Today was yet another milestone for the Save Roberts Stadium movement. I, along with Sherman Stevens, Sylvia Trabits-Niemeier, Brenda Bergwitz, and Berniece Tirmenstein, sat down with Mayor-Elect Lloyd Winnecke to discuss Roberts Stadium.
First of all, there are a couple of things to note. During the meeting Mayor-Elect Winnecke told us we can call him "Lloyd" instead of Mr. or Mayor-Elect Winnecke so that is what I will be doing. Next, I want to express my gratitude to Lloyd for inviting us in to discuss Roberts Stadium. Lloyd could have easily said, "Forget it, I will just make the decision myself without listening to anyone," but he didn't. He was suppose to leave his office by 5 but he stayed over to make sure he gathered all of the facts, leads, and details on Roberts Stadium. Thank you Lloyd!
In regards to the meeting itself, this was one of those times where we needed to rise to the occasion. For Roberts Stadium, it's the 4th quarter and the game is tight. What we do in the next few months will make or break Roberts Stadium, no doubt about it. If we are going to win this battle we have to rise to the occasion for events like this.
To prepare for this meeting, I have been busy the last 48 hours making sure this meeting went down smooth. Last night, I met with the other supporters of Roberts Stadium at Hardees on Boeke to make sure that we were all on the same page. I gathered all of the information and then processed what I should and shouldn't say during the meeting.
After the brief get-together, I went home and spent most of the night gathering all of the data that I needed, printing it off, and going over it. This included the emails sent to me by Mr. Chip Rosetti of the Evansville Rage, the News4U article where Scott Schoenike of the Ford Center said that they are completely booked from October to April, and all of the data pertaining to the Continental Indoor Football League.
To make sure I got up early (because I had to go to work, change, go to the meeting, change, and then go back to work) I set the alarm on my Dick Vitale Alarm Clock (click on photos to enlarge)...
It is extremely important to realize that I only set this alarm clock on special occasions because it is so loud and Dick Vitale's voice is so damn annoying. But hey, it fits in with my other sports memorabilia...
So, the meeting time finally came and it was time to deliver for Roberts Stadium. How did the meeting go?
Overall, I felt very confident coming out of the meeting. Some of the highlights were the following...
1. Lloyd did an excellent job listening to all of the data and then asking questions. Most people don't care what you have to say as they have already made up their mind. I gathered that Lloyd genuinely cared, listened, and thought about what I said.
2. Lack of communication on what we can do with Roberts Stadium seems to be the biggest problem. Lloyd had a lot of questions for me that I'm glad he asked as I feel like these questions have hindered Lloyd's understanding of Roberts Stadium's potential. He did a great job asking detailed questions, and I felt like I answered most if not all. I'm hoping that this will help Lloyd give strong consideration for Roberts Stadium.
3. Another important thing to note is that Lloyd, like most Evansville residents, did not know that a newly planted forest will not work with Wesselman Park's Old Growth Virgin Forest. I felt like this meeting was very valuable to us as we were able to communicate things like this to Lloyd. I'm glad that he is willing to listen and learn which is what every one of us should do!
4. Lloyd seems to have a committee that will be open to converting Roberts Stadium into a mid-sized arena. I sure hope this belief holds up.
5. As usual and always, Lloyd was a complete class act. I'm excited to see what he has in store for Evansville and I hope he lets me serve his administration.
Overall, we have good reason to remain confident that we will deliver Roberts Stadium for the Evansville community. I appreciate Lloyd Winnecke inviting us in, listening to our ideas, and genuinely exploring these ideas instead of just brushing them off.
Thank you Mayor-Elect Lloyd Winnecke for listening to those who support Roberts Stadium. LET'S SAVE ROBERTS STADIUM!
Sounds promising. Thank you so much for all the work you have put in to this. I emailed Mr. Winnecke myself. But he has yet to reply. Makes me feel much better knowing he had this meeting with you.
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