tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post4161182892317917604..comments2024-03-03T06:01:35.285-05:00Comments on Shadow of the Stadium: Manfred Still Upbeat About Rays' Stadium SagaUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-83937502628448374842015-02-25T15:14:16.578-05:002015-02-25T15:14:16.578-05:00The Caisse de dépôt, essentially, Quebecers' p...The Caisse de dépôt, essentially, Quebecers' pension fund has assets of $226B and is currently yielding about 12% return. The Caisse will be an investor in a Montreal Baseball stadium as it will become part of the project of building the new Champlain Bridge and linking a light rail system. Like a previous poster said, look for an announcent in 2015-2016.<br /><br />We (Montrealers) are not vultures. We do hope Rays keep their team, in the end its better for baseball and Montreal will soon after be an expansion team.<br /><br />Furthermore, Denis Coderre, the Montreal Mayor is spending alot of time and energy on this because he knows something. He is a a politician and is building his legacy. He is not doing this so some other guy (or gal) benefits form his lobbying for a team.Joenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-84825094278253225852015-02-25T13:31:10.771-05:002015-02-25T13:31:10.771-05:00”This is more money coming in to the city that we ...”This is more money coming in to the city that we lost when the Expos left.”<br /><br />In other words, Montreal has been better off for the Expos leaving town?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-49628431306163623702015-02-25T07:35:41.791-05:002015-02-25T07:35:41.791-05:00MLB is treading very lightly. They will lose all A...MLB is treading very lightly. They will lose all Antitrust protection if it is found teams are interfering with the Rays and the contract with the city of St. Pete. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-56279320406755024012015-02-25T07:34:05.385-05:002015-02-25T07:34:05.385-05:00If you research the blackmailing that baseball, NF...If you research the blackmailing that baseball, NFL, et al., have done over the years, then you would see the facts. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-26357347095825077422015-02-25T07:32:16.533-05:002015-02-25T07:32:16.533-05:00Stadiums aren't assets, they're holes that...Stadiums aren't assets, they're holes that suck money. Period. Montreal won't be getting a baseball team again. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-91093987765911509472015-02-24T22:49:59.283-05:002015-02-24T22:49:59.283-05:00David, I think you mischaracterize where I'm c...David, I think you mischaracterize where I'm coming from. I want my takeaways to be that if the Rays really want to make a stadium happen, they'd make an offer St. Pete can't refuse and open their wallets. But it's not profitable to build a new stadium unless the public picks up a big chunk of the tab...so they lie in waiting.<br /><br />It clearly isn't as big of a priority to them as they'd like you to believe. But of course they want to make more money....so if another city trips over itself to hand over $500M, they'd likely listen. It's just that, at that price, it may be in Tampa Bay's best interests to let them go. <br /><br />I think we'd agree, at least ,that it'd be nice if this region had more productive conversations with the Rays instead of each side being locked in "maintain leverage" mode.<br /><br />Noah Pranskyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04341946902034828581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-55593318908772331312015-02-24T21:29:45.200-05:002015-02-24T21:29:45.200-05:00The comment from the first anon pretty much sums u...The comment from the first anon pretty much sums up my frustration with this region. There just doesn't seem to be much of a appetite for baseball here. Yeah there is other stuff to do, but I want the Rays to stay. There are things you have to do to keep the Rays and people here don't seem to really care about it. Noah will wail about how unfair it is that MLB makes a ton of money and people watch TV, so no one should care about attendance or consider building a stadium, but that is not the reality.Davidnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-19973739609458037882015-02-24T21:17:13.132-05:002015-02-24T21:17:13.132-05:00I am not from Montreal. I am a Rays fan who sees ...I am not from Montreal. I am a Rays fan who sees the writing on the wall. I am frustrated Noah and many of his followers have buried their heads in the sand and say don't worry about the Trop, we have them until 2027. I am not condoning jumping up and letting them immediately out of their lease, but I would like to see some sort of progress, on a potential stadium in Tampa. I think if St. Pete keeps dragging their feet with their eye on keeping the Rays until 2027, the Rays will have moved to Montreal by 2023.<br /><br />I think there is a race between Montreal and Tampa to get their stadium proposals off the ground. Montreal just about to break out of the gate, and St. Pete has pinning Tampa to the ground.<br /><br />Think of the progress made by Montreal in the last 3 years ago. 3 years ago, they were mentioned in the same breath as Portland, Durham, and Austin. Now they are without a doubt the chief rival of Tampa.<br /><br />If I thought there was any chance of the St. Pete getting out of the way and the region working towards a stadium by 2023, I would feel good about their chances, but alas I do not.Davidnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-29724476020268859542015-02-24T18:15:59.778-05:002015-02-24T18:15:59.778-05:00Baseball (and a new stadium) in Montreal is an ass...Baseball (and a new stadium) in Montreal is an asset, not a debt. Because it's a way to consolidate tourism with people from Boston, NY, Toronto, they all love to come in Montreal to watch baseball.<br /><br />This is more money coming in to the city that we lost when the Expos left.<br /><br />And we need a stadium downtown near the water to consolidate the development of Griffintown or the old port (depending where the stadium will be located, to be announced in 2015 or 2016).<br /><br />Once that said, don't tease me with the whether, it was -30 Celsius last night in Montreal and we have a hell (cold) of a winter so far (more than 20 days bellow -20 Celsius when the average is 5 days).<br /><br />Just hope that the summer will follow the path and we can have beautiful weather all summer long.<br /><br />I was near TB last summer for 2 weeks and can't wait to go back.<br /><br />Thanks for the invitation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-6583598317856575272015-02-24T17:59:39.717-05:002015-02-24T17:59:39.717-05:00I've be many times to the Big "O" an...I've be many times to the Big "O" and one time to the Trop last year. I do agree that the Trop is way better than the Big "O". Except that in Montreal, we have 2 Metro stations, so it is way easier to go in and out.<br /><br />So TB is lucky to have such stadium compared to Montreal.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-45283419696685691132015-02-24T17:54:02.265-05:002015-02-24T17:54:02.265-05:00Me too, I would love to come to TB to see the Expo...Me too, I would love to come to TB to see the Expos!<br /><br />Does Noah is doing revenue sharing from clicks with folks from Montreal?<br /><br />Just kidding here. ;)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-33518801529402764962015-02-24T17:49:52.064-05:002015-02-24T17:49:52.064-05:00Very interesting. That shed some light on the lega...Very interesting. That shed some light on the legal side of things which is what is missing in this whole debate.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-42697529510990157032015-02-24T17:45:29.406-05:002015-02-24T17:45:29.406-05:00And by the way, let's go back to what's Ma...And by the way, let's go back to what's Manfred said (for what's it worth) in February.<br /><br />SHAIKIN<br />Montreal is working hard to get an MLB team back. Are there any thoughts of expansion?<br /><br />MANFRED<br />There has not been a lot of talk about expansion. In terms of internationalizing the game, North America, in terms of sustained international activity, is someplace we need to focus. Canada, Mexico, if we were going to think about it, those would be the kinds of places that I would be interested in.<br /><br />SHAIKIN<br />With the markets you would look at it in North America, would it seem as if your best available markets are not United States markets?<br /><br />MANFRED<br />I think that is probably right."<br /><br />http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-manfred-transcript-20150204-story.html#page=1<br /><br />So forget Louisville, Portland & al. Once the situation is fixed in TB/Oakland, Montreal in on the short list. And if TB/Oakland are becoming a real problem, then Montreal is probably the only option.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-8262755614211543772015-02-24T17:33:56.939-05:002015-02-24T17:33:56.939-05:00When baseball is gone, we will have beaches and ar...When baseball is gone, we will have beaches and art and less debt. Montreal will have snow and hockey and baseball and more debt. St. Pete will keep growing like it has been. And Montreal can keep doing what it does. The sun shines year round here. Come visit right now and enjoy a parkside dinner outdoors. It is 10 degrees in Montreal right now, so come enjoy the 70-degree weather here. I will take you to the beach, or we can go fishing or kayaking or to a great museum. We know where we came from and we know where we are going--outside for a jog or a bike ride or a walk on the beach or dinner. In February. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-79843994057057078632015-02-24T17:07:48.412-05:002015-02-24T17:07:48.412-05:00If Sternberg won't put up money for a new stad...If Sternberg won't put up money for a new stadium, as you say, then he made his own poor investment decision. If he isn't getting the ROI he desired on his baseball portfolio, it isn't this community's job to bail him out. <br /><br />Florida courts have personal jurisdiction over a matter such as this one under the Florida long-arm statute. Every state has one. Basically, if you enter the state to do business, enter into contracts, commit a tort, etc., then you can be hailed into court there. A person or entity leaving a state or the country does not wipe away a liability, but that would be nifty, eh? No problem there. /facepalm Regardless of the long-arm statute, many contracts have forum-selection clauses which state where disputes under the contract will be adjudicated. The Rays Stadium Use Agreement probably has a forum-selection clause. If it does, the courts of Pinellas County are the likely forums. Statistically, plaintiffs have greater success bringing actions in their local state courts, where they are more likely to face judges with local sympathies. Defendants generally prefer to be in federal court, which is more predictable and more insulated from local politics. Federal subject matter jurisdiction is limited to federal questions (ie cases involving federal statutes like the Clean Water Act or the Sherman Antitrust Act) or cases where the parties are diverse (FL citizen/company vs. GA citizen/company). St. Pete would probably bring an action in state court under the forum-selection clause and the Rays would not be able to create diversity jurisdiction (to get into federal court) simply by hurrying out of state. In a high-profile case covered by the national media, a Pinellas County judge would be presented with the full dirty laundry list of MLB's broken promises in Tampa Bay. The headline/reputational risk to the league and to the franchise is probably as great as the threat of being enjoined to play baseball through 2027 or being forced to pay X dollars in damages. As we learned with the NFL this year, eventually karma hits back and all of your chickens come home to roost.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-84496881069023384822015-02-24T17:04:45.341-05:002015-02-24T17:04:45.341-05:00What is fun with this debate and the fact that peo...What is fun with this debate and the fact that people from Montreal are vocal, is that:<br /><br />You have to know where you came from to know where you’re going…<br /><br />In Montreal, we know where we came from and we did our homework (and still continue to do them, it's a long journey) to know where we are going.<br /><br />In TB, you don't seem to learn from our experience and other cities experiences. And when (and if of course) it will hit, it will be like the "Deer in headlights".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-47618708389409063732015-02-24T17:00:20.209-05:002015-02-24T17:00:20.209-05:00Give us some facts so we will get a clue. Otherwis...Give us some facts so we will get a clue. Otherwise, it's all vapourware!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-29200905823635914682015-02-24T16:55:35.468-05:002015-02-24T16:55:35.468-05:00Regarding the other question, does the Expos need ...Regarding the other question, does the Expos need to contribute to the sharing program. Like any other teams based on the same formula. So if they need to pay, then yes, they should contribute. On the other hand, if they need money, they need to inject money for a certain number of years.<br /><br />When the investor group started to work on the Expos return back in 2009-2010, it was the first thing that was asked by Rodger Brulotte to help them and support them in the project. Without this important detail, there is no way the project will worked out.<br /><br />Hope that clarify the answer.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-52211399449353274212015-02-24T16:49:01.554-05:002015-02-24T16:49:01.554-05:00You makes some valid points. As I've said befo...You makes some valid points. As I've said before, the Montreal rumors will go away when a stadium is announced. I also believe that expansion will only happen when these two stadium issues are worked out. Until then Montreal and Tampa Bay will be linked.<br /><br />Personally I'd like to see both teams. I watch Rays games whenever the Nats aren't playing, and have seen the team play in Boston, Detroit, and Toronto, in addition to taking in a game at the Trop last summer. They're a fun underdog team that you can't help but cheer for. Its just so strange that attendance never improved after such a great run, basically going against the whole winning = better attendance argument that all leagues stand behind. <br /><br />The problem is that clearly the stadium boom is over, and it might just be too late to convince the taxpayers. I think we all now if a stadium is going to happen, it will be at least 50% taxpayer funded, and that might be a conservative number. <br /><br />In the meantime, we'll just all continue the debate here. After all, more comments and clicks have to be good for the website, eh Noah?Mattnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-69550259618395989932015-02-24T16:34:02.851-05:002015-02-24T16:34:02.851-05:001. Yes
2. No. The business plan (and what was dis...1. Yes<br /><br />2. No. The business plan (and what was discussed publicly) is to sign a contract with MLB to not have such shared revenue before at lest a certain number of years (4, 5, 8, to be determined). It will be unacceptable to gat a team and then asked for money to be profitable. If the investors are moving forward, they must accept to inject lots of money for a good number of years (if necessary). If they are not ready to do so, then we should not get a team. Period.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-63999068644501450932015-02-24T16:30:32.896-05:002015-02-24T16:30:32.896-05:00Exactly. I'm from Montreal and the reason I...Exactly. I'm from Montreal and the reason I'm trying to understand the whole process and see hope from Montreal is because TB have no vision regarding their baseball team and the whole impact on the community.<br /><br />It is a joke. And I told the same thing back in 2002-2004 when I saw the mess with the Expos. It was a joke. And I quit.<br /><br />And sometime, you need to lose something to really appreciate the value.<br /><br />The only way to make sure we are out of the debate is to get things worked out. And right now, we (in Montreal) see a debate on how news are presented (message by this journalist or this newspaper), how the city council is going everywhere and nowhere (amateur), how strong is the TB Rays franchise in TB because of the Use Agreement and nothing will happen before 2028, how many people show up at the city council meeting back in December, how many people showed up at the FanFest, how the Breewers fans were cheering louder than the Rays fans when I was at the Trop last summer, how sad the players are playing in front on fans of the visiting team, I think you get it.<br /><br />In fact, it is sad and ultimately, the Rays need to be loved and cheered. And what we see (from Montreal), is the complete opposite, and it's even worse. I will call the situation and the fan response "inodore, incolore et sans flavor".<br /><br />So if the community and the fans are back to the stadium, I will be happy. Because they demonstrated that they deserved it.<br /><br />But if it's the Groundhog Day again and again (like it is for the last 5-7 years), then yes, we will be part of the debate.<br /><br />This is a wake-up call TB. It's up to you to make it work or live with the natural consequences. As a Baseball fan, I want a team back ASAP. This is why we are ready to adopt a team or get a new one. We'll see which one come first.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-87812702425416341392015-02-24T14:48:01.043-05:002015-02-24T14:48:01.043-05:00This person clearly did their homework. lolThis person clearly did their homework. lolDevinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-47815859800547931802015-02-24T14:47:11.591-05:002015-02-24T14:47:11.591-05:00damn it. I replied to the wrong comment! (see abov...damn it. I replied to the wrong comment! (see above)Devinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-13697775955138854372015-02-24T14:45:46.188-05:002015-02-24T14:45:46.188-05:00This person clearly did their homework. lolThis person clearly did their homework. lolDevinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1021348172235346593.post-77348566278112470112015-02-24T14:32:58.948-05:002015-02-24T14:32:58.948-05:00@Muko
I don't like seeing people who are obvi...@Muko<br /><br />I don't like seeing people who are obviously from Montreal post here about how the Rays in the the Bay Area are done. I commented on an earlier post a few days ago that I'm sure none of them appreciated Washington, Portland, etc. picking on them like vultures.<br /><br />But that said, no one from Montreal would being doing any of that if the Rays' future here was safe.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com