LAT: Long Beach plans to woo Angels, and arena might be demolished

[yk9001]

1 hour ago, Angel Oracle said:

I thought that the city was a little more receptive, now that the chip man is no longer mayor?

The LB Arena hasn't been regularly used in 34 years, since LB State moved MBB back on campus for the 1985-86 season.   No one will miss that building. 

LB Ice Dogs minor league hockey called it home for five years in the 2000's, with the lowest attendance in the ECHL.

[eaterfan]

4 minutes ago, Angel Oracle said:

I loved it at Wrigley Field, when I went in May 1994 to see them play the Padres.   Took the El from the hotel to within 2 blocks and walked the rest of the way.

Got a Chicago Dog from an adjacent take out place, and took it inside to a LF bleacher seat and got a beer to go with it.   Then Sosa proceeded to launch one onto Waveland Ave. in the middle innings, which was followed by a Wayne's World like 'We're not worthy!" from the Bleacher Bums. 

Harry was still around back then, and of course sang "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" as only he could.   Cubs won the game.

Don't get me wrong, Wrigleyville is great, the fans are great, the history is great, the ivy is beautiful. But the stadium is falling apart, and getting concessions is a nightmare, and the seating isn't exactly comfortable. 

Angels Sing doesn't have the charm, the neighborhood, the fans, nor the ivy. When that stadium gets as old as Wrigley will it be an enjoyable experience?

[Catwhoshatinthehat]

Whatever happens happens.  I'm just curious what it would take to get Arte to move the team to Long Beach.  I realize you've got Long Beach and other areas possibly trying to woo him then you've got Anaheim who may want him gone.  I can't imagine voters will approve taxpayer dollars to build a new stadium in Long Beach nor should they.  Is Long Beach offering to give the land to Arte and if so is going to pay to build a new stadium?  I actually mapped it and for me to Long Beach or Anaheim it's the same distance wise but as I said in the other thread the proposed Long Beach location couldn't be much worse for traffic.    

[Second Base]

I've been to every ball park in California, as well as Colorado and a couple in Japan and with the exception of the Tokyo Dome (the loudest sporting event I've ever attended and it was just a random game) so far my favorite park is Petco, for a number of reasons.  The ease of access is big with me.  I didn't have to wait in line at all.  Coming into the ball park, there are vibrant social activities.  Tons of kids running around at the little fields.  The food was awesome and the seats in RF are pretty standard except the ushers are extremely friendly and accommodating.  But the view on the Western Metal Building and out beyond the third base line is spectacular.

Now when I compare Angel Stadium, the best thing I can say about it is that you're in and out in a matter of minutes.  The access to the freeways cuts down on traffic and as someone that doesn't live in So-Cal largely because of things like traffic, I can really appreciate that.  But coming into the stadium, it just doesn't compare to Petco.  Construction, freeway overpass, cookie butter apartment buildings, standard large chain restaurants. Blah.  Inside the stadium itself, the seats compare favorably to anywhere else, except beyond the LF foul pole, not a good spot to sit as far the view.  But inside the stadium itself, the upper tank is usually completely empty except for a few spots.  No one likes going to half attended games where the crowd just isn't into it. 

But overall, visiting Angel Stadium is not a memorable experience compared to others.

My big thing, is I want the Angels to play somewhere to actually has a piece of personal identity attached to it.  There's nothing special about the stadium, it was built in an era where that just wasn't a thing.  Moving to Long Beach with a waterfront stadium would be spectacular.  That truly could be a memorable experience.  Cut down on the amount of seats to keep the stadium more full, have a picturesque view out RF or LF, make things more So-Cal specific.  It would be a great experience, but only on one condition. 

EASE of ACCESS.

If I've got to wait in traffic two hours to go two miles, it would ruin the experience for me. So as long as they can make it easy to get in and out quickly, I'm good.  To me, Orange County vs. Long Beach doesn't really matter.  Where I'm from, they all regard it as LA.  Not saying they're right, but that's just the way the rest of the country thinks of the area. 

[eaterfan]

2 minutes ago, Second Base said:

I've been to every ball park in California, as well as Colorado and a couple in Japan and with the exception of the Tokyo Dome (the loudest sporting event I've ever attended and it was just a random game) so far my favorite park is Petco, for a number of reasons.  The ease of access is big with me.  I didn't have to wait in line at all.  Coming into the ball park, there are vibrant social activities.  Tons of kids running around at the little fields.  The food was awesome and the seats in RF are pretty standard except the ushers are extremely friendly and accommodating.  But the view on the Western Metal Building and out beyond the third base line is spectacular.

Now when I compare Angel Stadium, the best thing I can say about it is that you're in and out in a matter of minutes.  The access to the freeways cuts down on traffic and as someone that doesn't live in So-Cal largely because of things like traffic, I can really appreciate that.  But coming into the stadium, it just doesn't compare to Petco.  Construction, freeway overpass, cookie butter apartment buildings, standard large chain restaurants. Blah.  Inside the stadium itself, the seats compare favorably to anywhere else, except beyond the LF foul pole, not a good spot to sit as far the view.  But inside the stadium itself, the upper tank is usually completely empty except for a few spots.  No one likes going to half attended games where the crowd just isn't into it. 

But overall, visiting Angel Stadium is not a memorable experience compared to others.

My big thing, is I want the Angels to play somewhere to actually has a piece of personal identity attached to it.  There's nothing special about the stadium, it was built in an era where that just wasn't a thing.  Moving to Long Beach with a waterfront stadium would be spectacular.  That truly could be a memorable experience.  Cut down on the amount of seats to keep the stadium more full, have a picturesque view out RF or LF, make things more So-Cal specific.  It would be a great experience, but only on one condition. 

EASE of ACCESS.

If I've got to wait in traffic two hours to go two miles, it would ruin the experience for me. So as long as they can make it easy to get in and out quickly, I'm good.  To me, Orange County vs. Long Beach doesn't really matter.  Where I'm from, they all regard it as LA.  Not saying they're right, but that's just the way the rest of the country thinks of the area. 

Agreed. I think it will cost Long Beach billions, perhaps tens of billions, of dollars to make stadium access reasonable. 

I'm very much against using public funds for stadiums, but I really don't know enough about Long Beach to know if transportation infrastructure spending could be with it in the long run. Traffic is an absolute nightmare. Increasing ease of access could help the port with commercial traffic. Public transportation options could also help bring more consumers in, and more importantly, reduced commute times for those in cars will lead to greatly increased productivity.

It all may add up to be worth quite a lot of money. Of course those projects would be worth it without the Angels moving there.

[T.G.]

I view the ease of getting in and out of Angels stadium as the best thing about the place.  It's not the prettiest stadium, but they've upgraded the scoreboards and the sound system.  I don't care how nice the stadium is to look at - if getting there is a hassle, I will hate it.  The "cool" factor isn't a factor for me.  The current location is perfect from a logistics point of view and that's what matters most to me at this point in time.  I can live with the things I might not like about the Big A because getting there is so easy.

[Second Base]

4 minutes ago, eaterfan said:

Agreed. I think it will cost Long Beach billions, perhaps tens of billions, of dollars to make stadium access reasonable. 

I'm very much against using public funds for stadiums, but I really don't know enough about Long Beach to know if transportation infrastructure spending could be with it in the long run. Traffic is an absolute nightmare. Increasing ease of access could help the port with commercial traffic. Public transportation options could also help bring more consumers in, and more importantly, reduced commute times for those in cars will lead to greatly increased productivity.

It all may add up to be worth quite a lot of money. Of course those projects would be worth it without the Angels moving there.

The way I see it, transportation infrastructure can be built for anything, anywhere, as long as you have the funds to set it up.  Public transit done right (San Diego does it right) is a great way to attend a sporting event.  If they're willing to allocate billions in order to add, remove and reroute roads to make it work better, and purchase the land to lay the necessary track, then yeah, these could really work.  But it would likely require some major restructuring. 

Whereas with Anaheim, you've got much more a blank canvas with the surrounding area, and you already have the transportation infrastructure.  All you need to do is build up the surrounding area, and basically tear down the stadium and build it back again, which is easier than what needs to be done in Long Beach. 

But there appear to be two major differences here.  Long Beach WANTS the Angels and appears willing to build them a new stadium (water front nonetheless).  Anaheim acts like they don't want the Angels and don't appear willing to build them much of anything. 

Unless Anaheim changes their tune, if I'm Arte, I'd be more interested in moving. 

[Second Base]

5 minutes ago, True Grich said:

I view the ease of getting in and out of Angels stadium as the best thing about the place.  It's not the prettiest stadium, but they've upgraded the scoreboards and the sound system.  I don't care how nice the stadium is to look at - if getting there is a hassle, I will hate it.  The "cool" factor isn't a factor for me.  The current location is perfect from a logistics point of view and that's what matters most to me at this point in time.  I can live with the things I might not like about the Big A because getting there is so easy.

Same here.  Once the game ends, I'm back on the free way in half an hour. Attending Angels games is less about the transit, more about the game, which is nice.  In San Diego, I'm back on the Tram in 15 minutes, back to the mall parking another half hour after that,  and on my way.  For AT&T, I'm back on BART in about 30 minutes, and then back to my car another 30 minutes later, upon which time I get on the freeway and sit in traffic for another hour.  It's a hassle and makes attending Giants games hardly worth it, unless it's a day game and you're out of there by 4:00.  A's games, no one really attends and the parking lot is huge anyway, so you're in and out quickly.  Dodgers games, absolutely suck as far as traffic goes.  Avoid those like the plague.  Rockies games aren't bad.  You'll pay out the ear for parking, but you're right outside of the stadium and hardly need freeway access immediately with the way downtown is set up.  It's quite nice really. 

But again, maybe some folks don't mind the two hour commitment before and after the game.  I do. 

[T.G.]

And let's not forget that it only costs $10 to park at the Big A.  This hasn't changed in YEARS.  Knowing what I know about Long Beach - parking would likely be outrageous. This is the city where the sales tax rate is 10.25%!!

[Catwhoshatinthehat]

14 minutes ago, True Grich said:

I view the ease of getting in and out of Angels stadium as the best thing about the place.  It's not the prettiest stadium, but they've upgraded the scoreboards and the sound system.  I don't care how nice the stadium is to look at - if getting there is a hassle, I will hate it.  The "cool" factor isn't a factor for me.  The current location is perfect from a logistics point of view and that's what matters most to me at this point in time.  I can live with the things I might not like about the Big A because getting there is so easy.

Agreed.  I'm guessing I haven't been to as many stadiums as many of the regulars here but aside from Angels stadium I've been to Dodgers, Padres and the new Yankee stadiums.  I'd like to see games in Fenway and Wrigley because of the history but outside of that I don't go to stadiums because of how new they are or what I might be able to see from my seat.  I hate traffic and like having multiple ways I can leave a stadium which are the biggest reasons I prefer the Big A to Long Beach.  

[AngelsFanSince86]

I would be livid if they moved.  I go to 10-15 games a year.  My family has season tickets that we share. If they moved to LB we would no longer renew them and I would hardly ever go to a game.  I lived in SF when the 49ers moved from Candlestick down to Santa Clara.  I went to one game and the travel time there and traffic after left a bad taste in my mouth.  If I still lived in the area its possible I would go to another game (not likely), but only because one NFL game is so much more meaningful than an MLB game.  If the Angels moved to Long Beach I might go occasionally just so my son can watch Mike Trout, but ultimately I'd rather save the time and money and watch it on TV.  I know a lot of people who go to a couple games a year who would rarely, if ever, attend another game.  They would have to hope that the fan base in Long Beach would make up for that loss.  I honestly doubt it would.  The ease of access not only makes it a better experience, but it makes the number of fans who have a 15 minute drive or less to the stadium significantly greater than it would be in Long Beach.  Good luck during the week.  Right now parents can take their kids to weeknight games, leave by 9, and have their kids in bed by 9:30.  There would be very few people in LB that could do the same.  You would have to leave too early for it to be worth it.  

[Lhalo]

1 hour ago, Randy Gradishar said:

I still don't understand why they can't turn around a new stadium in 3-4 months. Can owners not afford a decent contractor?

Environmental Impact Reports, labor issues, zoning, codes, etc...

It's a miracle anything gets built in CA.

[eligrba]

Maybe they can build a stadium with a retractable outfield wall?

[Claude]

1 hour ago, Tank said:

i visited fenway in 1980. at the time, i was 6'2" 230 lbs. Felt like it was gonna take a can opener to pry me out of that seat on the field level by third base. Tiny doesn't come close to describing it.

Boston Garden was the same way.

Ha I got to pick up a couple of LA Coliseum seats when they remodeled. They’re pretty cool.  

[Docwaukee]

I feel like the majority of the fan base is in OC and IE.   Maybe I am underestimating it, but I just don't think there's a ton of fans west of the 605.  

[Claude]

6 minutes ago, Dochalo said:

I feel like the majority of the fan base is in OC and IE.   Maybe I am underestimating it, but I just don't think there's a ton of fans west of the 605.  

Yep that's mostly Dodger territory. I think we need a new stadium but at the same site. I just don’t think Anaheim will get it done. It’s costing 2-3 billion to build a new MLB park. 

[yk9001]

27 minutes ago, Calzone 2 said:

Ha I got to pick up a couple of LA Coliseum seats when they remodeled. They’re pretty cool.  

They're sweating.

[Bronson]

13 hours ago, Throwman91 said:

I'm all for a stadium with a splash zone, a new ballpark and uniforms could revamp this team.  The parking situation in LB will be ugly though, Angels stadium is perfect being right by the 5 Freeway.  The city of Anaheim has expressed that they want the Angels gone and it's likely the team will move elsewhere, I put 70% odds on them being at a new ballpark by 2024.

There’s no need to change the uniforms. The current ones are really nice and I hate teams that have to constantly rebrand. Keep with one that’s nice and works. The current Angels brand is just fine. Leave it alone.

[yk9001]

5 minutes ago, Bronson said:

There’s no need to change the uniforms. The current ones are really nice and I hate teams that have to constantly rebrand. Keep with one that’s nice and works.

 

it is insane to me that people want to mess with the best thing the franchise has done in decades (besides win a World Series).

For F*ck's sake.  You want to be the Padres?  The Diamondbacks?

[Lou]

1 hour ago, Calzone 2 said:

Ha I got to pick up a couple of LA Coliseum seats when they remodeled. They’re pretty cool.  

if you look closely, you can see the bloodstains 

[mp170.6]

This is more than just ease of access, or convenience.  With work and traffic, many of us struggle to get to Anaheim for 7:05pm games. 

If they moved the team to Long Beach, we probably couldn't get there until 7:45 or 8:00pm with the extra drive.  And after a long game, we might not make it home until after midnight, a no go on work or school nights.  The whole idea is self-defeating when it interferes with fans' ability to earn a living to buy tickets to get inside.

[yk9001]

City of Long Beach has pensions up the ying yang they have to fund.  They don't have a billion dollars sitting around.   As shown in his dealings with the City of Anaheim, Arte has alligator arms.

This is a story is a non-starter.

[Lhalo]

I like the current jersey but if they changed it I wouldn't mind them going retro back to these:

P.S.

The periwinkle uni's were probably the worst in the history of baseball other than the '76 White Sox (which were secretly awesome). I think @Throwman91 might be the only person on planet earth who likes them other than Michael Eisner and his wife.

[Ace-Of-Diamonds]

13 hours ago, ten ocho recon scout said:

Didn't they originally play on Catalina? Back in the PCL days?

the cubs took spring training there when Wrigley owned them.

[wopphil]

8 hours ago, Stradling said:

I will be in Chicago at Wrigley in 8 days for the first time.  

I am jealous. I have never been to Chicago. I'll be going to Chicago for the first time in 8 days. A work retreat just happened to be scheduled there next weekend. Unfortunately, I won't be able to catch a game.