Actually, BMO Field is owned by the city of Toronto. So MLSE can get stuffed, if the Argos have to move there and the city decides to expand the field. There is nothing they can do.
Another opponent for BMO field for being expanded for Canadian Football is soccer Canada. The National team(s) preferred at the time Saputo field and its Natural Surface. Toronto and the province of Ontario wanting the National Team to stay in Toronto spent Big $$$ to install the best natural surface there is at BMO field to keep the National team(s) in Toronto and using BMO field as their main training facility. It is the same surfacethat is mandated for fields in the top EPL and other FIFI World class soccer facilities.
It paid off as they had hopped with the National Women’s team recently playing its first game on home spoil since the 2012 bronze medal team at BMO field in which they would play a not so friendly friendly against the US team who they lost to in the much controversial game in the 2012 Olympic. The game sold out in less then an hour with seat prices ranging from about 150 to 300 dollars.
So while I wish it were true it is more than just about spending the big$$$ to renovate it for a Canadian Football Field but the amount of money that was already but into it just a few years after it was built and the wanting to have the National Teams Soccer programs in Toronto.
The men may have a long way to go but the Women’s National team is very trendy to support and what is trendy is what Toronto wants
With all these new stadiums opening soon i don’t think were going to see most games in Toronto as i can see them spreading them around.
Oh they will be spreading the games around for sure but as for their home training facility Toronto has invested in BMO to keep them in Toronto so they would not move to Saputo in Montreal, a stadium they openly preferred before they put the new Turf in BMO
Ditto, the IGF stadium should be used as an example for any city wishing to build new.
As for us, it also must be in the burbs, no more downtown crap.
I can’t agree on that. Downtown is where it’s at.
You don’t want to be the only Toronto team not playing downtown. Out of sight, out of mind.
Most of the team’s history is near the lake and near the core. Not out in burbs.
Interesting thought about building in the Burbs. I do not know about the Burbs in Toronto but here in Philadelphia something similiar happened with PPL park home of the MLS Philly Union. Soccer has been tried in the city of philadelphia to no avail and if they had built the soccer specific stadium in the South Philly Complex where MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL stadiums are i doubt that anyone would go.
However placing it in the area it is inthe Burbs it gives easy access to areas outside the city that are big on soccer. It is right over the bridge into new Jersey where new housing developments have been built over the past couple of decades raising the population and soccer is big. It also connects with the Main Line Area with a huge population near Villanova University is and where it is a huge soccer part of the Philly Burbs and connects right to rt 476 that comes out right near the stadium just like over the bridge in New Jersey does both connecting with I95.
Is there an area in the GTA that is a hot bed area of Canadian football from pee wee levels to HS level?
[url=http://www.teamradio.ca/podcast/bc_lions/Lions_vs_Argos_First_Half_July_4~.mp3]http://www.teamradio.ca/podcast/bc_lion ... uly_4~.mp3[/url]
Argos talk starts at 1:34:45
For Toronto the only way i think it would work in the burbs is you do a mix of Winnipeg and Ottawa take the stadium and Winnipeg but do the complex like Ottawa where you have a stadium/arena/condos/offices/retail/park etc.
Except in the burbs with plenty of land theory, one can have tailgating on the property.
oh god. that will be the end of the argonauts. especially if they move to markham. markham is asian people. they don’t care about foodball. everything there is written in chinese. good luck driving there.
Ontario would have to change the law which i don’t see them doing.
mark ham would work great. Your 25 mins from downtown T.O, 15 from Scarborough, and East and North York. 35 mins from Oshawa, 25 mins from Ajax and Pickering, works well for everyone
If the GTA Centre is still going to be built, maybe Braley could partner with them and get some assistance with land or loan guarantees from the City of Markham? A major sports centre for that city might be something they would go for. If the Argos included an amateur sports component they could be eligible for federal funding, and Braley is well-connected with the feds.
That would make a lot of sense. You saw this done in LA when they expanded to a second baseball team and NHL team in Orange County in Anaheim and spreading to the Surburbs that are very populated. Even building the Stub Hub for the two MLS teams to Carson creates a nice triangle of major venues in the LA Metro.
In New York the same as the Giants and then joined by the Jets outside of the city into New Jersey adding an arena for a third hockey team and also the Nets but the nets have moved back to Brooklyn as well as the Isles will move to brooklyn. The Mets and Yankees stayed in there boro’s, The Red Bulls of the MLS built just outside the Meadowlands sports complex and the new NYC FC soccer team owned by the Yankees and MAN City will look to place a stadium in Queens right next to Citi Field home of the Mets. So both major cities of LA and NY have options of in city teams as well of out of city teams with easier access and/or a very populated area of fans who will find it much easier to attend a pro sports team out side the city.
The GTA is certainly big enough now to expand to the Northern Burbs. For the Argos a lot may have to do with weeknight games starting at 7:00 or 7:30 where people just do not want to fight there way into the city.
GernB
I would not hold my breath any time soon on money from the feds with all the money Torono to is getting for a number of projects be it the Pan Am Games the new subway line the list goes on while other parts of Canada needs just as much help in some cases and if they were to give Toronto a massive amount of money for yet another stadium it will not look good and could cost them the next election or atleast be a big factor.
With regards to federal funding (or provincial, for that matter) I imagine much of it would depend on how the deal would be presented to them. Edmonton is using community sustainability dollars - a provincical grant - but officially there is no provincial money in the new arena project. Winnipeg got some federal dollars for their new stadium by including an mateur sport component and locating the stadium at the U of M. If the Argos were to locate their new stadium near the GTA Centre there night be municipal and/or provincial and/or federal money available if it included amateur sports or was sold to them as an urban redevelopment project.
As for losing votes, isn't this the area where the Tories want to increase their numbers? A nice bit of pork-barreling couldn't hurt. I doubt they'd lose many votes in the west over something like this.
Anyway, the location was just an idea off the top of my head.
Yes they want to increase voters but at the same time they don’t want to tick off the rest of the country now take the new subway line if what some think its true and the rest of the country will have to pay for it then Toronto gets a new stadium and the same thing that will not look good.
I agree I don’t think the the govt will be putting up any money for a stadium for the Argos put if the GTA Centre is a go getting involved with this project to build a CFL/soccer specific stadium could come to be with the addition of private funding. The GTA Centre getting built will take care of the cost for parking lots, roads coming into the complex, the kind of costs that can add up for a project. Like the Pan Am Stadium the Argos ownership group as well as the CFL would be able to add on to this. TSN also has a nice stake in keeping the Argos in Toronto and getting people into the seats. TSN can not pay any money themselves but much like in Halifax National CFL sponsors are interested in partnering with the stadium. The one thing that TSN and/or the CFL can do is to persuade one of their top sponsors for naming rights to the stadium. TSN’s parent company Bell could purchase the naming right to one of these stadiums, Wendy’s also a big sponsor for TSN. For the CFL Sun Life has a big stake in the CFL now and is based in Toronto.
Tim Horton’s has done their part in paying for the naming rights to the other GTA stadium in Hamilton.
For the Argos Nissan is a premier sponsor already and could be a great partner to the new stadium in Toronto as well.
If the stadium is able to piggy back off of the new hockey arena by having it built as part of the complex the Northern GTA Burbs having the large Nissan or which ever corporate sponsor they get for the naming rights would be a big Billboard as well for any events at the Arena as well.
Again I have no sources and this is all just specualtion on my part of things that would make sense to a corporation to put up for the Naming rights.
interesting that Rogers is a sponsor for the Argos in what capacity I do not know.
Also Saputo is a sponsor as well. If anyone knows about building a stadium with private funding it would be Joey Saputo.
So when you here the Argo Brass talking about how they are exploring several options we can only speculate who they may be.