***Argo's Roger center UPGRADES!!!

CFL Talk
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[url=http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Football/CFL/Toronto/2005/10/21/1272579-sun.html]http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Football/CFL/ ... 9-sun.html[/url]

The owners of the Argonauts have a question for the City of Toronto: What's the deal with the latest Exhibition Stadium plans?

Howard Sokolowski said he and his partner, David Cynamon, are curious about the deal the city has struck with the the Canadian Soccer Association and Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd., for a 20,000-seat stadium at Exhibition Place.

The Argos had gone to the City of Toronto, in particular Mayor David Miller, after Sokolowski and Cynamon purchased the team in 2003 about potentially building a 25,000-seat stadium at the Ex. A deal never materialized.

"I'm curious to hear what the deal points are (with the CSA/MLSEL project) and how they would have differed from ours," Sokolowski said yesterday. "In principle it's a good thing to have a stadium there. I just don't know the financial elements of the deal. I look forward to hearing them."

According to reports, the CSA and MLSEL plan to build a 20,000-seat stadium that will cost $62.8 million.

The overall financial breakdown will consist of $27 million from the federal government, $8 million from the province and the city contributing $9.8 million. MLSEL will add $8 million and provide another $10 million from the sale of the stadium's naming rights.

While MLSEL is slated to pay $250,000 for any operating shortfalls, the city/Exhibition Place board and MLSEL would share equally in funding any annual operating shortfalls or annual shortfalls in expenditures.

The Argos switched from the Ex project to a proposal at the University of Toronto's main campus along Bloor Street, but the project collapsed when the school opted out. The Argos then shifted their focus to York University's main campus, but cancelled their plans when they decided to stay at their current location after Rogers Communications bought the SkyDome and spent a considerable sum to upgrade the facility.

If the Ex project goes ahead, Sokolowski did not rule out the Argos moving to that location at some point. The Argos played at the Ex for almost 30 years before moving to their current location in 1989, back when the facility was known as the SkyDome.

The Argos are completing the first year of a 15-year lease, which has five-year options.

"We're very happy at the Rogers Centre," Sokolowski said. "They've made some necessary and wonderful improvements and I know Rogers are will be spending millions of dollars this coming off-season to improve it further. But I never rule anything out."

i wonder what improvements are in store for the Skydome/RogerCentre ???

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The biggest improvement would be to get baseball and the Jays outta there and keep the football configuration 100 percent of the time. While the RC may not be the best football facility for sightlines and being close to the field, it is one heck of a better football stadium than baseball stadium. I've been there for baseball and sat in a number of places and it is bad, no retro feel to it like the new baseball stadiums have and need. For football, it doesn't matter, anything goes. The Blue Jays need a new stadium to survive IMO, just a horrible baseball environment.

But no, I don't know what other improvements are coming to the RC, hopefully they will be football oriented changes.

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playing in an interior stadium with 25,000 filled seats is a nonsense.

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That's cool, maybe the Argos can give then the new Stadium 5,00 more seasts.

But the RC is perfect for a city like Toronto, the Argos don't need to go anywhere.

The Jays however, are another story.

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i like the skydome. if they do renovate it more, this off-season, then thats even better!!!!

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how about getting a football team in there now...lol

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that was outta line..... unless the argos lose tomorrow!

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anyone nervous about MLSE getting their hands on another professional team? They barely know hockey, know NOTHING about basketball, and I know its only MLS soccer, but I have no confidence in that group anymore. One more team that makes toronto look bad courtesy of those goofs.

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Esq I think you are bang on. The conspiracy theorist in me would suggest there is a "master plan". When connecting the dots to include Paul Godfrey(enough said) and Larry Tennenbaum (owner of MLSE) recently took their horse and pony show down to Mexico to smoozze with the NFL during the opening game, can you say the possibility of expanding lets say an outdoor stadium from 20,000 to 60,000?

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I know what I said was stupid (Argos supports a stadium they will likly never use) but that would build on the great relasionship that the team already has with the city and with the soccer comunitty. It could aslo help in Canada's bid for the soccer World Cup.

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how is YOUR TEAM , doing? :wink: :smiley: :lol: :smiley:

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If the ARGOS , lose this SATURDAY :cry: …They will be in second PLACE in the EAST , and are STILL GOING TO , the PLAY OFFS :smiley: …With 1st place still , to be decided. :shock: This game is NOT the EAST FINAL :wink: , nor the final battle for first place for the whole season. But it will give 1 team a big lead…in the REAL , standings. :wink: :smiley:

If OTTAWA wins…and CALGARY wins :smiley: …SASK. are closer to being OUT of the play offs! :smiley:

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That doesnt suprise me Tom, I am a UofT alumn and was so psyched when it looked like the new varsity was going to get built, maybe THAT could someday resurrect the varsity blues squad. But no, not there, not at York...Not anywhere it seemed even though Argos and Soccer would both be there. Argos get taken care of courtesy of RC, now MLSE is back in the hunt only with Soccer when they (city of TOronto) cant get it done when a multi use facility including the argos? and NOW this might happen?? I agree something sounds fishy. If those 'businessmen' are sucking up to big money NFL covertly after dissing OUR game, and are hoping that this new stadium will eventually get the NFL and kill the Argos and the CFL in toronto That would just suck.

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it won't happen , but as usual they get every one talking about it , right near CFL play off time. They do this every year.

:roll:

Imagine the talk if a NFL regular season game came here. :roll:

It would never end :roll:Or allot worse than it is now :cry:

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While most of you know I trust the Rogers Centre, (aka Skydump)., the Blue Jays and anything to do with Paul Godfrey as far as I could throw the ACC, I just don't see a connection between a new CNE Stadium and the NFL, especially with a 20,000 seat venue. Expanding a stadium that size to 60,000 seats would almost mean a complete new stadium again. If MLSE is involved with the new stadium at CNE, I suspect it is interested in cross-promoting events with the Toronto Marlies.

Anyway, i still say Screw Godfrey.

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i just hope the ARGOS NEVER move to this 20 000 seat stadium at the ex.

20 000 seats isn't enough....argos are getting an average of 30 000 this year, and you know that will be alot higher by the time thier 5 year contract is up at rogers centre in 2010.

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I agree with you there, drumming god.

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One thing I will say is that if the Argos ever do play games at the new soccer/football stadium at the Ex site, which with the money MLSE is putting into it will allow it to be expanded to 30,000 from what I have read, I will start making the trek from Hamilton again to TO to go to Cats/Argos games. I just can't go now to the Rogers Centre as I really don't like going there as you are so far away from the field. I have been spoiled at Ivor Wynne where you are right on top of the action. I am sure the new stadium at the Ex will allow the fans to be much closer to the action than the Rogers Centre.

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30 000 isn't enough for argo games......in 2010, when thier current lease expires at rogercenter, the argos will be drawing 40 000 + every game....U WATCH.

the CFL is FINALLY getting front-page status on the toronto sun newspaper( 2 weeks in a row ). the CFL ratings are getting higher and higher every year...same with attendance....by 2010 the league SHOULD be coast-to-coast ( in Halifax ), so the league will get THAT MUCH MORE media attention, which translates into more ratings and more people attending games....

30 000 isn't enough!.....need ATLEAST 45 000....the GTA has a population of 4.6 million ( as of 2001 ), so its just a matter of time b4 MORE people wake up to the CFL!

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Man drumming god I hope you are accurate on that, it is so great that the Argos are drawing again.
I really think that if the Blue Jays build a baseball only facility and the RC goes completely football (although I doubt it as I'm sure Rogers could get more money by selling the stadium and land to developers for high rise condos or whatever), this would also help for the RC to become, in people's minds, a football facility first and foremost. And, as I've said, while I think the RC is a better football facilty than baseball facility, I still think that more people think of it as a baseball stadium first and foremost. Maybe if the Argos can rock the place with 50,000 for the east final if they get it, or for a semi-final, this will help, I don't know.