Braves leaving Atlanta (for neighboring county/Marietta)

[Invader3K]

Apparently for nearby Cobb County.

 

http://mdjonline.com/bookmark/24025051-Atlanta-Braves-moving-to-Cobb-County

 

Article says that the new stadium is planned to be ready for the 2017 season.

[fondybrewfan]

Seems kind of odd that this is breaking news. I would think that somehow this would have came out some time ago if they were leaving Turner. They were due for a new stadium though.

[Invader3K]

Turner Field is not even 20 years old (opened in 1996, built for the Olympics). Seems weird to think it's "outdated."

 

There's another story about a county official from Cobb confirming this.

 

Edit: The Braves official Twitter account just confirmed they have purchased "a large tract of land" and plan to build "a world class ballpark."

[JimH5]

If they can get the money together and build it in a location favorable to them, I don't see anything wrong with it. The lease is coming up and they don't want to stay.

 

Not sure what the City of Atlanta is going to do with Turner Field, as it is still a pretty new-ish facility.

[homer]

Seems kind of odd that this is breaking news. I would think that somehow this would have came out some time ago if they were leaving Turner. They were do for a new stadium though.

 

If they are due for a new stadium, then Miller Park will be obsolete in about 10 years.

[homer]

If they can get the money together and build it in a location favorable to them, I don't see anything wrong with it. The lease is coming up and they don't want to stay.

 

Not sure what the City of Atlanta is going to do with Turner Field, as it is still a pretty new-ish facility.

 

I read somewhere that Cobb County is paying for 2/3 of it.

[MVP2110]

If you go to braves forums they mostly seem in favor of it. Apparently turner is in a bad spot in the city and the new stadium will be in more favorable spot, to also go along with where a majority of their ticket sales come from. With that and turner never truly being a baseball stadium, I don't see an issue with it. Where as Miller park is in a great location and is still one of the nicest parks in baseball.

[DuWayne Steurer]

Interesting that this is going counter to the recent trend of moving out of the burbs and back into the downtown areas of the major metros.

 

This is quite a ways out (almost 15 miles) from the downtown hub of Atlanta. Not sure what this will do for travel time for those coming from the south.

 

Wonder what this will do for their playoff attendance......... :D

[trwi7]

This moves them closer to the fans who actually buy tickets.

 

http://i.imgur.com/w9FaGAd.jpg

[homer]

This moves them closer to the fans who actually buy tickets.

 

http://i.imgur.com/w9FaGAd.jpg

 

 

I think the real reason they're doing it is to control the land around the stadium.

[JimH5]

If they can get the money together and build it in a location favorable to them, I don't see anything wrong with it. The lease is coming up and they don't want to stay.

 

Not sure what the City of Atlanta is going to do with Turner Field, as it is still a pretty new-ish facility.

 

I read somewhere that Cobb County is paying for 2/3 of it.

 

 

I wasn't aware that Cobb County was paying for the building. That makes it a little less defensible.

 

Still, as a fan of the Brewers, who have played in two taxpayer funded stadiums, it's hard for me to rip the citizens of Cobb County from spending their money the way that they want. That the Braves as a franchise are the beneficiary of that spending isn't their fault.

 

Clearly, there are better uses of tax money. I hope they have a very long term lease, so this doesn't happen again soon.

[adamb100]

I'm not sure I approve of replacing a stadium that is only 20 years old but if I am the Braves, who am I to say no.

[JohnBriggs12]

Well the RCA (Hoosier) Dome only lasted 24 years as did the King Dome. So the shelf life for stadiums is getting shorter and shorter. Still, it seems ridiculous to abandon such a modern facility especially for a guy like me who's seen games in Old Comiskey, and the museum that is Wrigley. Turner Field is fine, but some less than desirable areas are just blocks away so I can understand the concerns in that regard. Still the fix should be to fix the neighborhood, not abandon it. Could Atlanta support two teams? Why not put the Rays in Turner Field?

 

I give Miller Park about another 15-20 years and I'm sure there will be calls for something more up to date or better located.

[Invader3K]

I think the biggest factor is that the Braves were only leasing Turner Field. They will be the owners of the new stadium, and thus will get to keep a much larger percentage of revenue.

 

It sounds like the new location will be much easier for many fans to get to, so that is a plus as well.

[fondybrewfan]

I honestly didn't realize that Turner was that young. I am not sure why I thought differently.

 

I can't imagine replacing Miller Park in 10 years.

 

The devil will be in the details as far as public financing goes; but if they have gottent this far they are probably reasonably sure everything is a go. The real trick will be explaining how the public financing isn't really public financing. That is a politican question.

[DocLuna7]

I will echo those who have said that it seems real early for the Braves to need a new stadium, that seems like yesterday that they moved from Atlanta Fulton to Turner. That being said, having been to their ballpark it's not in the best of locations. The parking seemed to be a real issue and the nearby neighborhood might be a problem for some. Either way, this is pretty interesting especially if it starts off a whole new series of updated ballparks around the league.

[LouisEly]

Like Invader said, the issue is the lease not the ballpark. The only thing I can think of with the ballpark itself is a real minor one in that the field is boring because the OF doesn't have any nuances to the wall (varying depths/height of the wall/etc.) like most new parks, but I wouldn't call that an issue. The neighborhood has nothing to do with the ballpark itself.

 

The money is on the north side of ATL though, and the ballpark is tough to get to having to get through downtown during rush hour. And maybe the lack of playoff attendance is due to not wanting to be in that neighborhood after dark.

[torts]

I didnt realize the braves were leasing Turner field. ive heard its a nightmare to get to, so this could make attendance better in the long run, right?

[homer]

If they can get the money together and build it in a location favorable to them, I don't see anything wrong with it. The lease is coming up and they don't want to stay.

 

Not sure what the City of Atlanta is going to do with Turner Field, as it is still a pretty new-ish facility.

 

I read somewhere that Cobb County is paying for 2/3 of it.

 

 

I wasn't aware that Cobb County was paying for the building. That makes it a little less defensible.

 

Still, as a fan of the Brewers, who have played in two taxpayer funded stadiums, it's hard for me to rip the citizens of Cobb County from spending their money the way that they want. That the Braves as a franchise are the beneficiary of that spending isn't their fault.

 

Clearly, there are better uses of tax money. I hope they have a very long term lease, so this doesn't happen again soon.

 

 

And apparently the Cobb County voters don't get a say in the matter:

 

http://deadspin.com/cobb-county-taxpayers-wont-get-a-say-on-funding-the-br-1462355602

[owbc]

This move sickens me almost as much as the Marlins Park scandal. A county that can't afford to make up a $12 million education shortfall somehow has $450 million for a baseball stadium. Unbelievable.

 

Is it any surprise that they hid it from the taxpayers until the deal was all but finished? Hopefully someone can get a lawsuit going before its too late. But then again, maybe most people want expensive, taxpayer funded sports stadiums. Fulton County taxpayers are already on the hook for $550 million toward the new Atlanta Falcons' stadium.

 

Miller Park is fine because it was put in the correct location and the necessary improvements are funded. The Brewers' lease ends in 2030 so I imagine by then the ballpark will need more significant improvements (i.e. resurface parking lots, new seats, roof repairs). I'm not sure if the stadium district is required to pay for such improvements after the tax is retired.

[MNBrew]

Turner Field is excellent, a very nice ballpark. I've been there, as well as to many older, in-between, & newer ballparks over the past 25 years. They tore down half or more of the '96 Olympic Stadium to turn it into Turner Field. . . . Freeway access isn't great -- certainly confusing at best, to be sure, and "inconvenient" is a fair & honest assessment -- and it's nestled into a sort of odd area, to boot.

 

Lease terms vs. ownership and that kind of stuff can make a big difference. That's part of what made the Vikings clamor so long for a new stadium up here to replace the Metrodome -- horrible lease terms & and a serious lack of team-friendly revenue streams.

 

As a side note, I started thinking of the ballparks I've been to justify my basis for comparison. It's a respectable list: MIL - County Stadium & Miller Park; MN - Metrodome & Target Field; CHI - Wrigley, old Comiskey, & new Comiskey (or whatever its current corporate name is); CLE - Municipal Stadium & Jacobs Field; DET - Comerica; KC - Royals Stadium; STL - Old Busch; TEX - The Ballpark; TOR - Skydome; NY - old Yankee; BOS - Fenway; BAL - Camden Yards; PIT - Three Rivers; CIN - Riverfront; PHI - The Vet; ATL - Turner; TB - Tropicana Field (saw a Lightning game there once, too); COL - Coors; LA - Dodger; SEA - Safeco; (plus ST games at Chandler & HoHoKam). Incidentally, I was in MTL during the Expos' last season there and quite possibly could've attended a game -- had the Expos not been on the road at the time. . . . I've seen the Brewers play in 10 of those parks, although 4 of the 10 are the both MIN & MIL parks.

[dlk9s]

I live in Cobb County. I used to live within walking distance of where the new stadium will be and my wife works within walking distance. I expect there to be outrage, not about the stadium itself, but about the sneaky deal wherein we'll be on the hook for a gajillion dollars. I am fortunate to live in a very good school district (similar to the Nicolet district, where I grew up, except with a good football team), but now that my daughter is in the public school system (she also happens to go to one of the better elementary schools around), it's pretty obvious that they need more money. Not because my kid's school is suffering (it's brand spanking new, actually), but because they are ALWAYS trying to hit us up for money.

 

At any rate, barring some sort of wizardry, traffic around the new stadium is going to be HORRIBLE. It is already frightening - the I-285/I-75 interchange is a parking lot at rush hour and the surface streets around there are really bad, too (my wife deals with that every day). Considering those are the same streets that will now have to handle game traffic, I am morbidly interested to see what happens.

 

The area is solidly middle-to-upper middle class. Lots of sprawling apartment complexes that cater to young professionals, lots of mid-high rise office parks, hotels (man, they must be crapping their pants), and the major surface street by the stadium, Cobb Parkway, is a big commercial thoroughfare. The area's biggest mall is there, too.

 

I think it's funny that one of the reasons given for moving was traffic. Sure, driving down from Marietta or farther resulted in hitting traffic downtown, but isn't that the case for every stadium? There's always gameday traffic. Now, traffic will probably be worse. Even for those rich white people who live up here, they'll still have to drive to the games and traffic on the surface streets will be a nightmare.

 

And as far as parking is concerned, I never had a problem. Traffic flowed right off the highway and into stadium parking. Boom, done. And after the game, cops directed people right onto the highway. Oooh...it takes a while to get out of the lot. Yeah, it's a baseball game.

 

I do understand that there is a huge difference in the quality of neighborhood, though there isn't really all that much to do around the new site, either. There's a mall and chain restaurants. I have read that it will be developed into a complex that involves more than just the stadium, though. The economy of the area is strong enough that existing businesses can take advantage of the stadium and new ones can easily crop up.

 

I'm kind of excited because hell, the Braves are moving to my neck of the woods (I don't live RIGHT there any more, but still pretty close - just three exits up I-75, which I don't even have to use to get there). I'm skeptical about how this will all work though.

 

Plus, I like Turner Field. It's a great place to watch a game.

[Invader3K]

Hopefully Miller Park is still good enough in 10-20 years still that a major renovation can be on the table, but not a completely new stadium. I can't imagine the five county area and state going through the new ballpark debate again given the current political climate.

[DuWayne Steurer]

Atlanta's mayor said that they'll be tearing down the Ted in 2017. I mean, I know having a big ol' stadium sitting there empty is pretty much a waste of space, but man. 20 years old, and getting torn down. Man......

[JohnBriggs12]

Atlanta's mayor said that they'll be tearing down the Ted in 2017. I mean, I know having a big ol' stadium sitting there empty is pretty much a waste of space, but man. 20 years old, and getting torn down. Man......

 

Seems ridiculous doesn't it? Here you have the Cubs playing in a very outdated venue like Wrigley Field which will be over 100 in a few years, and Turner Field won't last past 2017. Of course it's not the first time the Braves abandoned a modern venue for greener pastures. County Stadium was only 14 years old, and one of the most modern stadiums around when the Braves headed to Atlanta in 1966. Fulton County Stadium only lasted 30 years too. Of course, that place had lousy sight lines for both football and baseball. The Omni down there didn't last either, and how much longer will the Georgia Dome be around?

 

They go through sports venues pretty fast in Indianapolis too. Market Square Arena and the RCA/Hoosier Dome were perfectly functional but deemed outdated in a hurry.