Domelover Posted January 25, 2008 Share Posted January 25, 2008 Just to be clear, those 80 acres would be used for a Dynamo practice facility/public recreation fields. It's not a location being discussed for the Dynamo's Soccer-Specific Stadium. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJ V Lawrence Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Houston OKs purchase for Soccer Complex Houston's City Council on Wednesday approved the purchase of over 80 acres of land near Texas Highway 288 and Almeda-Genoa for the development of an amateur sports complex -- the first of its kind in the history of the city.The new complex will be of great benefit to Houston's amateur soccer community. It will not only provide 18 fields for local soccer organizations but will also afford the area the opportunity to host amateur tournaments of state, regional and national stature. Once completely developed, the complex is expected to attract well over 500,000 visitors per year. "The entire Greater Houston soccer community congratulates Mayor Bill White and the City Council in taking this important first step in the creation of this complex. The development of this complex will serve as a motivation for tens of thousands of people to get fit and play soccer. "Furthermore, the complex will generate a positive economic impact in the 288 corridor. Houston is now ready to attract some of the better national, regional, and state tournaments available," said Dynamo President Oliver Luck. How big will the expected economic impact be? "Events like these normally bring in about $8.5 million per year to the organizing city. Once built, this complex will allow us to compete with other entities in the country that normally organize important tournaments" said Ed Loucks, President of the South Texas Youth Soccer Association. Houston currently has dozens of amateur soccer leagues. The development of this complex allows them to leave the fields they currently play in, many of them in very poor condition, to play in properly-maintained fields on a state-of-the-art facility. "The Amateur Soccer Complex typifies the spirit of Houston -- opportunity. It provides adult male, female and coed soccer players with the opportunity to expand existing leagues and form new leagues. It will allow the adult soccer community to host championship competitions and attract international competitions to this unique, truly international city," said Pascal Piazza, President of Texas State Soccer Association South. Mayor White has said before that he will "highly encourage the Dynamo to build a practice facility on that land and pay a fair rental rate." It's not been said in this article if that deal has gone through yet or not, so it's safe to assume that negotiations are still going on for that to happen. But it does look promising that a practice facility announcement will happen very soon. ------------------------------------------------ Another big story out of Philadelphia: Philly/Chester has everything needed for a new stadium It looks like Philly is about to become the next expansion city in MLS, and their new stadium in Chester will finally have a completion date. The question is if they'll start play next year or 2010. Miami and St. Louis have also been in the news in the past two days with progress towards new stadiums, and looking to secure the 17th and 18th spots in MLS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roadrunner Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 Weird. I guess for that price, the Lofts at the Ballpark were willing to sell. Not really sure what's going to happen with the Light Rail that is supposed to be built. Living in the East End and working downtown would be kind of annoying with only Texas and Polk being the outlet streets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 I guess two of those three lofts at the ballpark are history. parking will get ugly for the remaining building since the building with the common garage is one of the buildings being torn down.Lofts at the Ballpark are not being torn down. I'm not sure where you got that from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 Living in the East End and working downtown would be kind of annoying with only Texas and Polk being the outlet streets.don't forget leeland. it's sure not good for businesses who hope for some of that spillover downtown crowd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 Not really sure what's going to happen with the Light Rail that is supposed to be built. Living in the East End and working downtown would be kind of annoying with only Texas and Polk being the outlet streets.The two streets (that may or may not be lost) don't actually cross the railroad tracks to access the greater part of the East End, so the loss could be a lot worse...such as if Texas Ave. was the only one remaining and METRO decided to modify its FEIS to make Texas the light rail corridor.Don't forget that Navigation, Jensen, and Canal merge together at Franklin Street, or that Leeland is also continuous and ultimately becomes Telephone Rd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 (edited) Lofts at the Ballpark are not being torn down. I'm not sure where you got that from.the article stated six blocks are being taken bordered by texas, st. eman, walker and bastrop. two of the lofts at the ballpark buildings rest on 1/3 of the proposed land area. guess they could remain but sure would make for an odd stadium design. Edited February 18, 2008 by musicman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 the article stated six blocks are being taken bordered by texas, st. eman, walker and bastrop. two of the lofts at the ballpark buildings rest on 1/3 of the proposed land area. guess they could remain but sure would make for an odd stadium design.The Chronicle got it wrong. SURPRISE! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 The Chronicle got it wrong. SURPRISE!you never know. we'll see what other news media report later today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 you never know.Yes I do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 (edited) Yes I do.dare i say omnichent?EDIT: looks like the chron modified their article to texas, hutchins, walker and dowling Edited February 18, 2008 by musicman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted February 19, 2008 Share Posted February 19, 2008 (edited) dare i say omnichent?EDIT: looks like the chron modified their article to texas, hutchins, walker and dowlingBwahahahaha! All hail your new God! TheOne! TheOnly! TheNiche!EDIT: God is just a little bit drunk right now. Edited February 19, 2008 by TheNiche Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crunchtastic Posted February 19, 2008 Share Posted February 19, 2008 EDIT: God is just a little bit drunk right now.....and to think i gave up religion for lent this year. Damn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pestofan Posted February 19, 2008 Share Posted February 19, 2008 From today's Chronicle article:"The purchase price assumes the land is worth $49 per square foot, almost four times the assessed value of $12.50 per square foot set by the Harris County Appraisal District. The five blocks are owned by various corporate entities controlled by former Councilman Louis Macey. To acquire a sixth block, owned by a different company, the city has offered to swap a nearby block it already owns."http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metrop...an/5551093.htmlIf a former city councilman is paying taxes on a value of $12.50 per square foot, why is the city going to pay 4 times that amount? I seriously doubt that he has an agricultural exemption on that land. If the price is justified because the land has jumped in market value, why is a former city councilman not paying taxes based on its market value?But this site is the wrong, wrong, wrong location for the soccer stadium. Should be three blocks further west, at 1836 Texas Avenue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted February 19, 2008 Share Posted February 19, 2008 If a former city councilman is paying taxes on a value of $12.50 per square foot, why is the city going to pay 4 times that amount? I seriously doubt that he has an agricultural exemption on that land. If the price is justified because the land has jumped in market value, why is a former city councilman not paying taxes based on its market value?Because the Harris County Appraisal District is ridiculously bad at Appraising, especially where raw land values are concerned, and its a problem that is compounded by really good property tax consultants being able to make a half-decent protest for older improvements. I've got a property that is appraised at about 70% of what I bought it for and 60% of what it was appraised at. And the value attributed to land is probably 35% to 40% of reality.But this site is the wrong, wrong, wrong location for the soccer stadium. Should be three blocks further west, at 1836 Texas Avenue.Specifically which blocks would you have prefered that they purchase? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skwatra Posted February 19, 2008 Share Posted February 19, 2008 1836 Texas, i like it. Niche, pesto was referring to the original name of the Dynamo, the 1836 address would piss certain people off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nb/hei...ws/5554299.htmlThe proposed Houston Dynamo soccer stadium site straddles two blocks where Metro's maps now show future light rail tracks. But there are alternative routes that could serve the new stadium along with Minute Maid Park and the George R. Brown Convention Center, a downtown official says.Bob Eury, president of Central Houston and executive director of the Houston Downtown Management District, said Tuesday that the probable front-running option being considered is to approach downtown's east side on Texas Avenue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roadrunner Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nb/hei...ws/5554299.htmlThe proposed Houston Dynamo soccer stadium site straddles two blocks where Metro's maps now show future light rail tracks. But there are alternative routes that could serve the new stadium along with Minute Maid Park and the George R. Brown Convention Center, a downtown official says.Bob Eury, president of Central Houston and executive director of the Houston Downtown Management District, said Tuesday that the probable front-running option being considered is to approach downtown's east side on Texas Avenue.Approaching on Texas and then angling back to Capitol under 59 makes the most sense anyways. I just hope this doesn't delay the start of construction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted February 20, 2008 Share Posted February 20, 2008 Approaching on Texas and then angling back to Capitol under 59 makes the most sense anyways. I just hope this doesn't delay the start of construction.Do the layout of the columns under 59 allow for "angling back" to Capitol? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest danax Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 It sounds like another classic battle of NIMBYs versus "the greater good" is brewing. A hearing will probably take place to gauge the Warehouse District residents' feelings about locating the stadium nearby. This article falsely states that "Residents resist new Dynamo stadium" but they only interviewed one guy, who was against it . There's a fair chance though that the townhousers will unite and try to stop it if it ever makes it to the serious proposal stage. Lost views, traffic and noise aren't going to get much local support. That area has transitioned into a fairly quiet residential nabe but to expect it to build out as all residential without any new larger projects is unrealistic and any complaints about losing one's view are examples of extreme NIMBYism, since views are not bought with the property, but change over the years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 Aside from the fact that one guy's view from his 2nd floor balcony won't stop anything, if he were so fortunate as to stop the stadium, he would only get to watch a 4 to 6 story midrise take its place. I am stunned that KHOU would even waste airtime on this complaint....no wait....no I'm not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJ V Lawrence Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 (edited) There's an article today from the Chronicle that includes the input of multiple residents in that area:"I'm OK with our tax dollars being used for it," said Greg Kusiak, general manager of Lucky's Pub on St. Emanuel, one block from the proposed site. "I think stadiums bring people and money, and we're one step closer to the Olympics."Raul Casarez is building a nine-unit townhouse complex on Hutchins and McKinney. Two of the three-bedroom units already have sold for $350,000."I'm very excited," Casarez said. "Within a few years this is going to be better than Midtown."One thriving business that would be displaced by the land purchase is JANCO Food Services, which supplies food and paper goods to restaurants."We've been here 10 years, and it's going to be difficult for us to move," said P. Alex Mousoudakis, one of three brothers who runs the business. "It's going to be expensive, too."His brother said the city was making the right move."The Dynamo deserve it for what they did, winning two championships," Jimmy Mousoudakis said. "If they're going to clean it up and make it nicer to live around here, then I'm OK with tax money being used for it. But it's going to be a pain to move."A stadium could create more noise and congestion for the nearby Lofts at the Ballpark rental complex, but residents did not seem concerned."I moved here because I want the social scene," said Crystal Poarch, 31. "It's always crowded here when the baseball games are going on and when there are conventions, so adding one more stadium to it is probably not going to even bother me."-----------------------What they're reacting to is the possible plan the City may have for the area:The city is in negotiations with the Houston Dynamo about constructing a stadium for the two-time national champions, but it is far from clear how much public money will be used. But an item on this week's City Council agenda offered a clue as to how the city plans to finance the purchase of the land.The first item on the agenda for Wednesday is a public hearing on a plan to have a downtown special taxing district Edited February 25, 2008 by DJ V Lawrence Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted February 26, 2008 Share Posted February 26, 2008 De la Hoya unofficially in.http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/5569756.htmlBoxer/promoter Oscar De La Hoya and business associate Gabriel Brener are poised to enter into a partnership with team investor-operator Anschutz Entertainment Group that will give the soccer newcomers "major roles" in the ownership of the two-time defending MLS champion Dynamo, an AEG spokesman said Monday.-------Last year, AEG sold D.C. United, one of the most successful and best-known teams in MLS, for $33 million.Having won back-to-back league titles, the Dynamo's estimated value has skyrocketed to more than $40 million, meaning De La Hoya's and Brener's combined investment on the team likely will top $20 million.I can't believe we live in times like this, but that sounds really cheap for a professional sports team. But hey, now that there are three parties involved, maybe they can pay for more of the stadium, which sadly I doubt will happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted February 26, 2008 Share Posted February 26, 2008 The yahoo article mentions the vote is this week. Anyone know what day? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skwatra Posted February 26, 2008 Share Posted February 26, 2008 i believe i heard it was wednesday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted March 6, 2008 Share Posted March 6, 2008 City Council OKs $15.5 million for proposed stadium sitehttp://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5595007.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
713 To 214 Posted March 6, 2008 Share Posted March 6, 2008 Welcome to Stadium City!. . .We finance them all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricco67 Posted March 6, 2008 Share Posted March 6, 2008 I don't know if this information is available to the public, but how much do we left left to owe on the other stadiums? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ethanra Posted March 6, 2008 Share Posted March 6, 2008 Welcome to Stadium City!. . .We finance them all.At least stadium city doesn't have to rely on the outlying suburbs to build facilities for the local teams. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted March 6, 2008 Share Posted March 6, 2008 I don't know if this information is available to the public, but how much do we left left to owe on the other stadiums?Just a Billion or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.