Gov. Ned Lamont proposes $55M investment in Hartford’s XL Center arena | The Boneyard

Gov. Ned Lamont proposes $55M investment in Hartford’s XL Center arena

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I could be mistaken but the article states that the 55 million would be in addition to 35 million that's already been approved. So really it would be around 100 million.

Edit: 90 million. Sorry I suck at math.
 
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BFieldHusky said:
I could be mistaken but the article states that the 55 million would be in addition to 35 million that's already been approved. So really it would be around 100 million.
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You’re right. It does, $100m. None of the Negative Nellies above bothered to read it.
 
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BFieldHusky said:
I could be mistaken but the article states that the 55 million would be in addition to 35 million that's already been approved. So really it would be around 100 million.

Edit: 90 million. Sorry I suck at math.
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fatlucy said:
You’re right. It does, $100m. None of the Negative Nellies above bothered to read it.
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>>The $55 million — $27.5 million for the current fiscal year and the same in the next — would still need to be approved by state lawmakers and authorized by the State Bond Commission. If it is, however, it would be added to $35 million already backed by the bond commission for the project, bringing the total close to the $100 million.<<
 
huskymedic said:
>>The $55 million — $27.5 million for the current fiscal year and the same in the next — would still need to be approved by state lawmakers and authorized by the State Bond Commission. If it is, however, it would be added to $35 million already backed by the bond commission for the project, bringing the total close to the $100 million.<<
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I thought I was miss reading based on the responses above. $100 million would alright but still would be far short to making the arena nice.

Also, I wonder what kind of responses they got from the survey sent to season ticket holders.
 
zmart said:
The XL Center currently loses $2-$3 million dollars a year. In a state with a $20 billion dollar annual budget I hardly think that is anything to lose sleep over.
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As I said before two or 3 million here and two or 3 million there and sooner or later you’re talking about real money.

Keep in mind that that two or 3 million loss is after UConns men’s basketball, women’s basketball, and hockey overpays for the venue effectively subsidizing it.

I’m not a big believer in the “ Field of dreams” theory of business development. The CDRA seems to believe that “if we re-build it they will come.” I would much rather see a coherent business plan that justifies the state investing in the venue rather than just chucking more money down that sinkhole and keeping our fingers crossed it’ll all work out.
 
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CL82 said:
As I said before two or 3 million here and two or 3 million there and sooner or later you’re talking about real money.

Keep in mind that that two or 3 million loss is after you cans men’s basketball, women’s basketball, and hockey over pays for the venue effectively subsidizing it.

I’m not a big believer in the “ Field of dreams” theory of business development. The CDRA seems to believe that “if we re-build it they will come.” I would much rather see a coaching business plan that justifies the state investing in the venue rather than checking more money down that sinkhole in keeping our fingers crossed it’ll all work out.
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I’m all for thinking big. Our problem is we think medium-small and hedge our bets, this inviting mediocrity at best and failure at worst. If you want to go big, then go big and get an NHL or NBA team in there. Better yet, drop the $100 Million into subsidizing a P5 move and you’ve created the draw for entertainment year round. Drop a casino next to the convention center, and pull in some entertainment and it becomes a place to visit. We always spend just enough to guarantee failure.
 
Good luck getting it from Northland. They'll blow it up with themselves still inside.
 
superjohn said:
Could have built a beautiful brand new arena by now. What a disaster that state is.
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I heard that is what happened when Gampel was built. Original plan was for a bigger arena. By the time they got through all the red tape they had to scale it back because the money allocated wouldn't buy as much. Not sure if this was true. Was told this by an engineering professor who I did some work with.
 
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Even $90m isn't enough to make a meaningful difference. In 5-10 years that money would be down the drain when the rest of the place falls apart.
 
Here's the crux of the problem. We have a state that is economically challenged and likely doesn't have the demographics that would support a new arena like the YUM Center (unless we hire the former Louisville AD who pulled off that taxpayer funded gem of a deal):
"Operations that produce revenue are likely to be the parts of the arena operation that would most reasonably attract private investors."
Find the visionary who will devise the schemes that will produce the necessary revenue and, voila, you have a winner.
 
CL82 said:
As I said before two or 3 million here and two or 3 million there and sooner or later you’re talking about real money.

Keep in mind that that two or 3 million loss is after UConns men’s basketball, women’s basketball, and hockey overpays for the venue effectively subsidizing it.

I’m not a big believer in the “ Field of dreams” theory of business development. The CDRA seems to believe that “if we re-build it they will come.” I would much rather see a coherent business plan that justifies the state investing in the venue rather than just chucking more money down that sinkhole and keeping our fingers crossed it’ll all work out.
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Freimuth and his CRDA no longer deserve the benefit of the doubt. In exchange for my seat donations I was promised I could keep those seats as long as I continued the donation. Now we are putting luxury boxes and premium seating, which in theory will produce greater revenue on top of my seats. Thus, breaking the promise UConn made.
So while it’s untruthful and unethical it’s also bad business. Elsewhere, entertainment failure Freimuth, talks about seats that could be used for all events - as he fantasizes about the upscale luxury market’s appeal for the Hartford Wolfpack, who he has made the building’s top tenant by giving them priority on game dates. Something tells me this is going to end similar to all of Fremuth’s other XL Center ideas. This time $100 million wasted.
 
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I'm glad I don't live in Connecticut anymore.

TD Garden in Boston cost $160M. We would certainly be happy with that venue and honestly, one 2000 seats smaller. But because the state farted around so long now the cost has risen.

Construction Cost Rankings For NBA Arenas | From This Seat

See how much money was spent on constructing your favorite NBA arena.
www.fromthisseat.com www.fromthisseat.com
 
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