Football will 100% be played at this stadium if it gets built - as per my last post, it will be the home of Citadel High football. The venue will be expandable to 17,000-18,000 over time, at which point it will be up to the CFL whether they feel they can make it work with their business model. At the very minimum, Wanderers Grounds should be able to host SSNS football championships, the Uteck Bowl, and potentially the Vanier Cup as well. There will be plenty of football to watch if this comes to fruition! Rugby as well. |
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Post by Jacques Strap on Sept 15, 2023 9:23:00 GMT -4
It seems kind of crappy going from grass to artificial turf but I understand why. Derek Martin was just on City News 95.7 Todd Veinotte's show and I don't think he did a very good job of selling this. He said numerous times "stadiums don't make money". That may be true but I don't think he really kept saying it out loud. lol. And how can u guarantee the CPL will be going for 30 years? Like I said, I want a stadium but one that the CFL can play in and will this stadium be big enough for them to pay the bills.
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Post by Reesor on Sept 15, 2023 9:43:52 GMT -4
It seems kind of crappy going from grass to artificial turf but I understand why. Derek Martin was just on City News 95.7 Todd Veinotte's show and I don't think he did a very good job of selling this. He said numerous times "stadiums don't make money". That may be true but I don't think he really kept saying it out loud. lol. And how can u guarantee the CPL with be going for 30 years? Like I said, I want a stadium but one that the CFL can play in and will this stadium be big enough for them to pay the bills. I would argue the risk of building a CFL stadium is a couple orders of magnitude higher than building this size stadium in this location. You already have the parking, the hotels, the bars all within walking distance, where a CFL-sized stadium wouldn't right away. The price of a CFL-sized stadium is such that in the event the CFL doesn't succeed in Halifax, it would be a huge failure and a huge waste of money, whereas I can see this Wanderers stadium being used by more events even if the CPL doesn't succeed. I understand that building this stadium probably kills the CFL in Halifax. I don't think even with 18,000 seats that the CFL would expand here. And if the city builds a 40 million dollar stadium downtown, they would never build another 100+ million dollar stadium somewhere else. It would be disappointing to put the final nail in the coffin on the CFL here. But I'd be excited for soccer fans and concert fans that there's a venue in an almost-perfect location. Immigration is growing all the time and I believe the soccer market is huge here and will continue to grow, whereas there is a certain football market here that doesn't have the same potential for growth. |
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Post by Jack Bauer on Sept 15, 2023 10:07:14 GMT -4
It seems kind of crappy going from grass to artificial turf but I understand why. Derek Martin was just on City News 95.7 Todd Veinotte's show and I don't think he did a very good job of selling this. He said numerous times "stadiums don't make money". That may be true but I don't think he really kept saying it out loud. lol. And how can u guarantee the CPL with be going for 30 years? Like I said, I want a stadium but one that the CFL can play in and will this stadium be big enough for them to pay the bills. I would argue the risk of building a CFL stadium is a couple orders of magnitude higher than building this size stadium in this location. You already have the parking, the hotels, the bars all within walking distance, where a CFL-sized stadium wouldn't right away. The price of a CFL-sized stadium is such that in the event the CFL doesn't succeed in Halifax, it would be a huge failure and a huge waste of money, whereas I can see this Wanderers stadium being used by more events even if the CPL doesn't succeed. I understand that building this stadium probably kills the CFL in Halifax. I don't think even with 18,000 seats that the CFL would expand here. And if the city builds a 40 million dollar stadium downtown, they would never build another 100+ million dollar stadium somewhere else. It would be disappointing to put the final nail in the coffin on the CFL here. But I'd be excited for soccer fans and concert fans that there's a venue in an almost-perfect location. Immigration is growing all the time and I believe the soccer market is huge here and will continue to grow, whereas there is a certain football market here that doesn't have the same potential for growth. Immigrants and Canadians learning the game will turn out for the soccer team over the course of its existence. We forget at times that the CFL...while professional...is a league that many football fans don't follow or have much interest in. While the NFL and its viewership have exploded in this region over the last 25 years...the CFL cant necessarily say that. It will always be a tough draw after the honeymoon period is over and if the team is bad...forget about it. Add in the fact its a smaller schedule and there's a very small window to make all your revenue. Investing in a stadium for soccer and smaller scale football and other events just makes a ton of sense. I thought that stadium in Moncton was a perfect size this summer for the Guns n Roses concert. Many times since I've thought to myself that its actually amazing Halifax doesn't really have anything bigger because we know the market is there for these outdoor events once the weather is nice. The location of the existing Wanderers stadium just makes perfect sense for the layout of the city. Parking becomes an issue i'm sure but can be worked around with a little planning and being willing to walk 10-15 minutes. I really hope Halifax makes this happen. |
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Post by trueblue on Sept 15, 2023 11:09:12 GMT -4
And how can u guarantee the CPL will be going for 30 years? Like I said, I want a stadium but one that the CFL can play in and will this stadium be big enough for them to pay the bills. The CFL isn't really on stable footing either. If you look at their financials and the country's demographic shifts a certain way, one might see a scenario where the CFL is the league that doesn't exist in 30 years. CFL teams lose about $10m to $20m every year, have massive rosters (which exponentially increase costs), and are royally screwed if TSN ever walks away from the broadcast deal. |
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Post by trueblue on Sept 15, 2023 11:29:16 GMT -4
I understand that building this stadium probably kills the CFL in Halifax. I don't think even with 18,000 seats that the CFL would expand here. And if the city builds a 40 million dollar stadium downtown, they would never build another 100+ million dollar stadium somewhere else. The thing that sucks is that in a vacuum, that 18,000 number is likely enough to sustain a CFL franchise if we are at or near capacity most games. But we've yet to see a potential ownership group step forward that has a focus on the CFL product itself - they just seem to want the auxiliary real estate benefits from a massive development project. And that's really disappointing. |
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