keoadmin
09-21-2005, 01:51 PM
Let’s assume for a moment that the much-touted LVEC was summarily killed Tuesday night. There are those who will disagree of course, but let’s face it, when you don’t have a majority of council votes, you don’t have much of a project. Oh sure, we can study the North Block and argue over its merits as a proposed site for a while but let’s not forget that the area around the North Block is full of coal tar and would be astronomically expensive to clean up and work around. There are significant environmental liability issues, not to mention that if the North Block parking capacity is taken up by a building, local parking enthusiasts may actually have a legitimate complaint about the lack of space to park for hockey games.
Since the majority of councillors clearly stated an aversion to an Anglin Bay site, then let’s say, for the sake of argument, that at the moment Kingston does not have a Large Venue Entertainment Centre on the table. What does that mean? For starters, it means the Kingston Frontenacs will no doubt be looking for a new home. Fortunately for the Fronts, there is no short supply of cities that have, or would build, a new hockey arena if it meant attracting an OHL team. If you don’t know why the Fronts have difficulty attracting the best players and packing the stands with fans, go take a look at the Memorial Centre. Then look at full houses in Barrie, London and the rest of the cities with top-flight teams and reasonably new arenas. An interesting side note: Lots of times players in those cities just go to the rink and play hockey. They don’t always have to skate around flailing their arms in the air to lift the fog first.
Maybe losing the Frontenacs isn’t such a big deal. Maybe it’s no big deal either that concerts and stage plays and ice shows and big tournaments pass us by because of the deplorable condition of the Memorial Centre. Who needs all that ticket money and parking money and bar and restaurant and shopping money anyway? Who especially needs it downtown? Let the businesses on lower Princess Street rot in favour of big box strip malls in the west end. Who cares if the downtown deteriorates into shabbiness and Kingston’s tourism industry craters? Maybe we can ask the Fred Laflammes, Walter Fenlons, Kim Donovans and George Hoods to ask for more handouts. Since they seem so willing to dedicate time and expertise to raise money for the Grand Theatre and Market Square, why not ask them to find the cash to pave the roads, pick up the garbage and fix up some of the aging buildings and sewer pipes while they are at it?
Who or what do we have to thank for killing a project the citizens of Kingston clearly ordered Mayor Rosen and his council to deliver two years ago?
Politics. Eleven of 13 councillors voted in favour of the first set of task force recommendations, which included the Anglin Bay site. Why did so many councillors suddenly change their vote?
The Whig-Standard. To give credit where credit is due, the Whig has become far more balanced in its coverage of LVEC the last couple of weeks. Nonetheless, a year of one-sided reporting that focused mainly the complaints of the anti-arena group incited unnecessary controversy and skewed public opinion against the project.
Kingstonians Concerned About LVEC. A small group of citizens opposed to the Anglin Bay site have created a pressure cooker around this project. Those who dare hold a favourable opinion risk being subjected to public ridicule.
Kingston-think. It’s just not in the City of Kingston’s nature to accomplish anything. Debate, delay, defer, dawdle and invent unnecessary processes until big projects die a painful death.
-- I.M.Pertinent
Since the majority of councillors clearly stated an aversion to an Anglin Bay site, then let’s say, for the sake of argument, that at the moment Kingston does not have a Large Venue Entertainment Centre on the table. What does that mean? For starters, it means the Kingston Frontenacs will no doubt be looking for a new home. Fortunately for the Fronts, there is no short supply of cities that have, or would build, a new hockey arena if it meant attracting an OHL team. If you don’t know why the Fronts have difficulty attracting the best players and packing the stands with fans, go take a look at the Memorial Centre. Then look at full houses in Barrie, London and the rest of the cities with top-flight teams and reasonably new arenas. An interesting side note: Lots of times players in those cities just go to the rink and play hockey. They don’t always have to skate around flailing their arms in the air to lift the fog first.
Maybe losing the Frontenacs isn’t such a big deal. Maybe it’s no big deal either that concerts and stage plays and ice shows and big tournaments pass us by because of the deplorable condition of the Memorial Centre. Who needs all that ticket money and parking money and bar and restaurant and shopping money anyway? Who especially needs it downtown? Let the businesses on lower Princess Street rot in favour of big box strip malls in the west end. Who cares if the downtown deteriorates into shabbiness and Kingston’s tourism industry craters? Maybe we can ask the Fred Laflammes, Walter Fenlons, Kim Donovans and George Hoods to ask for more handouts. Since they seem so willing to dedicate time and expertise to raise money for the Grand Theatre and Market Square, why not ask them to find the cash to pave the roads, pick up the garbage and fix up some of the aging buildings and sewer pipes while they are at it?
Who or what do we have to thank for killing a project the citizens of Kingston clearly ordered Mayor Rosen and his council to deliver two years ago?
Politics. Eleven of 13 councillors voted in favour of the first set of task force recommendations, which included the Anglin Bay site. Why did so many councillors suddenly change their vote?
The Whig-Standard. To give credit where credit is due, the Whig has become far more balanced in its coverage of LVEC the last couple of weeks. Nonetheless, a year of one-sided reporting that focused mainly the complaints of the anti-arena group incited unnecessary controversy and skewed public opinion against the project.
Kingstonians Concerned About LVEC. A small group of citizens opposed to the Anglin Bay site have created a pressure cooker around this project. Those who dare hold a favourable opinion risk being subjected to public ridicule.
Kingston-think. It’s just not in the City of Kingston’s nature to accomplish anything. Debate, delay, defer, dawdle and invent unnecessary processes until big projects die a painful death.
-- I.M.Pertinent