PGA's Future?

It does not look like the CF management has much hope for Great America.

The San Francisco 49ers have met twice with Santa Clara officials about building a new stadium in PGA's parking lot.

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/5796420

Well, it sounds as if they are trying to figure out a way to keep the park too. Maybe a huge disneyland-like parking structure? Althought I'm not sure where they would put it - they'd HAVE to aquire some of the office buildings surrounding the park to expand parking.

Here's a link to the google hybrid map of the area:

http://www.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=47.349227,74.794922&q=paramounts+great+america&ie=UTF8&ll=37.398801,-121.971824&spn=0.011677,0.01826&t=h&om=1

Maybe, just maybe, if the "santa clara youth soccer fields" area was included for building parking ramps as well, could this place be developed and keep the park as well. I suspect, however, that this is more of a bluff to get $$'s out of San Franscisco than anything. (and if they built parking, it doesn't mean they couldn't put the soccer fields above the parking. There's several places where this is done already)

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Let's keep in mind that it was having limited parking in an adjacent lot used by the Astrodome that led,in part to SFAW's demise.

I thought that the city has an agreement with the park that is must always operate as a park?

I don't think the park is going away. The Niners can build their stadium on top of the old garbage dump across Lafayette. ;)

I agree that the park will probably not be going away and that the Niners are just trying to get a new stadium like when the Bears threatened to move to Gary, IN. What worries me is that the city is entertaining the offer.

The park and stadium both need parking and considering the land value in that area, I don't see how they can both exist together in the same space without ample parking since the park is land locked as it is.

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Rob Ascough said:
I thought that the city has an agreement with the park that is must always operate as a park?

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They do, the 50yr agreement started when the City sold the park to KECO, so PGA ain't going anywhere anytime soon.

The City has been trying for decades to build a stadium in PGA's overflow parking lot located directly across from the 49ers training camp (in the above link, the green field/facilty you see right below the soccer park). The big parking lot to the left of the soccer park is the overflow lot, which PGA rarely uses or needs (only seen it used on holidays).

If there is room, it would be a wise move. Stadiums are great for cities- why do you think a half dozen neighboring cities all make offers to a team when it's announced that they're looking to build a new stadium? They're money in the bank.

^Actually, there isn't money in the bank. Football stadiums aren't exactly huge revenue generators. A football stadium has only what, eight games a year? Unless you're doing something else with the stadium (like concerts etc.) then it's just sitting there not earning money. There was a great article last year about the Superdome (after Katrina) and the serverely inflated figures regarding guest spending. The city was claiming $100's of million dollars in revenue spent by people for the Superbowl, when in actuality, it was but a mere pittance.

Stadiums are merely another form of corporate wellfare. In other words, "If you don't give me what I want, I'll take my team and move to another cash-strapped city whose only too happy to make the residents pay for the stadium that they can't afford to go to, and oh by the way--you won't make us pay any taxes either--right?"

Agreed, Intamin Fan. Cincinatti has a long and storied history of shelling out tax payer money for sports stadiums for teams that don't generate revenue and don't win, either.

I don't know anything about SF's current situation but stadiums - especially those subsidized by tax payers - are not one the best investments a city can make. Here's a good link:

http://www.heartland.org/Article.cfm?artId=9474 *** Edited 7/19/2006 8:55:03 PM UTC by matt.***

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Intamin Fan said:Stadiums are merely another form of corporate wellfare. In other words, "If you don't give me what I want, I'll take my team and move to another cash-strapped city whose only too happy to make the residents pay for the stadium that they can't afford to go to, and oh by the way--you won't make us pay any taxes either--right?"

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Ha! Luckily us Santa Clara County residents weren't stupid enough to give a rats arse about a new stadium to fall for all the hype and BS. Tax hike specifically for it was on the ballots for a few elections, never passed. Got bigger issues out here than needing a shiny new stadium for the 49ers or SF Giants, another team they've tried to lure with the promise of a new facility.

*** Edited 7/19/2006 10:39:37 PM UTC by jomo***

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RAPTORFORCE said:It does not look like the CF management has much hope for Great America

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I think that CF *hopes* that MiA is no longer the worst park in the chain! ;)

The idea for a new stadium in Santa Clara County has been around for awhile, like jomo said it has been on a couple of ballots for voting but no one really cares about it, the city has some sort of contract with PGA saying it has to stay there for at least the next 40 years, anyway.

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Isca said:

(and if they built parking, it doesn't mean they couldn't put the soccer fields above the parking. There's several places where this is done already)

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The football practice field at UCLA is built on top of a parking structure. So soccer fields would be no problem.

Hell, T2 at USH is built on a parking structure.

By the way, is anyone else afraid that CF will treat the new parks the way they treated KBF?

*** Edited 7/20/2006 9:39:54 AM UTC by ExJPranger*** *** Edited 7/20/2006 9:45:14 AM UTC by ExJPranger*** *** Edited 7/20/2006 9:46:10 AM UTC by ExJPranger***

How exactly did they treat KBF?