Stadium Figures, a website published by another concerned resident, examines something that hasn't got a lot of coverage:
the proposed stadium is directly on the flight path of airplanes in and out of San Jose Airport.
This raises a few issues:
- Noise. The predominant wind direction around here is out of the North. Airplanes take off into the wind. They will be at full power when they fly over the stadium. This stadium doesn't have a dome.
- Accidents. The stadium is within the "General Aviation Aircraft Accident Location Pattern"
And unlike all the big bad wolves who are huffing and puffing for NFL football, Stadium Figures are not blowing hot air. They've got references to back up all their facts and figures.
Check it out.
6 comments:
Noise is a non issue. The 49'ers practice in the flight path now, and aren't too worried about it.
The May 20th poster forgets that the payout back to the city requires meeting and concerts to be held at the stadium.
That the 49ers practice in a noisy area does not concern concert goers...they want to hear music not planes.
Do real football fans want to hear the game? Until the fans are aware they will not be able to hear the game its an issue.
This issue isn't how the players will deal with the noise.
The issue is that the noise level in the immediate flight path of a major airport makes such a venue unsuitable for entertainment events.
Many stadiums are in or near flight paths, sure it is a small distraction but, it can also be seen as a PLUS for tourism. Visitors flying into the South Bay area for the first time COULD (for once) see a world class sporting venue and think...
"hey, this isn't what I was told to expect from this town from others that have been here...it looks like the town is growing UP some"!
I do think more negotiation MUST take place...the owners must "pony up" more or be willing to share a greater portion of the income with the county right from the start.
There is 'risks', sure...but the potential benefits could be amazing.
Imagine having a quality ballpark in Santa Clara AND maybe one in San Jose, a beautiful airport expansion (completed) AND having the ability to see the NORTH BAY folks needing to take BART down to see a REAL sporting event instead of US always having to drag ourselves up to there neck of the woods and pay them to watch a team lose!!! (LOL)
Response to Scooter2Putt:
First, a slight correction - you mention some kind of revenue-sharing with the County, but please note that ONLY the CITY of Santa Clara is being put on the hook to subsidize a millionaire's NFL stadium - NOT the County. In fact, they - and not the city - would be the chief beneficiaries of what we Santa Clarans might be forced to pay for.
Second, the "potential benefits" being claimed for any stadium in Santa Clara are being completely overblown by stadium-subsidy proponents. For a reality check, consider the following two examples:
1. Note that Glendale, Arizona LOST $2.2M on Super Bowl XLII:
http://thesportseconomist.com/archive/2008_ 05_01__arch_file.htm
( Page down to "Some data on Glendale's Super Bowl", May 12, 2008 )
2. It gets even worse: Song-and-dance men sold Indianapolis on building the Lucas Oil Stadium for the Colts without properly accounting for its operating costs. Now, not only is Indianapolis dipping into its own reserves to cover the expenses of an NFL stadium that obviously cannot pay for itself - it may in fact be forced to pay off and refinance the construction bonds it sold to build the stadium:
http://santaclaraplaysfair.blogspot.com/2008/09/lucas-oil-stadium-operating-costs-mount.html
Finally, Santa Clara IS "grown up". We ARE a real city - and we surely don't need the drain of an NFL stadium which will drag us down and require further subsidies for years to come.
There is only one correct amount of subsidy for Dr. York's stadium from us as Santa Clarans - and that subsidy amount is exactly ZERO.
If this is as important to the team as we've been led to believe, then they can form the private partnerships necessary to build it and pay for it themselves.
- Bill Bailey, Treasurer,
Santa Clara Plays Fair
Noise is a non issue. What is at issue is why the City of Santa Clara should cough up $160M to subsidize a monopoly business that will consume community resources but make negligible contributions.
Yes, I know, it will provide jobs to people working 4 hour shifts 10 times a year. Yes, it will help millionaire players in Atherton. But is this worth $160M to citizens of Santa Clara???
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