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Old Posted Feb 16, 2010, 6:11 PM
glynnjamin glynnjamin is offline
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Join Date: Mar 2008
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I really think Phoenix is VERY different than most other cities. The fact that we already have multiple stadiums scattered around the valley makes us quite unique. Most summer olympic hosts fail to turn a profit because they must build new arenas for so many different events. As I listed earlier, I feel that the investment would be quite manageable if done right. There are plenty of places that need simple retrofits like adding seating or re-turfing the fields. Most of our arenas were built with the idea of hosting large-scale events in the future. I have watched World Cup Qualifier soccer in both UofPhx and Chase Field and if FIFA approves of the venue, I don't see why the IOC wouldn't. Tempe Town Lake was built with the vision to host world-class events and hosts many triathlons and competitions. It is plenty long enough to host all of those style events with the exception of sailing. What did they do in Atlanta when they had sailing????
You guys are right though - the infrastructure is a big deal. We would have to have light rail running from the airport to tempe, downtown, Glendale, and the Memorial Colosseum. We would need HSR from Phx to Tucson. Aren't those things we have already budgeted for? Haven't we spent the time and money studying the possibilities of running both? Aren't they "in the works"? We are talking about 2020 by the time we could have a CHANCE at hosting them. In 10 years, if we don't have HSR to Tucson, we all might as well pack it up and leave. This could be the great catalyst that sparks real development and real urban planning in Arizona.
The ONLY reason Salt Lake is so much more advanced than we are is because of the Olympics. Are SLC NIMBYS any worse than PHX?
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