Exactly. Money spent by an Edmontonion at a hockey game is money not spent elsewhere in Edmonton. Nobody is travelling to Edmonton to see a hockey game.

 

Upwards of 30% of fans are from outside of the City.

 

Food for thought indeed and if we are only talking about an arena I would agree... but this is FAR FAR FAR more than just a cold building. Different story, different outcome.

 

Link?

 

Link?
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Cant recall, but that was from the Oilers during a presentation to season ticket holders based on postal codes.

 

I agree, different story, to a degree. The "different outcome" is what's in question. I don't see this building and project really doing anything significantly better or "more" than what we have now. A prettier face isn't going to draw people downtown. I don't think people will flock to downtown to enjoy this place when a game isn't on, no matter what they have there for shops/restaurants, unless parking is plentiful and cheap (ie, free or close to it) and there's actually something there they can't get anywhere else in the city.

I may be in the minority but I hate going downtown for just about everything, especially if it's on my own dime. Food is more expensive, parking isn't free, traffic is slow and half the time you end up walking a moderate distance to get to your destination. It's bad enough going to an Oiler's game now - I can't imagine it downtown!

Time will tell!

 

I think you have to pick your time with heading downtown. The core (say, between 97 Street and 109 Street, and from just south of Jasper to 104/Stony Plain Road) is pretty dead after, say, 6:00pm on the weekday. But head there on a weekend and it's great. One great secret is free (or was it a $1 for the day?), heated underground parking at Manulife on weekends. And then the mall is substantially less crowded. Further west on Jasper there are piles of restaurants too. And then still it seems like the best Chinese food is in Chinatown (I'm Chinese so I should know, right!?! ), although I guess that doesn't really count as downtown.

But for an Oilers game downtown, I think you're right. I think they want to encourage LRT usage. I'm a bit biased, but my house is about 5 minutes' drive from Northlands/Rexall. I'm a bit spoiled. Perhaps I will have to find an Impark lot in Chinatown, then walk to the new arena for games. Hopefully it'll be cheaper than the $12 Northlands charges for parking.

I did happen to watch an Oilers v. Kings game at Staples Center in LA a few years back. It is a very nice facility, especially inside as the seats have much more legroom, and everything seems brighter. Within 10 minutes walk, there was plentiful, paid parking in multi storey lots. Will they do that here too? My current parking habit for games at Rexall involve about a 10 minute walk so it would be comparable.

 

Good points and yes, there is ~ 28,000 surface, covered, heated parking spots within a 5-10min walk

 

I agree, different story, to a degree. The "different outcome" is what's in question. I don't see this building and project really doing anything significantly better or "more" than what we have now. A prettier face isn't going to draw people downtown. I don't think people will flock to downtown to enjoy this place when a game isn't on, no matter what they have there for shops/restaurants, unless parking is plentiful and cheap (ie, free or close to it) and there's actually something there they can't get anywhere else in the city.

I may be in the minority but I hate going downtown for just about everything, especially if it's on my own dime. Food is more expensive, parking isn't free, traffic is slow and half the time you end up walking a moderate distance to get to your destination. It's bad enough going to an Oiler's game now - I can't imagine it downtown!

Time will tell!
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Important points for sure given many who don't live centrally would say the same.

If you want cheap, stick to South Edmonton Common or West Edmonton Mall. If you want something more interesting, more unique this will be for you. I dont expect people to flock here on non game nights, but I do expect a lot more people to enjoy it given that it will expand food, bev, retail options by a few hundred thousand sqft along with a hotel for guests and eventually condos. There will be a mix of names/brands that you can get and they specifically want to snag a few you cannot to do just that, draw you there. A prettier face will indeed improve the number of people who come downtown for like we have seen in Vancouver, if you make it THE place to be, people will come.

Keep in mind that currently you have 60,000 people a day coming downtown to work or go to school. Also keep in mind that Commonwealth draws 30-40k with almost no parking/roads. A bit of congestion is not a bad thing in this case... for it will create 'vibrancy' on the streets and make downtown come alive far more than it is now.

We do need to ensure that people can get in and out of downtown better and the new Walterdale will help along with expanded LRT (NAIT etc).

But keep in mind that part of all of this is to not have people fly in, fly out, but to take some time to enjoy the heart of our city be it going to a game, shopping, exploring and or grabbing a bite.

If we always want quick, cheap, park in front... just tell me know and I will move. If we want a better variety of experiences, a lively downtown and a city that better balances urban/suburban growth, we need to change some of our habits.

 

http://www.edmonton.ca/city_governme...Assessment.pdf