azdad1978
Championship!!!!
14-acre site to complement arena, stadium complex
Monica Alonzo-Dunsmoor
The Arizona Republic
Oct. 30, 2004 12:00 AM
A deal forged this week between Glendale and a longtime farming family completes the groundwork for a mega sports and entertainment complex.
It also marks the Fiesta Bowl's entry into the West Valley, where the college football game will move in 2007.
The land deal is the last major piece in a puzzle that, when completed, will form the biggest such complex in the Valley, boasting professional hockey and football for sports fans, youth sports fields for families and amateur sports enthusiasts and a 6 million-square-foot center with shopping, dining and entertainment options for everyone.
In about 18 months, the community will have a 3-acre youth- and community-sports stadium with seating and multiuse fields, a much-needed venue for such events.
Chuck Schmidt, assistant executive director of the Arizona Interscholastic Association, said the arrival of more ball fields is an exciting prospect.
"There is huge need not only for the high schools but for the amateur sports," he said. "There is just a shortage in all communities. Right now, we're kind of at the mercy of major venues."
These projects have been years in the making and now answer a question Valley skeptics have been asking just as long: Can Glendale deliver?
Absolutely, says City Manager Ed Beasley.
"Whatever we said we were going to do, we've done," he said Friday.
City officials approved the land-lease agreement with the Pendergast family this week for the use of about 14 acres at 91st Avenue and Bethany Home Road, just east of the Cardinals football stadium.
With the agreement, Glendale forges a stronger partnership with the Fiesta Bowl, one of college football's top bowl games. The Pendergast acreage will provide land for game-day festivities.
The 30-year lease will cost taxpayers about $227,000 the first year and increase slightly each year after that, but sales taxes and money generated by the area's activities should wash out those costs. It also allows the city to tap into as much as $1 million from the Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority to develop the multilayered project.
Turf fields will double as lots for 1,500 overflow parking spots during major sporting events, such as the Fiesta Bowl and Super Bowl. Locker rooms and restrooms will be available as "luxury" tailgating amenities. The fields also will create a greenbelt buffer between the $370 million football stadium and nearby neighborhoods.
It's good news for residents, such as Spencer Hazzard, 60, who live across the street.
"We think it's going to be a great area," he said of the youth sports fields. "It's going to be a great place to walk and relax. And if there are kids' soccer games over there - we don't have any kids that age - we'd enjoy going over and watching the kids."
Brad Parker, a spokesman for the sports authority who had not yet seen the details of the deal, said that in principle it is "everything we've been working toward."
He said using turf fields as parking lots is a novel idea.
"It's a great win for the city, but it still gives us room for Fiesta Bowls and Super Bowls," he said. "We've been trying all along to stay away from just a sea of asphalt. This is a great concept, and it really works out well for everyone involved."
The area will include a 30,000-square-foot Fiesta Bowl complex, marking the organization's first development in the West Valley. The organization's main offices are still on track to open in Scottsdale.
John Junker, executive director of the Fiesta Bowl, said the project makes a "tremendous amount of sense."
"We're excited because we know it helps the city," he said. "We see it as a plus in terms of providing athletic opportunities for Glendale's families and kids and to continue grow our presence in the West Valley."
Sealing this deal is another in the city's string of sporting and economic successes.
A few weeks ago, the Ellman Cos. broke ground on Westgate, a project around the Glendale Arena that promises to bring unprecedented nightlife and entertainment options to the West Valley.
Three years ago, Glendale officials made a pact with the Phoenix Coyotes for that arena, which hosts concerts, the Arizona Sting lacrosse team and promises to bring an NHL All-Star weekend in 2006.
Glendale also swept East Valley cities in the competition to win the Cardinals football stadium, which will bring a Fiesta Bowl game in 2007, possibly a second college bowl game once every four years and the Super Bowl in 2008.
What land deal means
The nearly 14 acres of land east of the Arizona Cardinals football stadium will provide for several community benefits:
• A 3-acre stadium with multiuse ball fields and bleacher seating for youth- and community-sports events.
• Restrooms and locker rooms available for "luxury" tailgating.
• 1,500 overflow parking spaces during major sports events.
• An area for game-day festivities.
• A 30,000-square-foot Fiesta Bowl complex.
• A more prominent Fiesta Bowl presence in the West Valley.
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/1030sportscenter30.html
Monica Alonzo-Dunsmoor
The Arizona Republic
Oct. 30, 2004 12:00 AM
A deal forged this week between Glendale and a longtime farming family completes the groundwork for a mega sports and entertainment complex.
It also marks the Fiesta Bowl's entry into the West Valley, where the college football game will move in 2007.
The land deal is the last major piece in a puzzle that, when completed, will form the biggest such complex in the Valley, boasting professional hockey and football for sports fans, youth sports fields for families and amateur sports enthusiasts and a 6 million-square-foot center with shopping, dining and entertainment options for everyone.
In about 18 months, the community will have a 3-acre youth- and community-sports stadium with seating and multiuse fields, a much-needed venue for such events.
Chuck Schmidt, assistant executive director of the Arizona Interscholastic Association, said the arrival of more ball fields is an exciting prospect.
"There is huge need not only for the high schools but for the amateur sports," he said. "There is just a shortage in all communities. Right now, we're kind of at the mercy of major venues."
These projects have been years in the making and now answer a question Valley skeptics have been asking just as long: Can Glendale deliver?
Absolutely, says City Manager Ed Beasley.
"Whatever we said we were going to do, we've done," he said Friday.
City officials approved the land-lease agreement with the Pendergast family this week for the use of about 14 acres at 91st Avenue and Bethany Home Road, just east of the Cardinals football stadium.
With the agreement, Glendale forges a stronger partnership with the Fiesta Bowl, one of college football's top bowl games. The Pendergast acreage will provide land for game-day festivities.
The 30-year lease will cost taxpayers about $227,000 the first year and increase slightly each year after that, but sales taxes and money generated by the area's activities should wash out those costs. It also allows the city to tap into as much as $1 million from the Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority to develop the multilayered project.
Turf fields will double as lots for 1,500 overflow parking spots during major sporting events, such as the Fiesta Bowl and Super Bowl. Locker rooms and restrooms will be available as "luxury" tailgating amenities. The fields also will create a greenbelt buffer between the $370 million football stadium and nearby neighborhoods.
It's good news for residents, such as Spencer Hazzard, 60, who live across the street.
"We think it's going to be a great area," he said of the youth sports fields. "It's going to be a great place to walk and relax. And if there are kids' soccer games over there - we don't have any kids that age - we'd enjoy going over and watching the kids."
Brad Parker, a spokesman for the sports authority who had not yet seen the details of the deal, said that in principle it is "everything we've been working toward."
He said using turf fields as parking lots is a novel idea.
"It's a great win for the city, but it still gives us room for Fiesta Bowls and Super Bowls," he said. "We've been trying all along to stay away from just a sea of asphalt. This is a great concept, and it really works out well for everyone involved."
The area will include a 30,000-square-foot Fiesta Bowl complex, marking the organization's first development in the West Valley. The organization's main offices are still on track to open in Scottsdale.
John Junker, executive director of the Fiesta Bowl, said the project makes a "tremendous amount of sense."
"We're excited because we know it helps the city," he said. "We see it as a plus in terms of providing athletic opportunities for Glendale's families and kids and to continue grow our presence in the West Valley."
Sealing this deal is another in the city's string of sporting and economic successes.
A few weeks ago, the Ellman Cos. broke ground on Westgate, a project around the Glendale Arena that promises to bring unprecedented nightlife and entertainment options to the West Valley.
Three years ago, Glendale officials made a pact with the Phoenix Coyotes for that arena, which hosts concerts, the Arizona Sting lacrosse team and promises to bring an NHL All-Star weekend in 2006.
Glendale also swept East Valley cities in the competition to win the Cardinals football stadium, which will bring a Fiesta Bowl game in 2007, possibly a second college bowl game once every four years and the Super Bowl in 2008.
What land deal means
The nearly 14 acres of land east of the Arizona Cardinals football stadium will provide for several community benefits:
• A 3-acre stadium with multiuse ball fields and bleacher seating for youth- and community-sports events.
• Restrooms and locker rooms available for "luxury" tailgating.
• 1,500 overflow parking spaces during major sports events.
• An area for game-day festivities.
• A 30,000-square-foot Fiesta Bowl complex.
• A more prominent Fiesta Bowl presence in the West Valley.
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/1030sportscenter30.html
Last edited:
