THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 19, 1997 TAG: 9701210424
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 08 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: On the Street
SOURCE: Bill Reed
LENGTH: 65 lines
Rhockey might find a home, but it probably won't be in Hampton Roads.
That's the opinion of today's mystery guest analyst, a former professional sports team owner in Virginia - albeit a minor league one.
First, says Mr. Mystery Guest, there's the name recognition thing. It seems that when George Shinn, multimillionaire Tarheel - who is pushing the Rhino hockey deal here - approached National Hockey League owners with the concept of locating a team in Hampton Roads, their initial response was: ``Huh? Hampton what? Where's that?''
Next, says Mr. Mystery Guest, Shinn made a series of strategic errors in seeking to inject ``major league'' sports into Hampton Roads.
First, says Mr. Mystery Guest, he failed to contact Virginia Beach or Chesapeake officials to see if they were interested in having an NHL arena built within their boundaries. Norfolk apparently was his first and only port of call. Although Suffolk, Hampton or Newport News were not mentioned either, Mr. Mystery Guest contends leaders in these communities probably should have been consulted as well. It wouldn't be unlikely for big wigs in these communities to get their noses out of joint for such a slight.
Second, the proposed location of a Rhino area in downtown Norfolk is all wrong, Mr. Mystery Guest argues. There's no parking and little room to expand, unless Norfolk officials want to bulldoze a nearby public housing complex, as well as a bus station and a 36-year-old hotel built on a triangular tract at Brambleton and Monticello avenues. Traffic congestion in downtown Norfolk, already a problem, will become totally unmanageable with the coming of MacArthur Mall and the completion of the downtown campus of Tidewater Community College, he says.
A better site, said Mr. Mystery Guest, would be somewhere in the vicinity of the I-64 - I-264 interchange in Virginia Beach or Chesapeake. Such a site has not even been considered, but it would have easier access from all directions and more land available for development.
Third, says Mr. Mystery Guest, the median household income in Hampton Roads is low and has been dropping each year. There is only one Fortune 500 company in Hampton Roads, he adds, and it takes more than one to support fancy corporate hockey arena boxes that go for $20,000 to $50,000, plus hefty annual upkeep fees for the 25 to 30 years that it takes to pay off an arena mortgage.
Fourth, Mr. Mystery Guest asserts, the first step in becoming a ``major league'' sports hub is becoming a major league commercial hub. Blue chip corporations must be attracted to the area, he insists, and offers a strategy to attract them. Create a major airline hub in Norfolk or the Peninsula, he said. Charlotte did it and became a mighty commercial center capable of supporting a major league basketball franchise and major league cultural activities as well.
Fifth, Mr. Mystery Guest declares, National Hockey League game tickets are the most expensive in pro sports. Major league baseball tickets cost the least, he said. NBA and NFL tickets follow in ascending order.
This is bad news for the beer and burger crowd in Hampton Roads, which can barely afford an occasional $10 ducat to an Admirals or Tidewater Tides game. Shelling out $35 a ticket per person would soon have your average Navy man, construction worker, school teacher or bank clerk scurrying to the nearest loan officer to float a trip to a Rhinos game for a family of three or four. We're talking a $105 to $140 outlay before Dad even starts digging for dollars to pay for popcorn, hot dogs or soft drinks.
Any kind of local professional sports team must be supported by repeat customers. How many times can a beer and burgers guy afford a night out like that?
KEYWORDS: NHL FRANCHISE ARENA