Sometimes...it just doesn't work

I've always been interested in the behind-the-scenes workings of sports business. The team sales, new arenas, relocations - that sort of thing. But, lately, I've been thinking about this fact: sometimes a new arena or a new location just doesn't work.

The National Hockey League's (NHL) Phoenix Coyotes are a great example of how both a new arena and a new location don't really work for a franchise.

The Phoenix Coyotes moved from Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1996. When the franchise was the Winnipeg Jets, they struggled in a fairly bad market with a below-par arena. Matter of fact, the Jets almost moved to the Twin Cities as a replacement for our beloved North Stars, who headed south to Dallas a couple years before.

The Phoenix area beat out the Twin Cities for the struggling Jets. The first couple seasons, the newly-renamed Coyotes shared an arena in downtown Phoenix with the NBA's Suns. A couple seasons later, the Coyotes moved west to Glendale, AZ where they have played ever since.

But now, the Coyotes are even struggling in Glendale at the Jobing.com Arena. And, according to the article linked above (click on "Sometimes...it just doesn't work") and others floating around on the Internet, the Coyotes must find a local buyer by the end of this year, or the NHL will allow the team to move backto Winnipeg.

This is not new. You may remember, several years ago, Los Angeles lost not one but both of it's National Football League (NFL) franchises. The Rams moved east to Saint Louis, and the Raiders, moved back to Oakland; where they had left about 17 years prior. The Rams moved into a downtown domed stadium in Saint Louis, and the Raiders moved back to the dingy, old stadium (albeit some renovations) in Oakland they had left behind.

There have been rumors that the NBA's Sacramento Kings might move back to Kansas City, where they departed in 1985, to a more modern, shiny new arena just outside of downtown Kansas City.

There are the relocation successes: Washington Senators moving to the Twin Cities in 1961. Baltimore Colts moving (to the shock of everyone) to Indianapolis in 1983. Houston Oilers moving to Nashville circa 1996; and these are just a few. But, apparently, relocation to a shiny, new arena in another city, sometimes just doesn't work as well as expected.

As for the final fate of the Coyotes - stay tuned.

Rare, yes. Impossible, not really.

Sorry it's been so long since I wrote. Of course, I haven't had too much to write about, at least that I could think of. Until yesterday that is.

Hopefully, everyone made it home OK after the surprise tornado that hit Minneapolis yesterday. The National Weather Service has now confirmed that it was in fact, a tornado. It was all over the news yesterday, and even WCCO having a piece about the myth of, "tornados don't hit urban areas."

They certainly do. Yesterday's storm in Minneapolis may not have been as catastrophic as it could have been, but other downtowns in metro areas across the country have been much less fortunate, and just in the last few years. 1999, a massive F5 tornado tears through downtown Oklahoma City. In 1997, a tornado touched down near downtown Miami.

A tornado ripped through Fort Worth, TX in 2000. Just last year, a tornado tore through downtown Atlanta in March. If that wasn't unusual enough, a tornado had NEVER touched down in downtown Atlanta prior to last year's storm, which happened amidst the SEC college basketball tournament. And, stranger still, several years ago, a "microburst" hit downtown Salt Lake City. A funnel cloud that disappeared as quickly as it came down, but not before doing some small damage to the area, including the Delta Center (now the Energy Solutions Arena).

Yesterday's storm ripped through a neighborhood not too far from my office. Matter of fact, a good portion of the damage was just on the other side of 35W from us. At about 2pm, on what was just a normal day, our power went out. It had been raining steadily all day, but nothing prepared us (or anyone for that matter) for what was to come. We heard reports that a tornado was somewhere in the area.

As we moved downstairs, then the sirens decided to sound. Add to that, a belated birthday party, in a darkened basement with just a few candles and a flashlight. Everyone, including myself, on cell phones trying to get the latest from family members. It truly was a day to remember.

Incidentally, I remember the last tornado that touched down in that area, in 1981. I was all of 3 years old, but I remember that day vividly. We lived in a four-plex on Garfield Avenue South in Minneapolis. I vaguely remember hearing the EBS sound on TV, our power went out, and we went downstairs. The tornado hopped over our four-plex, but did some damage about four blocks from us. This was the same storm that took the roof off of Har Mar Mall in Roseville.

Funny, we spent all of August 18 talking about Brett Favre. How quickly the news can change. Oddly enough, the last time a big sports story happened in the Twin Cities, another incident took it's place shortly after. Kevin Garnett was traded to the Boston Celtics on Monday, July 30, 2007. Two days later, the 35W bridge collapsed.

What's Happening to Block E?

I know, this is a more local post, but it really irks me that GameWorks is leaving the Block E development in Downtown Minneapolis.
To give a little background, several years ago, a development was built across the street from Target Center, that included a hotel. It was designed to revitalize the entertainment district in downtown.
One of its anchors, Borders Books, already closed a couple years ago. And, it appears that GameWorks, another anchor, is going to follow suit.
In a letter to the editor published in the Minneapolis StarTribune today, the writer suggested they tear down Block E, move the Schubert Theatre there, relocate a bar, and plant trees where the Theatre stands now. In essence, his message was, put everything back the way it was in 1998.
What bothers me, is that Target Field opens in less than a year. There are no restaurants in close proximity to the stadium. Block E seems that it would have been a perfect pre- or post-game spot. Target Field, walk across 394 on Target Plaza, walk past Target Center, and there you are. Hard Rock Cafe and all.
It is unfortunate. Hopefully things will start to look up again for the Block E development. I would assume, that the Graves601 Hotel that is a part of that development will be the preferred hotel for opposing teams when they come to town.
What else would there be for the players to do in their free-time, if the arcade is shut down? God forbid you go over to CityCenter. There's nothing to do there either. I think the owners of GameWorks should have waited it out, to see if the ballpark would have created any new customers.
And, if all goes well, and the Twins score the 2014 MLB All Star Game, who knows what Block E could have provided for all the folks that come to town for that as well.
I guess we will never know.

Thanks for reading.