Vowels: Legion Field Upper Deck to be torn down. Dome on the way?


Deuce

Deuce

Well-Known Member
Upper deck at Legion Field closed; Tide may stay away
Thursday, August 19, 2004
MICHAEL TOMBERLIN
News staff writer


Structural problems at Legion Field forced the closure of the stadium's 9,000-seat upper deck and could mean the University of Alabama won't play any more games there.

A letter signed by Calvin Haynes, president of the City of Birmingham Park & Recreation Board, and Birmingham Mayor Bernard Kincaid says structural problems render the seats unusable. It says the remaining 72,000 seats are unaffected by the safety issues.

Alabama is playing all its home games on campus in Tuscaloosa this year, the first time since 1899 the Crimson Tide has not played at least one of its home games in Birmingham. Alabama played its first game in the stadium on Nov. 27, 1927.

On Nov. 18, 1981, at Legion Field, in a 28-17 victory over archrival Auburn, Paul "Bear" Bryant won his 315th game to move past Amos Alonzo Stagg as college football's winningest coach.

Other regularly scheduled events at the stadium, nicknamed the "old gray lady," will apparently be unaffected for now.

Gene Hallman, president of the Bruno Event Team, which promotes sporting events in the area, said he believes Legion Field is a safe venue for now. "Legion Field has a wonderful history and from a short-term perspective it clearly meets the needs of the events scheduled there," he said. "We need to continue to seriously explore the feasibility of a domed stadium and convention facility to meet our future needs."

Hallman's company organizes the Magic City Classic annual football game between Alabama A&M and Alabama State University. It also puts on the annual Southwestern Athletic Conference Championship game and schedules special events such as a World Cup soccer qualifying match next spring.

"The Magic City Classic would be the event that we organize there that comes the closest to filling the lower bowl," Hallman said.

He said the park board has indicated to him the problem with the upper deck is more a matter of the current structure no longer meeting code requirements rather than it posing an imminent danger.

"We've got to make sure we get the word out this is not a safety issue of the lower bowl," Hallman said. "The upper deck is not in danger of falling down or injuring those in the lower bowl."

SWAC Commissioner Robert C. Vowels Jr. said he's been told the upper deck will be taken down after this season.

Vowels said the SWAC championship has had up to 56,000 fans at Legion Field and doesn't use the upper deck. The SWAC Championship's current contract with the stadium runs through 2007, he said.

"We either need some long-term, structural improvements to Legion Field or we're going to have to replace it," he said. "The question is do we spend those resources on a facility built in 1927 or do we build something new that will meet a number of our needs for years to come?"


http://www.al.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news/1092907065326650.xml?birminghamnews?nmet
 

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rev t said:
As long as the football field is fine on Oct. 30 at 3 p.m. MCC
Click to expand...

rev t,

If it ain't, you know Bama State will play you mugs in the parking lot, if we have to. :nod:
 
At least is seems as if they're being pro-active. I'd rather see them stop using it now, before they have a packed house, and is gives way.....

And it was built in 1927.......


~~no smilie~~
 
cat daddy said:
When was the upper deck added to Legion Field?
Click to expand...
I have always known Legion Field to have any upper deck... So I know its at least 20 years old... I am sure it is much older.
 
Embarrassing: Re: Vowels: Legion Field Upper Deck to be torn down. Dome on the way

:shame: i'm losing faith in the dome. :bawling: I don't know how much longer Birmingham/Alabama can hold off the rest of the SWAC hords (ERRRRR,, the state of Louisiana) who want to relocate the HQ and Championship game. MAPS would have made all this a moot point, but Birmingham was still too divided to move the metro area forward like most other southern metros,, so it looks like Birmingham is going to pay the ultimate price after in the 1960s being on the cusp of becoming the Atlanta/N.O./Tampa-St Pete/Miami/and now worthless upstart maggot cities like Charlotte/Jacksonville/NASHVILLE FOR CRYING OUT LOUD :bawling: :bawling: /Raliegh-Durhams of the last 40 years by being relegated to "Mobile"/"Greenville-spartanburg"/"Greensboro"/"Jackson"/"Montgomery"-esque obscure sports town metro area status. this is just horrible. it makes me sicker than TSPNLer takes. :sick:
 
Birmingham will never get a dome.
In my opinion, that city is too divided for the city to agree on anything that will benefit the city. When the leaders of the city stop fighting amongst each other then maybe, just maybe they will be able to get something accomplished that will be for the good of the city.
 
I sure hate to loose that upper deck. Almost every time I have been in Legion Field it has either been hot as hell or raining and that upper deck provides much comfort. If it is not in any danger of falling down then leave it alone.
 
AAMU_TOP_DOG said:
Birmingham will never get a dome.
In my opinion, that city is too divided for the city to agree on anything that will benefit the city. When the leaders of the city stop fighting amongst each other then maybe, just maybe they will be able to get something accomplished that will be for the good of the city.
Click to expand...

yeap. Birmingham has had so many golden opportunities dashed because, IMHO, there is still animosity between Birmingham city and the surrounding burbs. Birmingham can't pull off the proposed large projects without the help and buy-in of Jefferson county and the surrounding metro area. Everything outside Birmingham city limits always opposes Birmingham projects like a dome, light rail, convention center expansion, downtown revitalization, etc. not to mention the rest of the state. I think it all started to go downhill from the moment blacks took over city government and whites left for the burbs. You have places like Hoover exploding and building things like the Hoover Met without even blinking, but yet when Birmingham wants to build a dome that not only would benefit Birmingham and the metro area but the region and state nobody supports it. The same will happen in Montgomery within the next 10 years.
 
My family will really miss the protection of the upper deck.

Birmingham is not helped by the lost of SouthTrust to Wachovia. I dont know if this is the beginning of the spiral down for the city.
 
Bartram said:
. . . . The same will happen in Montgomery within the next 10 years.
Click to expand...


Bartram, you're wrong on that one.

I was with you, 'til you made that last statement.

The major difference between Montgomery, and Birmingham is that Birmingham is SURROUNDED by about 32 incorporated cities. Yes, 32. Montgomery is unique among cities its size, in that it is bordered by NO INCORPORATED CITIES (yeah, I know Pike Road recently incorporated, but they have about 50 people and about 10,000 cows so you can't count them. And Prattville, Wetumpka and Millbrook are all at least 10-15 miles away).

Montgomery is projected to surpass Birmingham and become the largest city in the state within the next 15-20 years. If we continue on our current path with a new Mayor, riverfront development, new AA baseball team, exploding growth on the east side and renewed interest in the west side, new Hyundai plant with at least 2,000 jobs along with suppliers bringing in another 5,000 jobs or so, Montgomery will be fine.
 
cat daddy said:
When was the upper deck added to Legion Field?
Click to expand...

From the Birmingham News . . .

Deck built in 1961:

The latest chapter in the history of Legion Field's upper deck is similar to the first.

When the upper deck was built in 1961, a last-minute inspection determined it was unsafe for its debut with the Alabama game against Tennessee that year.

A Birmingham News article on Oct. 21, 1961, described a scene on Friday night and Saturday morning of city workers - including the mayor and mayor-elect - putting out folding chairs and laying pieces of lumber across the aisles to create seating for those who had upper-deck tickets but were unable to use them.

Garrett said the upper deck didn't have major incidents for many years after that.

In 1995, a Prattville man was struck by a piece of falling concrete or other debris that resulted in a head injury. He sued the city for damages and ended up settling for $50,000. The city planned to install netting under the upper deck to catch falling debris, but an inspection determined that was unnecessary.

Garrett said plans call for taking down the upper deck after this football season ends, pending funding from the city.

"There has been talk of that, but that cannot be done prior to this season ending," he said. "I suspect the city will take it down after this season."

Garrett said bringing the upper deck up to building code standards would cost several million dollars.

"It will cost a heck of a lot less to take it down than it would be to bring it up to standard." He pointed out that the city can recoup some of its cost by selling off scrap metal and materials from the upper deck.

He said that without the upper deck, Legion Field could prove viable for several more years. It still would seat 72,000.

"The deck just sitting there doesn't present a danger at all. That's not even an issue," Garrett said. "There has been nothing major or nothing catastrophic found anywhere. Actually, the thing is in pretty good shape considering its age."
 
I agree with Deuce... Difference between Montgomery and other major cities in Alabama is that Montgomery doesnt have a large metro area.... so the residents basically live in the Montgomery city limits... the only one I can think of that is major is Prattville.

Population is going down in Huntsville due to everybody wanting to live in Madison, Harvest, Decatur, Athens, and Florence and drive to Huntsville to work. Also the County schools are better than the city schools... every county school in this area has a brand new building and they are still overcrowded. Bob Jones in Madison has almost 3,000 students in a BRAND NEW school built for about 2500... and Sparkman High in Harvest just built a high school about 4 years ago and they have already had to change it to only 10,11th and 12th grade and there are talks of building another 6a high school in the city. For some reason everybody in Huntsville want to live in the suburbs and drive to Huntsville to work. I never wanted to live the city, but thats just me. I couldnt see myself paying 200,000 for a house when I can get a similiar house for 79,000 in my neighborhood.
 

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bluedog said:
Well whats going on with the Dome Stadium project?
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From what I have been reading basically white folks in the rich suburbs who vote dont want the stadium.... Birmingham residents want the stadium.... The way Birmingham is now the white folks in the suburbs dont want ANYTHING in Birmingham .... they want everything built in Hoover, Vestavia Hills, Pelham etc. The largest mall in Alabama is in Hoover and the Birmingham Barons baseball stadium is built in Hoover. If this dome was proposed to being built in Hoover it would have already been built. Most of the funding is secured but there is a little bit more to be secured and I believe they are waiting on the governors say so for that... Land has already been purchased.... white folks claim they are scared to be in the area around the BJCC and around Legion Field... SUCK IT UP....White folks only feel safe around their kind anyway.
 
Legion Field problems could boost efforts to build dome, backers say



Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex officials say Legion Field's structural problems highlight the importance of building a sports and convention dome to replace the aging stadium.

BJCC Executive Director Frank Poe said Thursday's revelation that Legion Field's 9,000-seat upper deck will be closed points out that the aging stadium, built in 1927, "has outlived its useful life."

"While it is regrettable to hear of the deteriorating condition of Legion Field, it reinforces what we've been saying for years - Birmingham needs a new venue that is up to date and not only provides space for sporting events but conventions and meetings as well," Poe said.

Backers of the long-sought dome, first shot down when voters in a 1999 referendum rejected a sales tax hike that would have helped pay for the facility, are hoping that Legion Field's new woes will spur state and federal governments to commit the final $9.76 million a year the BJCC needs to begin construction of the proposed $498 million dome project.

The BJCC has spent the past five years funding studies, raising money and buying land adjacent to its current complex for a proposed expansion, which would include a 70,000-seat stadium and an additional 240,000 square feet of meeting space for conventions and trade shows. The dome project would also include an entertainment district comprised of restaurants and retail shops to be built next to the stadium and current BJCC.


Funding sought:

Poe estimates the BJCC would need $35.2 million annually for 30 years to pay off bonds issued to finance dome construction. So far the BJCC has gotten financing commitments from Jefferson County, the city of Birmingham and various taxes passed by state lawmakers that total $25.44 million.

Poe is hoping Legion Field's new woes will convince the City of Birmingham to give the BJCC an additional $5 million a year. The city currently contributes $3 million a year and $2 million in lodging taxes to the BJCC. Mayor Bernard Kincaid, who serves on the BJCC board, has expressed support for the dome, but has not committed any extra money.

"For Birmingham to continue counting on Legion Field as its principal venue for sports will not work over the long haul," Poe said. "This reinforces the need for our multi-purpose facility."

BJCC board chairman Clyde Echols said the city cannot afford to invest more money in Legion Field. Citing the University of Alabama's Thursday announcement that it has canceled single games planned at Legion Field in 2005 and 2007 or 2008 because of the stadium's poor condition, he said the city could lose more future events unless a replacement facility is built soon.

"The economic impact of a single University of Alabama football game in Birmingham is in the millions," Echols said. "Even present events like the SWAC Football Championship could be in jeopardy unless a replacement is built."

The BJCC has also asked the state for $5 million a year and the governor is considering that request.


full article at http://www.al.com/sports/birminghamnews/index.ssf?/base/business/109299347246220.xml
 
Duece and Da Hill, you Guys Need to Look More Closely.

Fellas I hate to dump like this, but you have hit on one of my favorite pass times: urban and regional planning, economic development and population growth/demographics! And this is not a political take. It?s simply an observation of living in Alabama for most of my life.

:lecture: First let me address your point on incorporated cities surrounding Montgomery. You are correct in that Montgomery is not AT THIS TIME land-locked and surrounded by (leech) cities like Birmingham, however I said within the next 10 years which is key. (Plus there are natural barriers that land-lock Montgomery and have made for interesting demographics in the region.) Here?s why:

  1. Pike Road, south/southeast of Montgomery, just sprung up within the last five years. They will gradually block Montgomery?s annexation to the south along the critical U.S. 231 corridor. (when I say "sprung up", I mean they recently voted to incorporate and are now a "city",, the first in Montgomery County other than Montgomery in about 100 years)
    :lecture:
  2. The Mt Meigs/Waugh area, east of Montgomery, (out where the new outer loop will intersect I-85 mind you) kicked around incorporating. (the only reason they are not incorporated is because they, a predominantly black area, aren?t as organized and don?t control enough land and money like Pike Road to make it happen.)
  3. Hope Hull, south of Montgomery on I-65, is kicking around incorporation and they will probably pull it off because that?s more white farmers/home owners and because they will want to capture the growth and tax revenue from Hyundai. They don?t want Montgomery to annex into their area and get the bulk of the spin-off tax revenue, although, like Pike Road, they?ll gloss it as, ?we don?t want out of control growth?.
  4. Snowdoun south of Montgomery on 331, for the same reasoning of Hope Hull, is now experiencing the rumblings of incorporation. Snowdoun, Hope Hull and Pike Road are all south of Montgomery strategically located and could easily land-lock Montgomery. Pike road already has signs on Old Pike Road and U.S. 231.
    :lecture:
  5. East Montgomery, while Emory Folmar was in office(Folmar is single-handedly responsible for giving Montgomery the tax base that it now enjoys and keeping it viable against Autauga and Elmore county by aggressively annexing much of the once pasture lands east/southeast of Montgomery), kicked around DE-ANNEXING from Montgomery fellas and forming their own city. Now that is far-fetched, but don?t think it can?t happen.
  6. The Alabama River is a natural barrier to Montgomery growth north, so you don?t need other cities north of Montgomery to block it,, but you have Autauga and Elmore counties (and all the little bedroom communities there springing up: Prattville, Wetumpka, Deatsville, Millbrooks) just for good measure haulting Montgomery expansion AND swinging the voter demographic for the region.
  7. Catoma Creek and its wetlands are a natural barrier to Montgomery annexation south other than the current annexation down I-65 to parts of the Hope Hull/Hyundai area. Catoma Creek will be Montgomery?s Cahaba river and environmentalist will block any development in its wetlands and woodlands most of which is in a large flood plane anyway which does Montgomery (or other city) no good to annex. So effectively Montgomery is land-locked by natural boundaries to the north, west and south. There?s really been no need for cities to spring up,,, until now,, with Montgomery becoming more black and whites moving out. It still has east montgomery, but like I said, they kicked around de-annexing. Plus you can?t go too far east before you are in Macon county and blocked by the Line Creek/Calibee Creek/Cubahatchee Creek watersheds/wetlands.
    :lecture:
  8. and most crucial: Right now Montgomery is around 45-50 percent black. That will EASILY by over 50% (if it is not already) black in ten years. The city council is over half black I believe. The next mayoral election or two will see the black voter block/black voter leadership ?demand? a black mayor. That will polarize the region. This is where the problems will start,, just like in Birmingham when Birmingham came under the firm political control of blacks (who happen to be democrats. I?m not going on the ?conservative v liberal? stuff either. I?m a native Alabamian and I?m just repeating reality in this state. Black/democrat control in urban areas is reviled by white/suburban/conservative-republican demographics.),,, that is,, unless Montgomery is like a small Atlanta where the whites, blacks, dems, reps, conservatives, liberals and racists can agree to disagree but realize that the bottom line is Montgomery MUST at all cost PROGRESS and not get bogged down in bitter in-fighting and crab mentality which sinks the entire region (like what has happened in Birmingham, and what has, to the contrary, not happened in Atlanta,,,,,,,,,, for the most part EB,, Atlanta is not perfect yeah, yeah,, but you can?t tell me Atlanta would rather be Birmingham the last 40 years.).

What you fellas may be overlooking also is the massive shift in demographics going on in the Montgomery region. Do you fellas realize that the once sacred high schools like Jeff Davis and (long ago) Robert E. Lee (the ones that even after integration were built on the "white" side of town and you said, Lanier and Carver are black, but JD and Lee will always be white?) are now easily majority black?(well,, they are not 90% black, but from say 40-60% black compared to when I was in high school and they were 20% black at best,,, proof of the white middle class exodus and Montgomery becoming more black) Do you fellas realize the massive exodus of (basically middle class of all races) to :lecture:Autauga and Elmore Counties?(Autauga is right behind Selby and Madison in fastest growth) Do you fellas realize the MASSIVE shift in Montgomery towards home schooling and private schools as evident by a 3 or 4-A state championship by one of the private schools there? (all contributing to the ?Homewood/Vestiavia Hills/Over the Mtn? mindset that will eventually oppose Montgomery the city tooth and nail.) Do you fellas realize, also, that this is probably the last white moderate democratic mayor (Bobby Bright) that appeals to the last vestiges of the moderate whites left in Montgomery to be able to have the support of the white business community and be able to appeal to the majority of black dems/liberals and pull off MAJOR civic projects like Riverfront development, new parks on the black side of town, mass transit projects, major investments to attract industry and business??? (and he was opposed tooth and nail on those projects by whites.)
:lecture:
There won?t be another white/moderate/democratic mayor in Montgomery (which in Alabama spells doom for metro areas, and cities for that matter). All the stuff going on in Montgomery now is possible only because Bright has the backing of virtually all blacks and enough moderate whites to give him a mandate. He?s like an ?Ivan Allen? (one of the last or the last ?transitional? white/moderate/dem mayors of Atlanta who was not a defiant moron like ?Bull? Conor in Birmingham(who wasn?t a mayor by the way, but police commissioner, but single-handedly changed the history of Birmingham for the worse.) just before the black mayors took power in the ATL.) And Even now guys like Alvin Holmes (and every now and then Joe Reed) take serious pot-shots at Bobby Bright, a democrat (with the ?racism? blast,,, now granted,, Homles and Reed have long been known to bluff like this. When Folmar was in office, they railed against him like he was the grand knight of the KKK, but they struck deals all the time behind the scenes.).
:lecture:
The next step will be a push for a black mayor. No matter how this comes about, either a black/democratic coupe or an amiable split with Bright running for higher office, unincorporated Montgomery county and definitely Autauga and Elmore county won?t embrace the city of Montgomery taking a ****, much less trying to do something like build large civic projects and try to spread the cost throughout the metro area like Birmingham has tried and failed miserably at (and other metros across the nation have tried and succeeded at.). Even now the counties (errr Autauga and Elmore) surrounding Montgomery are benefiting from a backlash against Montgomery?s high city/county taxes and the proposals by the Holmes et al of an occupational tax only further exacerbate and enflame animosity between Montgomery the city and the river region.
:lecture:
Plus we are talking Alabama here fellas. Alabama is not a fast growth state. We don?t have people from all over the country piling into Montgomery helping to diversify the deep seated racial/political feelings built up in this state/Montgomery over the generations. The predominant views in the Montgomery region are not much different than in Dothan, Auburn-Opelika, Tuscaloosa, Tuscumbia. A large urban area trying to put taxes on a region for civic projects will be fiercely rejected in Montgomery, just like in Birmingham. Mobile has done surprisingly well with Hank Aaron stadium and the downtown projects, but they are not predominantly black yet in terms of political control. (they are close) Huntsville will probably be the most ?Atlanta-esque? city in Alabama the next 50 years if you ask me.

I know you have lost the point :lecture:I was trying to make,, but all this is why I believe Montgomery will go the same way that Birmingham has gone; basically because it?s a city in a slow-no growth state like Alabama where new ideas, fundamental changes in demographics/political control and large public works projects (esp where blacks, esp dems, have a major say or mayor control) are about as popular as the Union Army during the civil war or the feds during the civil rights movement in Alabama!
 
damn Bartram,
how long did it take you to write that dissertation?
:lol:

actually, it was some good reading and you make some very interesting points though.
:tup:

btw, is the Hyundai plant gonna be inside Montgomery city limits?
and with all the growth that has occured in Montgomery since I left over 10 years ago, it's real surprising that there are no new high schools (or are there?) Do all of the schools have majority black student populations?
 
mighty hornet said:
damn Bartram,
how long did it take you to write that dissertation?
:lol:

actually, it was some good reading and you make some very interesting points though.
:tup:

btw, is the Hyundai plant gonna be inside Montgomery city limits?
and with all the growth that has occured in Montgomery since I left over 10 years ago, it's real surprising that there are no new high schools (or are there?) Do all of the schools have majority black student populations?
Click to expand...
MH; I was at the graduation ceremonies at Jeff Davis in May and the graduation class was proball close to 80% Black. Who would have ever thought this would happen.
 
mighty hornet said:
damn Bartram,
how long did it take you to write that dissertation?
:lol:

actually, it was some good reading and you make some very interesting points though.
:tup:

btw, is the Hyundai plant gonna be inside Montgomery city limits?
and with all the growth that has occured in Montgomery since I left over 10 years ago, it's real surprising that there are no new high schools (or are there?) Do all of the schools have majority black student populations?
Click to expand...

Dissertation writing time: Sir, I'd say ooooooh about the age of many posters on this forum,,, about a good 25+ years that dump has been brewing. I've been eating and drinking this stuff (on Alabama in general, Birmingham specifically and Montgomery after living there from 97-2002) since about 1979. I am THE MOST BITTER Alabamian on the planet when it comes to the downfall and continuing debacles and under-achievements of the city of Birmingham. It's disgusting and pathetic. Any other city in the state other than Huntsville is a peeve also.

The Hyundai plant is in the city limits of Montgomery THANK GOODNESS. "long lasso" annexation. The Montgomery city limits extends down I-65 to encompass an industrial park in Hope Hull that existed long before Hyundai,, and they quickly annexed the land (1K+ acreas I believe) for Hyundai prior to the closing of the deal. great maneuvering by the Folmar(i say Folmar because his admin had always looked to the I-65 south corridor as a potentially major expansion corridor for industry, plants, etc, because east Montgomery was/is primarily planned for high-end real estate/commercial zoning,, so it was in the works even before Bright and Hyundai.) administration and Bright administration and predominantly black city councils.

this was classic, CLASSIC I SAY, "Atlantaism" handling of the OUTSTANDING Hyundai coupe in Montgomery at its best. the only, or one of very few, things I've witnessed these people do RIGHT in my lifetime. just outstanding. Thankyou lone MORON land owner in Kentucky that held out for more money till the last minute and sent Hyundai PACKING to Montgomery, Alabama,,, JUST LIKE the idiot city officials in Birmingham/Alabama in the 1960s who thought they had a relocating Delta Airlines locked up, didn't go out of their way to impress them/roll out the red carpet, and inadvertantly sent THEM packing to Atlanta/Hartsfield International Airport and the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and city/regional governments and politicians eagerly waiting with open arms, red carpets all over the place and a, til that point, obscure regional airport under ambitious and massive, MASSIVE expansion into the monolith that you see today (while Birmingham the city and its airport was resting on their lorals these morons!). Now look at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International airport and Birmingham "international" Airport,,,, :rolleyes: :shame: :sick:

New schools: Montgomery is on the verge of building a new school in east Montgomery somewhere,,, if the demand is not met by the increasing popularity of private schools and magnet schools. This will be the "Hoover" type high school of Montgomery. The idea has been in the news on and off the last 3 or so years. An elementary school has sprung up in east Montgomery (errr, off Ray Thorington Road) since I got there in 97.
 
enswaclopedia said:
MH; I was at the graduation ceremonies at Jeff Davis in May and the graduation class was proball close to 80% Black. Who would have ever thought this would happen.
Click to expand...

I saw the band practicing the other night on WSFA. The freaking entire band was black for the most part. I saw some kind of cheerleading thing one mornig on WSFA. All the JD cheerleaders except maybe one was black. I just could not believe this. I clearly remember when JD was very predominantly white,, the band and cheerleaders especially. since moving back in 1997 on the occassions that i have driven by JD i can recall seeing more black kids hanging around in the parking lot than white kids (although there were significant white kids in the late 90s). i mean you have got to be kidding me here. and let's not talk about Robert E. Lee. they have been predominantly black since the early 90s easily! this along with Lanier and Carver which OF COARSE have been about 80-90% black since the early 70s (although Lanier was at one time all white and the "big rivalry" game in Montgomery in the 60s was Sidney Lanier vs Robert E. Lee!!).
 
Domed facility would answer many questions
Thursday, August 26, 2004


Across the street from the Southeastern Conference offices, a stone's throw from the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, is a vacant lot.
A motel used to be there. Now, in the emptiness, there's a future.

The future is a gleaming, glass-and-brick building that connects to the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex by walkways and sidewalks. It will change Birmingham's skyline. It could change Birmingham's perception and its reality.

It will come. Maybe three years from now. Maybe seven. Maybe 10. But it will come because its time has arrived.

It is time.

Legion Field remains salvageable. Spend $3 million, perhaps, and you can reinforce the upper deck. Spend $2 million more and you can paint and waterproof the stadium. Plunk down $20 million, and you can add suites and upgrade restrooms.

That's the bare-bones minimum, which doesn't address decades-old electrical problems.

As for the BJCC Arena, it remains a serviceable venue for the high school basketball Final Four, concerts and an occasional first-round visit from the NCAA Tournament.

Birmingham used to be a fixture on the road to the NCAA Final Four, with a regional finals stop every two or three years. We'll never see an event of that caliber here again because the 17,000 seats aren't enough.

Not with what we have.

But with what we will have, the sky is the limit. Think bowl games, conference football title games and the possibility of an NCAA Final Four. Women first, men to follow. While no one dares mention the "N" thing - the NFL - the dome would be built along the lines of the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis with the appropriate luxury suites and club seats that professional football owners adore.

We won't mention the NFL either, except to say this: Four teams (the Indianapolis Colts, Minnesota Vikings, Phoenix Cardinals and San Diego Chargers) play in stadiums that do not produce the revenue streams that make the cha-ching difference to the men who write checks.

Mark it down. Within a decade, all four teams will have new stadiums. Or new cities.

Yet that argument shouldn't be part of the dome argument, which is really no argument at all.

Legion Field needs a new commitment or a long-overdue retirement. The BJCC Arena needs 15,000 more seats.

Oh, and UAB needs a permanent, downtown football home.

Three needs. One answer.

Funding could be committed soon. Gov. Bob Riley will discuss the state's role with dome supporters next week. His massive tax plan may have been a bust at the polls, but it proves Riley isn't immune to looking at old problems in a new way.

This is an old problem with an obvious solution.

We can let what we have wither away. Or we can commit to something new. The fact that the dome would be utilized more as a convention facility, luring outsiders and their well-earned dollars here, is a plus.

The argument is over. The future is here, and it is the dome.
 
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