Demolition Supporters Strike Back

(www.primaryignition.com)

As momentum begins to slip away inch by inch from those who support demolishing historic and legendary Roberts Stadium, they have decided to give one last shot at winning back the Evansville community.

Inspired by the latest round of self-sabotage to Roberts Stadium, demolition supporters rounded up their horses this past month and went after Roberts Stadium head on in what they believe is convincing evidence that Roberts Stadium is on its last leg. Led by the Evansville Courier & Press and Evansville-Vanderburgh County Building Authority General Manager David Rector, demolition supporters gave us a few details on why they think Roberts Stadium should be demolished. Let's take a look at last Sunday's article...

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2011/jul/30/cost-of-roberts/?partner=popular

Rector's expedition of the concourse surrounding the actual stadium bowl began at a main entrance. There, years of water leaks had stained the ceiling. The dingy, brown evidence of moisture continued throughout the concourses. The tour of problems with Roberts lasted more than an hour.

Right away, you could see where this was headed. Demolition supporters were going to find any crack, leak, or break they could locate within a hundred miles radius of Roberts Stadium and claim this was the end of the line for Roberts Stadium. It amazes me that we have a facility that is worth over $10 million dollars ( http://saverobertsstadium.blogspot.com/2011/07/just-how-much-is-roberts-stadium-worth.html ) yet is being nitpicked like this.

Rector said he found the condition of Roberts a disgrace when the building authority became responsible for its care more than a year ago.

Yet Mayor Weinzapfel wrote a letter to SMG last year calling them "a great company." And Aces basketball coach Marty Simmons has written letters of recommendation for SMG....

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2011/feb/10/move-on-to-shore-up-smgs-arena-bid/?partner=RSS

"You think that this is representing our community, and it's just
embarrassing," Rector said, guiding the tour into just one of Roberts' aging
bathrooms. "You see, the fixtures in here are old, so it's hard to find parts.
But we'll still need to get it fixed before the next show comes through — we
can't let it go."

How much are toilets, mirrors, and sinks these days? A couple of hundred dollars at Lowes or the Home Depot? Make the necessary changes to update the bathrooms and move along. To say that these miscellaneous parts are reason to pay $1-$2 million to demolish an arena is ridiculous at best.

Also, if the Building Authority truly believes, " we can't let it go," why haven't these problems been fixed by the Building Authority who has now had control of Roberts Stadium for over a year?

The city then will spend about $40,000 to lead Roberts to its lowest state of function. Or, as Rector described the mothball process, "Getting it to a quasi-closed state where it still can be opened back up to a running state."

This should have never gotten to this point. I've said it a thousand times and I'll say it again- Why didn't city hall study reuse alternatives for Roberts Stadium? Why were the ball fields the only project given a serious consideration for the land?

And until the next city administration decides what to do with Roberts
Stadium, about $300,000 a year will be spent to keep it on life support.

And that, Rector said, is a conservative estimate.

"Let just say I was optimistic when you hear the number of $300,000," Rector said. "Any building needs constant upkeep. When it comes to Roberts, I think we're up for some serious challenges."

That's ironic given that it was Mr. Rector himself who only added $6,045.63 to SMG's $69,658.25 maintenance budget when the Building Authority took control of the building...

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

"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."

We're suppose to believe that the maintenance costs will balloon from $75,713.88 to $300,000 plus with next to nobody in the facility? Furthermore, raising the floor, which I've been advocating for quite some time now, would eliminate the vast majority of this expense.

Meanwhile, less than four miles away, workers at the yet-to-be-named Downtown arena were laying carpeting and linoleum in the fleet of sold-out suites, basking in a blast of air conditioning. Plush seats surrounding the bowl of the arena already had been installed.

At Roberts, part of the air conditioning system has failed, requiring yet
another costly repair.

It's never a good idea to compare Roberts Stadium to the new arena. I've never understood why so many local residents feel that Roberts Stadium and the new arena are an either/or situation. It has been written on the wall for quite awhile now that the new arena will be our premier arena while Roberts Stadium should be converted to a mid-size arena housing lower-profile events that need this type of facility.

In regards to the repaired air conditioning unit, this is yet another reason to keep Roberts Stadium. By the Courier & Press' own admission, we just put a costly A/C unit in Roberts Stadium. Why would we want to demolish this investment?

The view from the suites was dominated by a supporting beam, much like sitting behind a post in an early baseball stadium. "And this is what they call our premium suites," Rector said with a laugh.

This is desperation at its finest to find a problem with Roberts Stadium. How many beams do you see in the way of the luxury suites at Roberts Stadium?....

(click to enlarge)

If you look closely, you will notice that the beams are elevated higher on the roof than the seating section in the luxury boxes. Besides, blocked seats are now a sign of vintage and traditional style sports facilities. The Texas Rangers intentionally designed blocked seating in their ballpark...


This sums up perfectly why we are in this situation. Roberts Stadium, like everything else, is a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you dig for random miscellaneous things like a pole blocking someones view, you won't get too far. But if you commit yourself to making Roberts Stadium the best facility it can be, you will end up surprised at how far you can get with this great arena. It all comes down to attitude and mindset.

Evidence of prior repairs completed by Roberts' former keeper, SMG
Evansville, also were visible in the roof leaks that sprung over the entrances.
Holes were drilled in drywall over the doorways to alleviate the bloated
ceiling.

"I guess that was their way of making repairs," Rector said. "It's like they
didn't know what they were doing so they did the best they could."

Roberts Stadium's leaks were fixed in 2002...

http://www.indianaeconomicdigest.net/main.asp?SectionID=31&subsectionID=276&articleID=39599

The stadium was reroofed in 2002 for $629,559. The repair came after a leak in the roof caused a rain delay at a University of Evansville basketball game.

Why wasn't an insurance claim filed on these repairs? Why hasn't the Building Authority made these repairs? Has the Building Authority reported these problems to the city? Even if we reroofed the entire building again for $629,559 it would STILL BE CHEAPER THAN DEMOLITION!

An additional $200,000 will be needed for utilities, which includes just
enough heat to keep the pipes from freezing.

At least 40 percent of those utilities will be spent keeping a series of pumps running around the clock. During Rector's tour, the gurgling sound of water coming from a vent in a corner of the stadium floor was relaxing. But some may equate it to the constant sound of city dollars being spent. Also, the security system and its emergency electrical generator also will remain in operation. Without the pumps, water from an underground spring will begin to seep to the floor.

Could it be any more obvious that raising the floor would solve all of these problems?

The $. 1.2 million demolition cost was generated as a "cost estimate" by a Tennessee firm hired to help create a presentation for a failed attempt by the Evansville Convention and Visitors Bureau to build a series of baseball fields. The amount was generated by the firm to include demolishing the stadium, its parking lot and filling in the hole left behind, said Laura Libs, spokeswoman for the convention and visitors bureau.

"That number was actually for what we wanted to do — build those ball fields," Libs said. "We never actually went out to receive any bids."

Correct. The $1.2 million "estimate" was taken out of left field by the ECVB. There was no real substance to it whatsoever. In fact, the figure even went up to $1.5 million in the final weeks of the ball fields project...

http://www.evansvilleliving.com/magazine-division/general/features?page=3#top

As part of its plan, the CVB will cover the estimated $1.5 million needed to tear down Roberts Stadium and remove the 28 acres of asphalt once the transition to the Downtown arena is complete.

Even the $1.5 million is being disputed by local leaders such as Marsha Abell...

http://www.allbusiness.com/government/government-bodies-offices-government/15337623-1.html

In a Sept. 9 debate, Abell pegged the cost of demolishing Roberts Stadium at more than $2 million, higher than the visitors bureau's estimate of $1. million.

The group of fans — and most on the tour — was oblivious to the uneven concrete that had become dangerously unstable due to age and settling. On the other side of the building, Rector pointed out to an entire pathway leading to a service entrance had been closed due to settling as well.

We don't have enough money to fix minor concrete cracks inside of Roberts Stadium and we don't have enough money to fix potholes in the parking lot (even though it was completely repaved in 2002 for $363,648), yet we have enough funds to completely demolish the entire arena and construct an entirely new ball fields complex, an entirely new park, or an entirely new open lot? Even if we demolish Roberts Stadium, you still have to deal with the concrete. Demolition is a zero-sum game...

http://saverobertsstadium.blogspot.com/2011/04/demolition-is-zero-sum-game.html

Aside from Roberts own inevitable spiral into disrepair, Rector said the $1.2 million demolition cost was far too high.

"I know for sure it wouldn't cost the $1.2 million everyone is saying," he said, admitting the building still could be fixed. "Well, I guess you could do anything for the right price.

"But again, it will take a lot of money, and that depends if it's worth it"

So now we have yet another government official who doesn't have any kind of estimate for how much it would take to repair simple things such as cracks the size of a pinkie finger, small leaks in a roof that was just renovated, or even removing a piece of duct tape on an electrical box but is an expert on demolition costs and is extremely optimistic that they can get the job done?

I'm sure we could get a good deal on demolishing Roberts Stadium if we took the Executive Inn approach. That is, demolish a little here, demolish a little there, leave the remains, and then make an emergency order to finally get the debris out of the area. Doesn't Roberts Stadium, which was there for us during the tragic Aces plane crash of 1977, deserve better than that?

At this point, it should be VERY clear to everyone why we are in this position. It is now more than obvious that city hall and its many government agencies has had an agenda to tear down Roberts Stadium since day 1. They have not followed up at all on the renovations that were done to Roberts Stadium's roof, floor, and parking lot in the years 2002 and 2005, but they have been Johnny-On-The-Spot to see what they can find to demolish this great facility.

It also makes you wonder: How many Building Authority workers does it take to screw in a light bulb? The Authority has had Roberts Stadium for over a year now, why haven't these repairs been fixed? How can they point the finger at SMG when they themselves have not made the repairs in over a year?

Even worse was the news today that the C&P is going to stick to their opinion that Roberts Stadium should be demolished...

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2011/aug/02/preserving-roberts-stadium-will-be-an-expensive/

Sarkissian recently toured Roberts with Vanderburgh County Building Authority General Manager David Rector, who said, "When it comes to Roberts, I think we are up to some serious challenges."

As long as we have government officials who point at leaks, cracks, and duct tape instead of fixing them, we sure are in for a challenge!

Indeed, he pointed out that the air conditioning is in need of ongoing
repairs, the roof leaks, the ground is settling, and of course, an underground
spring requires that pumps run 24/7.

Since Mr. Rector is a demolition expert, what is his estimate to make these repairs? If you add up the reroofing in 2002, the repaving in 2002, and fixing the water pumps in 2005, you get roughly $1.5 million- THE SAME PRICE AS DEMOLITION. And it is pretty clear we simply need to raise the floor not repair the entire pumps system, repair the roof not replace it, and repair the parking lot not completely repave it.

It would appear that if Roberts is going to be saved, it is going to require that someone have the money get it done, and that should not be city taxpayers.

Should the taxpayers be stuck with the bill for demolition AND construction of a new project AND maintenance of that project?

No one wants to see the city have to spend $1.2 million for the demolition -- nor see the vacant building fall into further disrepair -- so if there is someone out there who has a genuine plan, the financing, and the willingness to make the repairs, get ready to make your pitch. The new administration takes office in five months.

This is exactly what I have been doing for months and months now. I have spoken to the current mayor and both mayoral candidates. I have also spoken to many City Council candidates. I emailed ALL of the County Council last year. ZERO members of the council scheduled a meeting with me. I am more than willing to meet with any official who is willing to give serious consideration to saving Roberts Stadium. I even met with the C&P for their article this past Sunday.

Overall, I'm a little disappointed that the C&P is sticking to their belief that demolition is the best option. When I met with them a few weeks ago, I felt like they were very interested in what I had to say, the plan I have for Roberts Stadium, and what I would like to do get the ball rolling on saving Roberts Stadium. I honestly thought the C&P was going to jump on board the Save Roberts Stadium Express and help me get this project across the finish line.

Until a committee is formed and a decision is made on Roberts Stadium, we are just going to be sitting here arguing the same points over and over. In the meantime, I would like for the Courier & Press to do one thing for me. I ask that they give serious consideration to my plan to construct the ball fields at Kleymeyer Park with the fields replicating vintage MLB ballparks. As I've said in previous posts, we have the opportunity to help over 12 groups in Evansville with ONE ball fields project. When I met with the C&P a few weeks ago, I explained detail by detail what the plan should be. I now ask that they give serious consideration to this plan.

Unfortunately, I am currently being stonewalled by city hall and the powers that be in Evansville on both the Roberts Stadium project AND the Kleymeyer Park ball fields project. Luckily, that is all going to change next year. Right now we've just got to weather the temporary storms that will come from those who support demolition.

Although I am disappointed in the C&P's position, this past week has definitely given us a boost. The Save Roberts Stadium movement has gotten fan mail after fan mail since this article hit the press. I can't thank you the readers of this blog enough. You are the reason why we have gotten this far. I thank you very much for all you've done and I ask that you continue your vocal opposition to demolishing Roberts Stadium.

LET'S SAVE ROBERTS STADIUM!