SUNY Capital Plans

[Underpar]

A new field house with 15000 seats would be a good investment. In addition to basketball, think of all the other sporting and entertainment opportunities. An ice rink and not just for hockey, concerts etc. lots of parking, easy access to highways. Local businesses would thrive. The place would be jumping all the time.

[GreatDanes06]

my question for critics is how much capital investment has Buffalo and Stony Brook received over the past 5 years in comparison to UA?

[olddog71]

A short article in the Times Union this morning about the proposal:

 

http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/UAlbany-asks-293M-for-repairs-4322247.php#photo-4271277

[Michigan_Dane]

If by "field house" we mean a basketball arena I'm not sure what $12M buys us. Binghamton spent $33M in 2000 for their facility. Even the RACC cost $11M in the 1990s. Well over $20M today.

 

The challenge I'm having is understanding the scope. A field house can be another name for a basketball arena, hockey rink, indoor track, indoor football training facility. I've looked at dozens of examples since this news was released and what's clear is there isn't anything binding them all together except they're all indoors.

 

Once again $12M seems very small without major private donations.

[Dane96]

Folks...this is not for an arena. What this is one of two things. It is either tge fieldhouse connected to the stadium...or an indoor multi use facility. Either way...it will be interesting. If they go with indoor track, football, soccer, lax, even baseball and softball. ..then it will be the full 12mill like youngstown st. Otherwise...it can be more of a bubble field only (no track) for half that nber...and likely 4-6k seat expansion to the stadium. My guess would be a third. They will add 5mm from school funds and donatiins and do both...and you have a 12000 seat stadium...full yraining facilities for all outdoor teams...and sefcu can get redone in 6-7 years if needed...w use of the TUC for big games. Win-win

[UAalum72]

A new field house with 15000 seats would be a good investment. In addition to basketball, think of all the other sporting and entertainment opportunities. An ice rink and not just for hockey, concerts etc. lots of parking, easy access to highways. Local businesses would thrive. The place would be jumping all the time.

Another 15K seat venue in this market may be too much; there could be a niche for something in the 8-9 range (above the 5K at RPI and Glens Falls). I don't know if 'lots of parking' is the way you'd describe anything on one end of the Albany campus. Maybe it's time to take another shot at the Harriman campus, since there hasn't been any progress with commercial development there.

 

Does the Master Plan have any mention of a 'field house'? There may have been mention of an indoor track/ recreation facility but I don't remember a spectator venue.

 

So-Cal, the outline said design a new fieldhouse and expansion of multi-Sport facility , that obviously wouldn't include construction costs for the FH.

[Michigan_Dane]

The note says "design a new field house and expansion of multi-sport facility"

 

I think I see the gap. The funds go to designing a new field house, not building it. This leaves money for expansion.

 

Remember we paid Heery International $1.4M just for planning of the stadium. That was without actually building anything.

 

That would leave $10M to expand the stadium.

 

That makes sense to me.

[Dane96]

Wow...I didnt even read that part. However....the fieldhouse can also be what we see in the old video at the south endzone. Presumeably the original Heery design did not have detailed specs for the interior.

[danefan]

Uneducated guess:

 

Field house is the design for the indoor track and turf training facility. Not a large spectator venue.

 

Expansion to the stadium is probably the endzone and visitors side lower bowl or just a lower bowl and upper deck on the visitors side(no boxes). Either of which could easily be done with $10m. Remember the whole stadium Phase 1 is $18m. That includes the major excavation, site work, turf field, electronics, etc. The place was designed for easy and cheap expansion.

[DanesRGood]

Uneducated guess:

 

Field house is the design for the indoor track and turf training facility. Not a large spectator venue.

 

Expansion to the stadium is probably the endzone and visitors side lower bowl or just a lower bowl and upper deck on the visitors side(no boxes). Either of which could easily be done with $10m. Remember the whole stadium Phase 1 is $18m. That includes the major excavation, site work, turf field, electronics, etc. The place was designed for easy and cheap expansion.

 

This would be my guess as well. Maybe it can entice the Giants back up for training camp.

[Clickclack]

Uneducated guess:

 

Field house is the design for the indoor track and turf training facility. Not a large spectator venue.

 

Expansion to the stadium is probably the endzone and visitors side lower bowl or just a lower bowl and upper deck on the visitors side(no boxes). Either of which could easily be done with $10m. Remember the whole stadium Phase 1 is $18m. That includes the major excavation, site work, turf field, electronics, etc. The place was designed for easy and cheap expansion.

 

This would be my guess as well. Maybe it can entice the Giants back up for training camp.

 

Why? It always disappointed me that they used us and gave little back other then some pub...

[GreatDane87]

How about baseball and softball???? I think it is time that their facilities are brought up to snuff.

[Dane96]

Again, I am a huge baseball fan! Baseball is not driving this bus...and high profile football is going to...and do it well. Expansion for the football stadium is needed because there will be HUGE changes IMHO in the FCS landscape/FBS landscape with the possibility of a third-tier. We need to be ready to have facilities to stay in the 2nd tier (which will be low end FBS schools and high end FCS schools).

 

I also presume the added seats were a deal with CAA football.

 

As an aside, the indoor facility will be used by the baseball team as it is by most schools.

Edited March 4, 2013 by Dane96

[Michigan_Dane]

Again, I am a huge baseball fan! Baseball is not driving this bus...and high profile football is going to...and do it well. Expansion for the football stadium is needed because there will be HUGE changes IMHO in the FCS landscape/FBS landscape with the possibility of a third-tier. We need to be ready to have facilities to stay in the 2nd tier (which will be low end FBS schools and high end FCS schools).

 

I also presume the added seats were a deal with CAA football.

 

As an aside, the indoor facility will be used by the baseball team as it is by most schools.

 

I agree wholeheartedly with this assessment. The football landscape is changing quickly and we need to be in a position to be successful. The big boys will run their own show. We need to be in that middle pack and with a little work we can be there.

 

The good news is that this facility was designed as multi-purpose so the enhancements are utilized by soccer, lacrosse, field hockey in addition to football. It's the one facility that supports the most teams.

Edited March 4, 2013 by SoCal_Dane

[Michigan_Dane]

Have we ever explored using the Joe Bruno stadium for baseball? It's suppose to be a beautiful facility and Rensellear is not far away. Google maps says it's only 10 miles away door-to-door. They should have built this on UAlbany not the community college but still it's not far.

 

This isn't UMASS style where we're expecting students to drive hundreds of miles to see a game. We're talking 10 miles from the main campus and 7 from the East campus

 

http://www.milb.com/...1587&vkey=team1

Edited March 4, 2013 by SoCal_Dane