Edward Jones Dome/St. Louis Rams

[I_AM_Clayton]

Now that the Rams are gone Edward Jones has pulled out their sponsorship and the Dome is no longer the ¨Edward Jones Dome¨, but now ¨The Dome at America's Center¨.

[mastachyra]

The dome is just another empty building in the downtown area of St. Louis. I was amazed at how many buildings were closed down. It felt like the dome was the only thing keeping any of the businesses in the area running.

This is a huge loss for STL, but not surprising.

Embrace your hockey and baseball team while theyre decent.

[Foster]

Originally Posted by Cory

Nobody wants to be in STL. The Raiders and Chargers want a new stadium and can't get one. The Rams wanted a new stadium and couldn't get one. Nobody is coming to a city that won't build a new stadium.

Originally Posted by I_AM_Clayton

Actually we as a city put up $150 million and created a stadium task force that created an entire new stadium plan. It's not that didn't have the resources/money and or ability, it's that Stan wanted to move the team and the NFL is interested in the money sitting in LA vs. STL.

The problem in St Louis (and about to be the problem in all the places that have NFL teams) is the greed by the owners.

From this article from the Huffngton Post

At the beginning of 2015, city and state taxpayers still owed more than $100 million in debt on the bonds used to finance the Edward Jones Dome, the stadium St. Louis put $280 million in public funds behind in 1995.

The new stadium was expected to cost $950 million dollars with most of the cost to be covered by the taxpayers and most of the revenues from the games to be taken by the team.

A little bit of Google searching will get you the cost of stadium construction This one has a good summary of other places

More and more owners are asking for "field parity" aka Skyboxes, jumbo jumbotrons, more seating, etc. For a building they will use 9 times a year and will want a new one every twenty years (use is about 185 times, hardly worn out). The NFL is a multi billion per year, 2015 revenue was estimated at $14 billion. They can easily afford paying for stadiums out of their own pockets.

What could St Louis and the state do with $800 million? Lots of improvements in the schools and infrastructure. And remember that 800 million is borrowed dollars, when they get done in 30 years paying off the interest, you are talking over $2 billion dollars. Not a small amount of money.

As you can tell, this is a real hot button for me. I'm good with professional sports. Not good with the cost being carried by taxpayers while the profits go to the owners and the NFL. Yah, yah, I get the "well the money trickles down from the jobs (9 times a year) and the concessions (9 times a year and the team shares the profits) and parking (9 times a year and the team shares the profits) and the hotel rooms, tourists into the area, etc. " Not buying it. If all that money was rolling into St Louis and the state, would they be in the shape they are today?

[/rant]

[jspatz1]

In my day, it was the L.A. Rams, and St.L had their Cardinals. To this day I still have trouble saying "Saint Louis Rams." St.L fans should look on the bright side and hope that this is the first, necessary step in getting their Cardinals back, and restoring order to the universe.

[Tim Sharp]

Originally Posted by Cory

Nobody wants to be in STL. The Raiders and Chargers want a new stadium and can't get one. The Rams wanted a new stadium and couldn't get one. Nobody is coming to a city that won't build a new stadium.

I have never understood that. What is wrong with the Edward Jones Dome? Seems like a perfectly suitable venue to me.

[Anthony Galea]

Originally Posted by Tim Sharp

I have never understood that. What is wrong with the Edward Jones Dome? Seems like a perfectly suitable venue to me.

$$$$

My understanding is that the owner wanted to move to LA for a bigger market so they could create more revenue.
Also, if you look at NFL stadium rankings, EJD usually ranks near the bottom in quality.

[orangemoore]

Originally Posted by Tim Sharp

I have never understood that. What is wrong with the Edward Jones Dome? Seems like a perfectly suitable venue to me.

Sports Stadiums are a complicated mess that makes no sense to anyone outside of the teams.

[Billfred]

Originally Posted by Tim Sharp

I have never understood that. What is wrong with the Edward Jones Dome? Seems like a perfectly suitable venue to me.

The Dome is perfectly good as a venue for large gatherings--but it isn't Lucas Oil Stadium. It sure isn't AT&T Stadium. (Shoot, I personally think Williams-Brice Stadium holds up against it--even if it's apples-to-oranges.)

But, of course, the large gatherings aren't the money--it's the suites, the skyboxes, the executive clubs, the big lounges. The ones that go for five figures a season each (considering what we'd call Very Good Seats go for about $9,000 for the Cowboys). THAT is where the Dome is lacking, and because it's next to impossible to retrofit a domed stadium you're left starting over.

[Tim Sharp]

I get it. $$$$

Any idea what use will be made of the building now?

[BigJ]

Looks like not a ton.

http://explorestlouis.com/venue/americas-center-dome/

[Tim Sharp]

WOW. Five scheduled events through December. Might be a ghost town soon.

[SenorZ]

One day cities will pour over the data and realize there is no real long term net benefit to paying for stadiums.

[Richard Wallace]

Originally Posted by SenorZ

One day cities will poor over the data and realize there is no real long term net benefit to paying for stadiums.

Not while government at all levels remains a tool of the investment class.

[AGPapa]

Originally Posted by Foster

As you can tell, this is a real hot button for me. I'm good with professional sports. Not good with the cost being carried by taxpayers while the profits go to the owners and the NFL.

Originally Posted by SenorZ

One day cities will poor over the data and realize there is no real long term net benefit to paying for stadiums.

There are a lot of reasons to be upset with the Rams moving to LA, but taxpayers paying for a new stadium isn't one of them. Kroenke and the NFL are funding the Inglewood stadium without tax money.

[Billfred]

Originally Posted by Tim Sharp

I get it. $$$$

Any idea what use will be made of the building now?

Originally Posted by BigJ

Looks like not a ton.

http://explorestlouis.com/venue/americas-center-dome/

Originally Posted by Tim Sharp

WOW. Five scheduled events through December. Might be a ghost town soon.

Remember, as FIRST itself discovered when trying to book a western Championship, that convention bookings tend to happen 3-4 years out. And further, they've examined renovating the Dome in a way that would improve America's Center as a convention facility while removing the stadium capability.

(The University of South Carolina ended up doing a similar thing with the Carolina Coliseum, which was replaced by Colonial Life Arena a block away but couldn't be demolished because--as I was told--it was built on war bonds. After a few years of languishing as home for a doomed ECHL franchise, high school graduations, and events too cheap to use Colonial Life Arena, they ultimately gutted enough of the arena seating to expand the basketball practice facility next door. They're currently looking at converting the rest of it into classroom space and a second student union.)