OT: 4-6 week delay for Yard Goats Stadium

[huskymedic]

Yard Goats Home Opener Pushed Back To At Least Mid May; Open With 17 Road Games
http://www.courant.com/sports/baseball/hc-yard-goats-road-games-0113-20160112-story.html

Yard Goats Officers Look To The Future: Once Ballpark Is Built, What Could Come
http://www.courant.com/community/hartford/hc-hartford-yard-goats-marketing-0113-20160112-story.html

 

[Stainmaster]

Yard Goats Home Opener Pushed Back To At Least Mid May; Open With 17 Road Games
http://www.courant.com/sports/baseball/hc-yard-goats-road-games-0113-20160112-story.html

Yard Goats Officers Look To The Future: Once Ballpark Is Built, What Could Come
http://www.courant.com/community/hartford/hc-hartford-yard-goats-marketing-0113-20160112-story.html

Things could be a lot worse, folks. Look at what happened in Biloxi last summer: http://www.milb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20150527&content_id=127079736&fext=.jsp&vkey=news_milb

 

[Dove]

Two words...

"Reggae Bar"!!!!!!!

Goats, mon!!!

 

[huskymedic]

Two words...

"Reggae Bar"!!!!!!!

Goats, mon!!!

Serving Jamaican Curry Goat!!!!

 

[8893]

As usual, Pal was on the money here again:

I think April will be a bad month for the naysayers.

Have you made your arrangements for those road games yet, Pal? Should be fun.

 

[TRest]

The Yard Goats are distracting Jacobs from the real story...realignment.

He's already given up on that after a few unreturned phone calls.

 

[Towney007]

The city has reneged on the original deal across the board. The dev company was supposed to be doing the design, and the city designer basically ran off and did whatever he wanted. Then when the developer said they would need more money to match the new specs, the city threw a hissy fit. If they had just done what they said they were going to do, this would have been fine.

They were screwed in November when they didn't get the sod down. Structural changes to the roof and other specs that everyone's slap fighting about wouldn't impact opening day in a measurable way - or at least not to the degree that they couldn't play baseball. The sod however, is everything. Had to be down in November to set. They had warm weather throughout December and even up to a few weeks ago. It's still not down. They'll have to wait post-thaw, and they'll be lucky (extremely) if they're in the stadium in two months past opening day.

Thing is - they had four months of site prep post-ground breaking and would have known about any issues pertaining to that then. Just a half baked plan run by half baked, greedy people being executed incompetently. The design changes were almost all cosmetic and were most certainly agreed to by everyone. No way a contractor is turning down and extra $10 million. No way the city doesn't know the cost up front. And no way the Yard Goats don't want more upgrades.

 

[Towney007]

I knew last July that the stadium wasn't going to be ready and was told that when the crap hit the fan that they would blame the city. Since then they fired the only construction professional they had on the job and decided to manage it themselves. They never had enough subcontractors working to ever have a chance of finishing on time no matter what they did. BTW, 6 weeks isn't going to happen either.

Right - that's what I heard. They had four months of site prep b/c sod couldn't be laid instantly. They knew as early as last March and I was told by someone in that office they were blue-ing the barrels to blame the city. Project as a disaster right off the bat.

 

[huskymedic]

Bronin Announces Yard Goats Deal That Would Have Stadium Ready May 31
http://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-hartford-yard-goats-agreement-0114-20160120-story.html

>>Under the agreement, the developer, Centerplan Cos. affiliate DoNo Hartford LLC, would give up $2.3 million in fees. In addition, it would make additional annual tax payments of $225,000 on the entire Downtown North development, a mixed-use project that includes the stadium. The higher tax payments would extend over 25 years.

The Yard Goats would contribute $2 million and give up $500,000 that the city would have paid for designated team parking.

The city would initially shoulder $5.5 million that would be paid for through bonds issued by the Hartford Stadium Authority. But the additional tax payments from DoNo Hartford would reduce the city's share of the costs to about $3.5 million. City council approval is still required because it approved the original stadium development agreements

Bronin said previously that he opposed sinking any more city money into the stadium construction. "Nobody wanted to put additional taxpayer funding into this deal, but we have to play the hand that we were dealt," Bronin said. "Given the situation that we're in, I think it was our responsibility to protect both the short- and long-term interest of the taxpayers and the best way to do that is to get this project back on track and to limit taxpayer exposure."

The agreement calls for a "substantial completion date" of May 17, giving the team enough time to ensure the ballpark is ready for its first game.<<

 

[1999.2004.2011]

Bronin Announces Yard Goats Deal That Would Have Stadium Ready May 31
http://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-hartford-yard-goats-agreement-0114-20160120-story.html

>>Under the agreement, the developer, Centerplan Cos. affiliate DoNo Hartford LLC, would give up $2.3 million in fees. In addition, it would make additional annual tax payments of $225,000 on the entire Downtown North development, a mixed-use project that includes the stadium. The higher tax payments would extend over 25 years.

The Yard Goats would contribute $2 million and give up $500,000 that the city would have paid for designated team parking.

The city would initially shoulder $5.5 million that would be paid for through bonds issued by the Hartford Stadium Authority. But the additional tax payments from DoNo Hartford would reduce the city's share of the costs to about $3.5 million. City council approval is still required because it approved the original stadium development agreements

Bronin said previously that he opposed sinking any more city money into the stadium construction. "Nobody wanted to put additional taxpayer funding into this deal, but we have to play the hand that we were dealt," Bronin said. "Given the situation that we're in, I think it was our responsibility to protect both the short- and long-term interest of the taxpayers and the best way to do that is to get this project back on track and to limit taxpayer exposure."

The agreement calls for a "substantial completion date" of May 17, giving the team enough time to ensure the ballpark is ready for its first game.<<

Nice job by the Mayor to get some sort of agreement done between the city, developer and ball club

 

[8893]

Nice job by the Mayor to get some sort of agreement done between the city, developer and ball club

Agreed. This was a tough situation for him t0 step into. A lengthy legal battle would have guaranteed a terrible outcome.

 

[raf46]

http://www.courant.com/community/ha...-showdown-developers-0106-20160105-story.html

Confirmed. 4-6 weeks late and approximately 10m over budget (already). Way to go, Hartford.

the construction has fouled up parking at the XL center.

 

[Waquoit]

the construction has fouled up parking at the XL center.

How?

 

[raf46]

How?

the land lot off of the highway, exit 32b, is closed off as a construction site.

 

[John]

the land lot off of the highway, exit 32b, is closed off as a construction site.

No one goes to the games anymore, I park curbside right at the XL front entrance.

 

[BoatShow]

I actually drove past DD Park today . It's really interesting. Basically if you're at the plate your downtown but if you're in leftfield you're in the section of the city you're not supposed to be in. View facing first base is skyscrapers; Ernest Young, etc. View facing third is a crumbling boarded up building. Also it looks like it will not be ready at all this season. However the team is 19-6 lol!

 

[TRest]

I actually drove past DD Park today . It's really interesting. Basically if you're at the plate your downtown but if you're in leftfield you're in the section of the city you're not supposed to be in. View facing first base is skyscrapers; Ernest Young, etc. View facing third is a crumbling boarded up building. Also it looks like it will not be ready at all this season. However the team is 19-6 lol!

I heard the team owner on the radio last week basically admitting they will not hit the new start date and there's nothing that can be done about it. Nobody asked him (it was WTIC so figures) why they tried to get this all done in a calendar year, or why he needed to leave NB in the first place. Reap what you sow, assclown.

 

[Deepster]

I actually drove past DD Park today . It's really interesting. Basically if you're at the plate your downtown but if you're in leftfield you're in the section of the city you're not supposed to be in. View facing first base is skyscrapers; Ernest Young, etc. View facing third is a crumbling boarded up building. Also it looks like it will not be ready at all this season. However the team is 19-6 lol!

I drive by it on 91 a handful of times a week and I thought the angle and home plate viewline looks odd. I was going to wait until you're actually in the stadium to really see, but it does look like it was just randomly plunked down on an empty lot without a ton of thought on the sight lines.

 

[Deepster]

I wonder if you could have seen this from the skyboxes?

Teen Arrested In Shooting Of 15-Year-Old In Hartford

 

[Palatine]

I actually drove past DD Park today . It's really interesting. Basically if you're at the plate your downtown but if you're in leftfield you're in the section of the city you're not supposed to be in. View facing first base is skyscrapers; Ernest Young, etc. View facing third is a crumbling boarded up building. Also it looks like it will not be ready at all this season. However the team is 19-6 lol!

Wow, what a hatefest.

BTW, the building over the left field fence will be rehabbed into apartments as part of the ongoing project of the north end. A Hard Rock hotel will be build across the street from first base. Some parking garages and a grocery store will also be added. Considering this area was empty lots that looked like a war zone for five decades, complaining about site lines when you haven't even been in the park seems a bit overanxious.

When the park is open most of this will have blown over. And ten years from now, when you are watching a game with your kids or grand kids, it won't even be a memory. So get in your licks while there is still time.

 

[Dove]

Reap what you sow, assclown.

I fear my Rockies (My NL team of choice) are not long for Hartford affiliation.

 

[WhiteDressWes]

Wow, what a hatefest.

BTW, the building over the left field fence will be rehabbed into apartments as part of the ongoing project of the north end. A Hard Rock hotel will be build across the street from first base. Some parking garages and a grocery store will also be added. Considering this area was empty lots that looked like a war zone for five decades, complaining about site lines when you haven't even been in the park seems a bit overanxious.

When the park is open most of this will have blown over. And ten years from now, when you are watching a game with your kids or grand kids, it won't even be a memory. So get in your licks while there is still time.

Behind the left field wall, across Windsor St, was the home of one of Hartford's great musicians, one Emilio Radocchia.

 

[huskysupporter]

Park looks good. Can't wait to go to game. The redevelopment is going to be great for the city.

 

[superjohn]

I wonder if you could have seen this from the skyboxes?

Teen Arrested In Shooting Of 15-Year-Old In Hartford

Still scared of cities I see.

 

[Excalibur]

I fear my Rockies (My NL team of choice) are not long for Hartford affiliation.

This should be the real fear -- not that the park opens late or is in a "bad" section, but that all of the incompetence of the team leads to loss of affiliation.