Some Things Just Don't Add Up

(photo credit: bryanmarcel.com)

After talking with many people in and around city hall, I'm still left with many questions than answers. It seems to me that what makes sense one time, doesn't make sense another. Here are some examples...

-If the goal of building the new arena was to increase Evansville's position in the entertainment and sports industries, than why was an arena smaller than Roberts Stadium built?

- If Bosse Field would have been kept for high school baseball if Mayor Lloyd's ballpark would have been built, and Swonder Ice Rink is still being kept for high school and amateur hockey, why can't Roberts Stadium's floor be raised to accommodate high school, amateur, and semi-pro indoor soccer and football?

- If Evansville is truly broke and cannot afford to even maintain Roberts Stadium in mothball form, how can it afford $2 million to demolish Roberts Stadium or $4 million just to make the downtown traffic flow backwards?

- Isn't it ironic that demolishing Roberts Stadium, an arena, is supposedly necessary to improve our hotel industry, yet city hall just tore down a hotel to build an arena downtown?

- If Roberts Stadium is truly inadequate to host modern, premier concerts and other entertainment events, than why does city hall keep insisting that it must be prohibited from offering competition with the new arena?

- Why were there public comment sessions on both the new arena and ball fields projects but never a public comment session for Roberts Stadium?

- If the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Coliseum can still bring us great entertainment at a ripe old age of 95, how is Roberts Stadium too old to be a mid-sized arena at 55 years old? Note: Roberts Stadium cannot even draw Social Security.

- Why did the city abandon plans to build a bridge over Pigeon Creek from Garvin Park to Kleymeyer Park in 2002 but has now approved plans to build a bridge over the Lloyd Expressway from the State Hospital Park to Wesselman Park?

- Why was the $22 million downtown ballpark scrapped for monetary reasons but the new $127 million arena is being built on time, on budget, and with ample funding sources?

- If the Innkeepers Tax can be used to build 8 boring and dull ball fields at Wesselman Park, why can't it be used at Kleymeyer Park where the improvements are actually needed?

It amazes me that we are constantly being told one thing while another thing is being done. First, city hall told us that we needed a new arena and that renovating Roberts Stadium would not be worth it. I completely agreed with this sentiment. I don't want Roberts Stadium renovated anymore than it has been from its original historical structure, and I certainly want downtown to grow. I believe that we should have built a 14,000-18,000 seat arena that would put us back on the map while keeping Roberts Stadium as a mid-sized arena with its floor raised back up.

But now, we're seeing a different reaction from city hall. They built an arena that is 1,000-2,000 seats less than Roberts Stadium, which will do us no favors in the quest to land NCAA tournaments, nor will it help us sell anymore tickets to concerts that sell out at Roberts Stadium.

And now, they keep insisting that Roberts Stadium shall not compete with the new arena. My only question is: How can they compete? Roberts Stadium has 1/3rd of the roof support that the new arena has, a smaller floor (can't house hockey), and if we scale it down to a mid-sized arena, they won't even have the same amount of seats. You're telling me that top concert performers, the Aces, or the Icemen are going to choose Roberts Stadium over the new arena? Not happening!

If we are truly going to be successful in the sports industry, we need to have a plan that adds up. We need to support the new arena by going to top concerts, Aces games, and Icemen games. We need to make it so successful that city hall needs to consider expanding it up to 14,000-18,000 seats in the future.

We also need to raise the floor up on Roberts Stadium. This will allow us to turn off the pumps and bring in indoor football, indoor soccer, possibly minor league basketball, youth soccer and basketball tournaments, small concerts, and amateur recreational events. We can also use the main level as an indoor greenway.

Lastly, we need to build the ball fields at Kleymeyer Park where they will replicate vintage MLB fields. There already is a private company that does this. We need our city officials to get in contact with them immediately. We can then host championship games at Bosse Field.

Over the past two years, we've seen a lot of things that just don't add up. What is supposedly a good idea one day isn't the next. With that being said, I can tell you one thing that always has and always will add up, and that is SAVING ROBERTS STADIUM!

(photo credit: waylandtowaveland.org)