Dave Benedict on future of XL Center

[Ts5034]

It took the state about 5 years to address the peeling ceiling tiles that were an absolute embarrassment to all involved. Gampel needs to be renovated and could be done by.... getting a new naming partner.

XL is just way beyond its life but there is no way the state will fund, put up the bonds for funding, etc for a new Civic Center. For UConn, the key is a better deal with the CRDA, improvements to Gampel to help with revenue and hope the state continues it incremental improvements at the XL until it is just not viable anymore.

Maybe it's just me, but I really don't think Gampel is in that bad of shape all things considered being over 30 years old. They just renovated the ceiling tiles a few years back which was probably #1 on the to do list, and they also recently upgraded the lights, sound system, and video boards. Gampel has a timeless design, the open concourse was ahead of it's time when they built the place, and even the restroom's are spacious compared to the XL. The building never lost its charm. They can make significant changes for a relatively low cost. If they replace the bleachers with all chair backs, and maybe replace all the plastic chairs with the more cushion ones for comfort, that would go a long way. As far as concessions, they can also be improved at a low cost I would assume.

 

[businesslawyer]

Almost a 2 hour drive from Greenwich to Hartford.

No, not without traffic (and with traffic it's unlimited). From my house in Fairfield I can be in Greenwich in 30 minutes and I can be at the XL Center in an hour.

 

[UConnMike04]

Shelton would be awesome. Better bars than Hartford!

I’m in Monroe so would work great for me! Put an arena on Jones Farm! Haha

 

[StllH8L8ner]

I’m in Monroe so would work great for me! Put an arena on Jones Farm! Haha

Indian Wells Pavilion!

 

[BPT2Storrs]

It seems as if the State and CRDA are taking a band-aid approach to the necessary renovations. What’s stopping the CRDA from going out to bid for a P3 approach on a new arena? I know the state lacks a lot of resources but there has got to be some state owned land along with other infrastructure upgrades that they can fund that would entice a private entity to consider it. Is the market not there (UConn will never be there full time, competition from arenas at Mohegan, Bridgeport, etc.)

I know it’s easier said than done, but the state and the quasi public agencies need to get out of the arena business. Use the limited state resources to help develop land (demolition, remediation, etc), provide the right infrastructure upgrades and secure the right private sector partners to make a new stadium a reality. Let’s not continue to mismanage it.

Unless the state is ready to make all of the needed improvements why do we keep throwing money at it? Let’s either completely overhaul the current XL Center or cut our losses and move on.

 

[UCLJ0211]

Just put a dome over Rentschler Field, throw down a basketball court, and get 30,000 fans to watch UConn play. Think about how much quicker they would recoup the investment with all those fans in attendance. Thank me later.

 

[UCTitleTown]

I love Gampel. I'll gladly drove the extra distance. That's a real college experience, not the blue hairs in the lower section sitting on their hands.

 

[superjohn]

Gampel is pretty outdated too...

No donor is going to donate to the XL Center - it’s so poorly run that’s like throwing money away. I freaking love the building and it’s history, but until Hartford has some sort of extreme gentrification the building shouldn’t be touched. There is zero money in downtown Hartford.

On campus arenas are supposed to be outdated, it's a part of their charm.

 

[nadav]

not the blue hairs in the lower section sitting on their hands.

The people paying the bills

 

[Waquoit]

I love Gampel. I'll gladly drove the extra distance. That's a real college experience, not the blue hairs in the lower section sitting on their hands.

That's outdated crap. Do you go to games? The lower bowl at XL has been pretty good lately. Meanwhile at Gampel, the "blue hairs" in the lower section don't even show up. And the yellow jackets keep those seats unoccupied. Then again, neither do the students. Last game at Gampel I moved to the empty student section because it was more comfortable than the seats I bought

 

[Watchdog]

The XL is beneficial to UConn and UConn is beneficial to the XL. Work it out.

And Gampel-only is stupid, particularly over winter break when there's no one on-campus.

Amen on the scheduling when students aren't in session and maybe DB is just using some pressure to get UConn a better deal in Hartford. Why not? Lots of businesses (ahem, ESPN) have done the same with excellent payoffs for their efforts.

 

[Rentschler9]

It seems as if the State and CRDA are taking a band-aid approach to the necessary renovations. What’s stopping the CRDA from going out to bid for a P3 approach on a new arena? I know the state lacks a lot of resources but there has got to be some state owned land along with other infrastructure upgrades that they can fund that would entice a private entity to consider it. Is the market not there (UConn will never be there full time, competition from arenas at Mohegan, Bridgeport, etc.)

I know it’s easier said than done, but the state and the quasi public agencies need to get out of the arena business. Use the limited state resources to help develop land (demolition, remediation, etc), provide the right infrastructure upgrades and secure the right private sector partners to make a new stadium a reality. Let’s not continue to mismanage it.

Unless the state is ready to make all of the needed improvements why do we keep throwing money at it? Let’s either completely overhaul the current XL Center or cut our losses and move on.

There is plenty of existing parking and infrastructure out at Buckland Hills. And you get to free yourself from the City of Hartford.

The CRDA is a laundering front whose usefulness is past due. It isn’t the responsibility of UConn AD to provide equity to developers in DT Hartford.

 

[UCTitleTown]

That's outdated crap. Do you go to games? The lower bowl at XL has been pretty good lately. Meanwhile at Gampel, the "blue hairs" in the lower section don't even show up. And the yellow jackets keep those seats unoccupied. Then again, neither do the students. Last game at Gampel I moved to the empty student section because it was more comfortable than the seats I bought

About 5 games a year. Outdated my .

 

[superjohn]

That's outdated crap. Do you go to games? The lower bowl at XL has been pretty good lately. Meanwhile at Gampel, the "blue hairs" in the lower section don't even show up. And the yellow jackets keep those seats unoccupied. Then again, neither do the students. Last game at Gampel I moved to the empty student section because it was more comfortable than the seats I bought

If you're complaining about the comfort of seats at an on campus arena you probably just shouldn't go to games.

 

[Watchdog]

The Whalers leaving Harford was the beginning of the end for the Civic Center/XL Center. It was a sad and short-sited decision by people that did not understand what professional Hockey does for a city.

Brass Bonanza Silenced: The Demise of the Hartford Whalers - The Hockey Writers Hockey History Latest News, Analysis & More

Why did the Hartford Whalers leave the NHL, and why are they never coming back? THW looks back at the franchise's untimely demise.

thehockeywriters.com

The problem is there are far fewer major corporate entities and highly paid executives left to buy season tickets for the Whalers and support other activities. Thank the politicians for their decisions on how to spend money and what they've spent it on.

 

[uconnbill]

This is a great idea and shows how backwards the arraignment is. XL gets all the consessions, parking, a cut of the tix AND UConn pays them. It’s so ass backwards.

It is called greasing the palms of the politicians in Hartford and their donors

 

[Waquoit]

If you're complaining about the comfort of seats at an on campus arena you probably just shouldn't go to games.

Try to keep up. I was responding to the post complaining about XL comfort. And trust me, I'm not alone in not liking Gampel based on fannies in seats. The people like Gampel the most are Boneyarders who do not go to games.

 

[freescooter]

I’ve thrown up so many times in that upstairs XL bathroom, they better not take it away from me.

if they do, they will at least put a plaque up. Kind of like the one at that mall in Long Island for Lindberg’s flight...

 

[freescooter]

I'm not bothered by what Benedict said. He represents the state's flagship university, and not the state itself, and he's putting pressure on the state government to do something about the condition of the arena. That's all his job.

I'm just saying that as long as the Civic Center is comfortable enough that state legislators and their constituents would rather attend basketball games there than drive to UConn, they will continue to be played there.

I agree with you on this, but iirc UConn is trying to renegotiate or negotiate an extension on its XL/Rentschler leases. Neither entity has as much to bring to the table as it once did. UConn wants a better economic deal from an aging venue and is under pressure to reduce the costs of athletics, with additional pressures likely from COVID. XL/CRDA want to cover increasing Costs of maintaining an aging facility with A. Shrinking revenues, B. vastly increased competition from not just the CT casinos but now Springfield too and C. more than a year of no events/revenue. At the end of the day, bl is right and something will get done.

on the other hand, the distance to Storrs is so Connecticut. Takes under 90 minutes from Fairfield. I get that it is what it is, so it needs to be considered In planning future scheduling. And you need to keep the base happy, but in most of the country They would laugh at it. Of course they don’t know about passport control when you cross from New Haven into North Haven to say nothing of the lines trying to get through customs when you cross the Connecticut River...

 

[Dogdeacon]

It is reasonable in any part of the country to question hours of driving > hours of entertainment. If it is 3hrs back and forth to Storrs and nothing happens there except 2hrs of game that's a logical objection. Especially vs 2hrs ) minutes driving in front of a giant HD TV.
Hartford offers 2hrs of driving and infinitely more opportunities for pre/post/during game drink and food, say 3 hours of entertainment. On game nights a 500 seat beer/food garden at the intersection of N.Eagleville and King Hill Rd (various pizza places over the years), in Storrs would make Gampel worth driving to vs Hartford for games, what to do with it the other 345 days of the year is the problem.

 

[freescooter]

The problem is there are far fewer major corporate entities and highly paid executives left to buy season tickets for the Whalers and support other activities. Thank the politicians for their decisions on how to spend money and what they've spent it on.

What are you talking about? The economics of the world has changed. It has nothing to do with what the state did or did not do. Aetna was bought out by CVS When it’s management team was more interested in getting good lobster salad than running a company, P&W merged with Raytheon To compete in the world aerospace race and is now facing struggles because NOBODY is flying. General Electric essentially had failed leadership and is now jokingly referred to as Captain Electric. Not a single one of those decisions was the result of state action or inaction. In each case the companies moved headquarters to higher cost states. I briefly worked in Economic Development for a larger city. One of the hardest concepts to get across to people was that businesses make business decisions for business reasons, not political ones. We had a major employer who moved out of state, about 30 miles. The mayor was upset. The governor was upset. The company left an old facility with limited expansion potential and lacking the necessary structural conditions for some newer equipment they planned to invest in. Their new facility existed, met their current needs and short term grown needs plus had expansion. The previous tenant had lost a major contract and downsized. Our proposed tax incentives and other stuff was of no value up Against what they had. And from their perspective they were still in the same metro area and could And did keep the same employees, subcontractors and suppliers. Business decisions for business reasons...

 

[DarthGrumpy]

I expect it to be entirely ignored, as it should be.

Good on AD Dave for introducing the notion that UConn should not be subsidizing the XL. If a deal can worked out that works for both parties, great. If not, well maybe Gampel is better investment since it needs less. There is a concept drawing in UConn master plan which shows a concourse being added to Gampel. That would allow for upgraded bathrooms and vendors.

View attachment 61931

(Note that the "Rec Center" is a wrap around the Field House. Obviously that's been changed. One of the things I find funny about "master plans" is that they are inevitably ignored when new buildings are added. Construction continues subject to whims of each project architect. Ten years later a new master plan is commissioned which talks about unifying the look of the campus and creating "a sense of place" and everyone raves about it... until the next project when it too will be ignored.

That said the athletic district project was done very nicely. Penn St. took the same approach and it is a smart and well though out part of campus. Without a football stadium ours will be a little more modest, but it is coming along pretty nice.)

I've seen that drawing before, too, and have to wonder where did Wolff-Zackin Natatorium go and/or is UConn planning to cut the swimming & diving programs?

 

[DarthGrumpy]

The state has been incredibly generous to UConn for over 25 years. Yet it's never been enough. Go ahead, put all the games in Gampel out of spite. It would be a lose-lose.

Compared to most of our neighboring New England neighbors, yes, compared to most of the B1G and PAC states along with North Carolina, Florida, Texas, etc., no so much.

 

[superjohn]

Try to keep up. I was responding to the post complaining about XL comfort. And trust me, I'm not alone in not liking Gampel based on fannies in seats. The people like Gampel the most are Boneyarders who do not go to games.

I love Gampel. I'll gladly drove the extra distance. That's a real college experience, not the blue hairs in the lower section sitting on their hands.

That's outdated crap. Do you go to games? The lower bowl at XL has been pretty good lately. Meanwhile at Gampel, the "blue hairs" in the lower section don't even show up. And the yellow jackets keep those seats unoccupied. Then again, neither do the students. Last game at Gampel I moved to the empty student section because it was more comfortable than the seats I bought

On campus arenas aren't supposed to be comfortable, you want that go to NBA games. On campus arenas are supposed to be old/historic, cramped, and a huge homecourt advantage. People aren't going to Allen Fieldhouse and Cameron Indoor to be comfortable.

 

[Husky25]

I agree with you on this, but iirc UConn is trying to renegotiate or negotiate an extension on its XL/Rentschler leases. Neither entity has as much to bring to the table as it once did. UConn wants a better economic deal from an aging venue and is under pressure to reduce the costs of athletics, with additional pressures likely from COVID. XL/CRDA want to cover increasing Costs of maintaining an aging facility with A. Shrinking revenues, B. vastly increased competition from not just the CT casinos but now Springfield too and C. more than a year of no events/revenue. At the end of the day, bl is right and something will get done.

on the other hand, the distance to Storrs is so Connecticut. Takes under 90 minutes from Fairfield. I get that it is what it is, so it needs to be considered In planning future scheduling. And you need to keep the base happy, but in most of the country They would laugh at it. Of course they don’t know about passport control when you cross from New Haven into North Haven to say nothing of the lines trying to get through customs when you cross the Connecticut River...

They need to strip out the clause that the CRDA needs every event booked at Rentschler to be in the black to get the $250,000 loss subsidy from UConn, if it's not gone already.

It hamstrings the type of events they can attract.

 

[LoyalFanCT]

Should one of the state's casinos build a new arena on tribal grounds and UConn make it the home for basketball games besides those played on campus? It may be cheaper for the state to partner with the casino than spend hundreds of millions on the XL Center. The casino could use the arena for conventions when games not being played.

 

[Waquoit]

People aren't going to Allen Fieldhouse and Cameron Indoor to be comfortable.

People aren't going to Gampel, period.

 

[John]

On campus arenas aren't supposed to be comfortable, you want that go to NBA games. On campus arenas are supposed to be old/historic, cramped, and a huge homecourt advantage. People aren't going to Allen Fieldhouse and Cameron Indoor to be comfortable.

apples and oranges.

 

[CL82]

I've seen that drawing before, too, and have to wonder where did Wolff-Zackin Natatorium go and/or is UConn planning to cut the swimming & diving programs?

Don't know. New pool in the rec center?

I post the graphic about once every six months, but if you read the master plan, that's where it originated.

 

[CL82]

People aren't going to Gampel, period.

Well, you said "period" so you must be right.

/end thread.