What A Finale!

(Click on images to enlarge)

Today, the Evansville Ace's men's basketball team played their final game at Roberts Stadium. This was one game I just wasn't going to miss. The chance to see the Ace's leave legendary Roberts Stadium only comes once in a lifetime and I sure hope you didn't miss this game either.

At first though, it did look like I was going to miss a good portion of the game. On my way to Roberts Stadium, my car's transmission decides to bust a seal and leak all of its transmission fluids out leaving my car paralyzed. That right there is the story of my life- CAR TROUBLE. It is my opinion that we should be saying good-bye to the automobile (and hello to mass transit) not Roberts Stadium.

After I got that situation under control, I ran a two-minute drill to the stadium and surprisingly made it right as the ball went up in the air. I'm disappointed that I missed the pregame festivities but am quite grateful to have made it to see the crowd come alive for the start of the game.

The game itself was hard fought. Throughout the whole time, it seemed like neither team was going to give up the lead. Thankfully, the Aces took control for good with just a few minutes to go and never looked back. Good Job Aces! Also, I would like to congratulate Illinois State on a great game as well. That had to have been a tough position to be in as the visiting team on Roberts Stadium's final game. My hat is off to both teams on a well played game.

The best part of the day was when Lance Wilkerson took the microphone at mid-court for a final tribute to Roberts Stadium. As Lance spoke, over 100 + UE basketball alumni gathered around him. I graduated from the University of Kentucky with an interest in sports management and I have never ever seen that many alumni comeback for a basketball game. Not even for the mighty UK Wildcats. The Aces did a great job bringing all of these legends back to the hardwood.

I also would like to thank the Aces athletic dept for allowing the fans (me) to go out on the court and mingle with the alumni after the game. The Aces didn't have to do that but they took it upon themselves to make sure the fans got as close to the game as possible. Last September, I drove to Omaha, Nebraska for the final game at Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium. They did not allow the fans to go on the field. In my opinion, the difference in these two events is what makes the University of Evansville the class of all sporting organizations.

Once on the court, I had a field day. That was an amazing feeling to stand at mid-court and take in the entire Roberts Stadium surroundings. It was such a surreal moment.

While on the court, I brought my UE Aces basketball to get signed. I am very fortunate to have the autographs of Jerry Sloan, Jim Crews, Larry Humes, and Dick Walters. Once again, none of these great alumni had to socialize with fans or even come to the game. The fact that all of these alumni, who are nothing short of being legends of the hardwood, stayed after the game and signed autographs and took pictures for every single person who asked just shows the character that these men are made of. Today, the University of Evansville should be very proud of 1. its basketball team 2. its legendary alumni & 3. Roberts Stadium.

So with all of that being said, the battle to save Roberts Stadium still goes on. For this reason, we the people of Evansville must be vocal in our support for keeping this Evansville icon. If you went to today's game and felt no emotions to the great history of this facility than fine, BUT if you went to today's game and felt the history, the passion, and the nostalgia of this legendary venue, then come aboard the Save Roberts Stadium Express and let's get the job done!

As promised here are a few photos from today's game. Sometime this week, I will compile all the photos I took today and will post them in one huge slide show. Enjoy...














Thank You Aces, Thank You UE Alumni, & Thank You Roberts Stadium!

Here Is The OFFICIAL Shirt

(click on image to enlarge)

Thanks to Ad-Vision, I can now show you the EXACT design of the Save Roberts Stadium shirt.

Ad-Vision did an excellent job with the design and I hope you will decide to pick one (or many) up for yourself.

Remember...

-I'm selling these AT COST
- Shirts are only $8
- Email me (JordanBaer1@gmail.com) your name, contact #, and where you want me to mail or deliver your shirt(s).
- Wear this shirt to every event you can

THANKS!

Support Roberts Stadium With A Save Roberts Stadium Shirt

(Actual Shirt Design! Click on image to enlarge)

Although several people in the community understand that Roberts Stadium is an Evansville icon, I am not convinced that we have gotten the message out loud and clear to everyone in the city, including our elected officials.

For this reason, I have teamed up with local t-shirt maker Ad-Vision Screen Graphics to help get the word out about this blog's effort to save Roberts Stadium. As a part of my "Paint The Town Roberts Stadium Brown" mission, I am buying and then selling at cost "Save Roberts Stadium" t-shirts.

For only $8 (sizes available: kid's medium to adult XL, for 2XL and 3XL add $1.50), you can have your very own "Save Roberts Stadium" t-shirt. The t-shirt is brown (to commemorate the brown color of Roberts Stadium), and on the front it says in bold, " Save Roberts Stadium," with the blog URL underneath it. On the back it says, "Built by H. O Roberts-1956."


A couple of things about the shirt...

1. I am selling these shirts AT COST. This blog is about making the effort to save Roberts Stadium personal not profitable. I will not be making one dime off this project, and I believe that is the way it should be. My love for Roberts Stadium and desire to see her stick around for another 55 years are why I want you to purchase at least one shirt.

2. The two main goals of this t-shirt project are to 1. Get the word out about saving Roberts Stadium & 2. To recognize, respect, and pay tribute to H.O Roberts who gave up his political career so that Roberts Stadium would be built.

3. Although I would like to have these shirts made by the time the Aces play their last game Saturday, they simply will not be ready by then. However, I want you the people to wear these shirts everywhere you go so that every man, woman, and child in this town is aware of the Save Roberts Stadium movement.

4. With your t-shirt purchase, you will be supporting Ad-Vision Screen Graphics, a local small business (http://www.advisionscreengraphics.com/index.php?page=home).

If this project is successful, city officials will have no choice but to respect the wishes of the people and save Roberts Stadium, so I hope you will decide to participate in this project.

The t-shirt purchasing process is going to work like this:

* Ad-Vision must make all t-shirts at the same time while the printing machine is up and running. For this reason I must compile a list of who all wants to purchase a shirt(s). Please sign up to purchase a shirt(s) ONLY if you plan on actually buying them.

* To sign up to purchase a t-shirt, please send me your name, how many t-shirts you want, shirt size(s) and a contact phone number to JordanBaer1@gmail.com.

* If you would like for me to deliver this shirt (free) to you please let me know the address where I can drop it off (For delivery you must live in the Evansville area). If you would like for me to mail the shirt(s) please give me a shipping address as well. I will have to charge an at cost shipping fee which will be calculated on usps.com.

* I must have everyone's order by March 16. Shirts should be ready within one week.

Again, let's "Paint The Town Roberts Stadium Brown," and let everyone know that we want Roberts Stadium Saved.

I thank you the readers of this blog greatly for your support throughout this whole process and would appreciate any t-shirt you buy to SAVE ROBERTS STADIUM!

The Best Roberts Stadium Article Ever Written

Today, Rich Davis of the Evansville Courier & Press published what I feel to be the best ever article written on Roberts Stadium. Here is the link...

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2011/feb/20/an-embodiment-of-evansvilles-pride/?partner=popular

Rich did an excellent job compiling great, historic photos of Roberts Stadium, compiling a Roberts Stadium timeline, and letting his readers know just why Roberts Stadium is so special to a lot of us here in Evansville. I thank him for this article.

Rich hit the nail on the head when he said that " Probably no other place in Evansville embodies the heart or spirit of this city more than Roberts Stadium, an old friend to many."

Given that, why in the world would our city governmnent want to tear it down? Roberts Stadium is the crown jewel of Evansville history and to compromise it would be to compromise a large chunk of Evansville's heart and soul.

The amazing thing to me is that the city of Louisville, Kentucky has two great arenas open right now (Freedom Hall and the Yum Center), yet many people argue that that is because Louisville is a much bigger city than us. Consider this...

Freedom Hall: Seating Capacity- Roughly 20,000
KFC Yum Center: Seating Capacity- 22,000

New Evansville Arena: Seating Capacity- Roughly 10,000-11,000
Roberts Stadium: Seating Capacity- 12,116

In other words, on a typical night, a Roberts Stadium event + a new Evansville Arena event ='s one event at Freedom Hall OR one event at the KFC YUM Center.

If we scale Roberts Stadium down to 6,000 or so seats, which would make it more attractive for indoor soccer, indoor football, and small concerts and trade shows, that mathematical equation gets even worse. We wouldn't have a combined total number of seats equal to Freedom Hall or the KFC Yum Center. And if we demolish Roberts Stadium, Louisville would have 4 times the seating capacity that we would have available.

Also, Louisville has Broadbent Arena (6,600 seats) and Louisville Gardens (3,000-6,000 seats) which are double Evansville's Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Coliseum (2,400 seats).

We would also be close in total seating capacity to the Qwest Center in Omaha, NE and Intrust Bank Center in Wichita, KS. Both of those cities have a university in the Missouri Valley Conference (Ace's Conference).

While Louisville, KY does have more residents than Evansville, surely we can keep from getting lapped TWICE by them, and surely we can keep up with our Missouri Valley Conference foes who have more seats in one arena than we would two.

To top it off, I still don't know why there are people here in town who feel like a 6,000 seat Roberts Stadium would compete with the new arena. Simply put, there is no way on earth a premier concert is going to pick Roberts Stadium over the new arena when it would barely have half the seating capacity and a third of the roof support strength. Two venues can and will compliment, not compete, with each other.

Again, Rich Davis did an excellent job conveying to the city what Roberts Stadium has meant to this history rich city. Now we must work to make sure that Roberts Stadium sticks around another 55 years to compliment our new arena.

The People Are Speaking Loud & Clear

If you read today's Evansville Courier & Press, and if you haven't shame on you it's only a few quarters yet tells you everything you want to know about Evansville, you will have seen yet another article supporting the idea of Evansville having two sports venues. First, here is a part of the article ( I want you to go to their website for the whole thing)...

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2011/feb/17/no-headline---174/

City could do well with two arenas

To the editor:

Back in 1990 when we were renovating Roberts Stadium — a renovation that was supposed to last for 50 years — we felt confident that this facility would be able to handle all future events.

That is, if we could work it into the 365-day calendar, without conflicting dates.

The argument we used back then on the renovation was simple: We needed more seats and more flexibility. We actually started working on this back in 1986. That plan was scrapped and the present Stadium renovation was adopted.

What the renovation did not do was add more days to the calendar. The new Downtown arena will not do this, either.

Jon Hill, a former stadium manager, once reported that many events that the Evansville could host are lost — not just because of the stadium's size or accommodations — but due to conflicting dates.

It was a dilemma that the renovation did not solve. Jon mentioned several large regional trade shows, equestrian events, conventions and other events on the same day or week that were lost.

Bill Hazelip

Evansville

First of all, thank you very much Bill Hazelip for writing in. I appreciate your article. I hope this encourages you the reader to write in to the C&P. For only a few minutes of your time, you too can write a letter to the C&P that will let everyone know that we want to save Roberts Stadium.

In regards to the article, this is exactly correct. The important thing to remember is that if we raise the floor back up and scale Roberts Stadium down to 6,000 or so seats it will NOT compete with the new arena.

Why do I know that? Because Roberts Stadium would not have adequate seating capacity, would not have strong enough steel on the roof, and would not have as much floor space as the new arena would which would prevent it from going after the premier concerts and such. Think about it, if Lady Gaga is coming to town, do you honestly think she is going to pick a 6,000 seat arena with only 60,000 lbs of steel roof support and a basketball sized floor when the new arena will have 180,000 lbs of steel roof support, 11,000 seat capacity, and a hockey sized floor? It's pretty simple, the two will not compete.

What Roberts Stadium will provide is the opportunity for concerts, sports teams, and trade shows who cannot afford the new arena but need something a little bigger than the Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Coliseum. Indoor football, indoor soccer, local bands and concerts will not be able to finance an event at the new arena, thus these events will never happen if we don't have a mid-size arena.

The most frustrating thing I have noticed in Evansville is that every resident has decided to only be on one side or the other. One group likes the new arena but believes that Roberts Stadium should be demolished. On the other side is the group that thought Roberts Stadium should have been renovated/rebuilt and are strictly opposed to the new arena.

I support BOTH. I believe it was the correct decision to build a completely new arena than to renovate Roberts Stadium which would have basically been demolishing it and building a new one. Furthermore, it is the correct decision to build downtown as that is the most important area in this city and we desperately need to revitalize it. I can't wait til November when it opens up.

However, that doesn't mean we should tear down Roberts Stadium. Roberts Stadium means a lot to a lot of people including me. Hank Roberts fought very hard for this facility and we need to appreciate his work and Roberts Stadium's great history. We need to convert it to a mid-size arena.

I long for the day when this city decides that when it takes one step forward it will not take another step backward at the same time. That is what we will be doing if we demolish Roberts Stadium. We need to take TWO STEPS FORWARD by opening this great new arena and Save Roberts Stadium!

Please Note!

This past week, I have had several people approach me asking if I am associated with a "Roberts Stadium Rally" that is suppose to take place in the next few weeks.

This event, which is being put on by a group called "Saving Roberts Stadium Team 2011," is not my group.

I, in no way, am affiliated with or are associated with this group.

My group is aggresively pursuing a plan to save this historic Evansville icon and I thank you for all the support you have given me and the Save Roberts Stadium movement. I hope you will stay involved in this once in a lifetime opportunity to save 55 years worth of history.

Please check back for updates on future Save Roberts Stadium events that I am currently working on.

Again, THANK YOU for standing up for Roberts Stadium and let's save this great venue!

Post Winnecke vs Davis City-County Observer EDebate

Today Mayoral Candidates Lloyd Winnecke and Rick Davis squared off in a debate on the City-County/Community Observer. They were both asked the same five questions with question #2 being about Roberts Stadium.

You can view the question here...

http://community-observer.com/2011/02/07/edebate-davis-vs-winnecke/2/

First of all, it is my firm belief that the main difference between these two candidates is the issue of what to do with Roberts Stadium. I have talked to both of these candidates about Roberts Stadium and the responses were different as night and day.

Winnecke said he believed that Roberts Stadium should be "nothing but a hole in the ground" while Davis expressed his deep love for Roberts Stadium and his willingness to help me find a solution for Roberts Stadium. I fear that if Winnecke is elected, it will be lights out for Roberts Stadium.

Please note, when I say that Winnecke is bad for Roberts Stadium and the city of Evansville, I mean his political beliefs and stances. I am very grateful to Mr. Winnecke for willing to meet with me a few months ago, especially given that I now know that both parties are trying to distance themselves from me. This is mainly because I support Rick Davis and partially because I am a thorn in their side with my desire to save Roberts Stadium.

I am very proud of BOTH of these stances and I apologize to no one for my beliefs. I have reached out to both parties not just about saving Roberts Stadium, but to start a Mayor's Association, to get the ball fields built cheaper in a better location with better fields, and to discuss high speed rail.

Only Lloyd Winnecke and the candidates that support Rick Davis have met with me with Mayor Weinzapfel giving me less than 15 minutes to discuss Roberts Stadium, a NBDL team for the new arena, and the ball fields at Kleymeyer Park. Outside of that, ZERO political leaders were willing to listen to me, ZERO. For that reason, I fully support Rick Davis and Al Lindsey for office. I am disappointed in the way the Vanderburgh County Republican and Democrat parties are acting!

With that being said, let's break down the debate...

Lloyd Winnecke

I’ve heard many interesting ideas, although I have not heard from any qualified professionals

This is the main problem with Lloyd's handling of Roberts Stadium. He has not been proactive at all in solving the Roberts Stadium situation. Since talking to Lloyd, I have found an investor who has 2 + teams willing to go into Roberts Stadium if it's scaled back to 6,000 seats. We can finance the majority of this renovation simply by selling the 6,000 or so seats that would be removed for at least $100. None of that would have been discovered if I wasn't proactive with this blog. None of that would have been known if it were left up to city hall.

To sit unused in its current state, Robert's Stadium would cost approximately $300,000 per year. Part of this cost is due to the manner in which it was originally engineered. The floor of the stadium sits below the water table, requiring expensive pumps to run 24/7 to remove the excess water

.

Here we go with the water pumps scare again. I still haven't seen any balance sheet showing the $300,000 maintenance. I have seen this report where the costs of maintaining Roberts have been less than a third of that...

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2011/feb/06/how-smg-struck-out/?partner=RSS

"The repair and maintenance budget set by SMG for 2010 was $90,550," he said, providing supporting documentation. "SMG expended $69,658.25 and the Building Authority, after assuming maintenance responsibility, expended $6,045.63. Combined, this is $14,846.12 under the budgeted amount."

It's bad enough for city hall to try to starve Roberts Stadium to death with its limited funding, but to now raise that maintenance number up to $300,000 for political reasons is just as bad.

I am receptive to ideas for renovating Robert's Stadium,

It appears Lloyd is walking back the email response he sent to me in which he said, " As I previously mentioned, I don't believe the city can, or should, "save" Roberts Stadium."

I have two specific recommendations: first, the current mayor should appoint a committee to study this issue. Ideally this committee would be comprised of citizens who have ideas for possible re-use of the Stadium as well as engineers who can offer expertise on building modification and costs.

This would be a huge step in the right direction if Lloyd truly feels this way. If I had an engineer/architect working with me right now on this project, I would already have this project solved, guaranteed! Although there probably isn't a snowball's chance in... well you know where... that I would be picked on this panel, hopefully someone that believes in Roberts Stadium would be picked.

Rick Davis

The two leading contenders, according to the people who have completed the survey, are: Turn it into a natatorium; and turn it into a green space. I say: Let's do both!

Exactly, there is no reason why we cannot build a natatorium when we have to address the issue of Hartke Pool. A building that is compromised of an outdoor pool and slides, an indoor natatorium, and an indoor water park resort with ample amount of hotel rooms would be a great public-private partnership for the Hartke Pool area. Furthermore, a botanical garden next to Roberts Stadium with the back lot replanted would serve as the perfect buffer for wildlife. We can accomplish all of this with a successfully drawn out master plan.

I think spending $2 million to tear the building down is a waste of our $17 million investment in 1990.

Another great point: Why pay $2 million knock over Roberts Stadium when you could raise the floor and fix it up for around that same price or less?

We could use that $2 million earmarked for tearing Roberts Stadium, plus use other necessary dollars needed to "Reinvent Roberts" into a natatorium and green space, and keep the structure as a jewel for not only Evansville, but the entire Tri-State area.

If we finance the renovation of Roberts Stadium with the selling of seats, bricks with your name on them, and Roberts Stadium merchandise, we can then use the Innkeepers Tax to finance the other projects and hopefully clean up our parks as well.

I have gone door-to-door in the neighborhoods around Roberts Stadium and I did not have a single resident in the area say they wanted to see Roberts Stadium torn down.

This right here should tell city hall something. Why can't Evansville's political leaders realize that tearing down this great icon is a TERRIBLE idea?

Overall, I felt like the debate went good. It is refreshing to see that our local politicians are beginning to realize the value in Roberts Stadium. Rick Davis has been the first politician to come out in support of saving Roberts Stadium and now the rest can't help but follow.

Now, if I can get you the reader of this blog to continue emailing your local leaders, I believe we will save this great facility. Let's Save Roberts Stadium!

Welcome to Evansville: The Town of Twos

Many locals believe that having both Roberts Stadium and the new arena would be in unchartered territory. They say that we simply cannot have two of anything. But, if you look around town, you will notice that Evansville has two of a lot of things. Let's take a look: (click on images for links to sources)

Two Courthouses:




Two Jails:




Two Bank Towers:




Two Malls:




Two Large Universities:




Two Libs Family Chocolate Companies:




Two Historic Ohio Street Bridges:


(waymarking.com)

Two Downtown Post Office Buildings:




Two Online Newspapers:



Two Downtown Buildings That Were Built For A Library:



And Even...

Two Governments



... which means two councils, two law enforcement agencies, and two tax structures.

You won't have to be in Evansville very long before you start seeing double vision.


So why not two great arenas?




Evansville is... The Town of Twos!