Boston Unity Soccer’s core ownership group is composed of women who are investing in a women’s team that is expected to inspire young female student-athletes.
"It’s kind of ironic because I’ve spent my career coaching football and softball, and I put as much effort into coaching girls as I do coaching guys," Zizza said. "I understand they’re trying to empower women’s sports. No one is for that more than me, but at what expense ? For the football teams, this is kind of a kick in the butt."
This is LetsRun.com, not LetsFootball.com.
The reason we now have so few venues capable of hosting major track meets in this country is that, everytime a football/track stadium gets renovated, the track gets booted for more football seating/better sight lines. This appears to be the reason Maine was going to eliminate its outdoor track. So I'm all for a stadium getting renovated and they actually expand the track. And there's no shortage of alternative high school football venues in Boston.
Wealthy politically connected women trying to get the taxpayers to fund their screwball project. Outrageous. It's not a coincidence that the proposal comes when for the first time ever, females occupy the offices of Boston Mayor and Massachusetts Governor.
A 10,000 seat stadium for women's soccer. At least they'll create jobs for workers to dust off the empty seats. *********
Under the plan being put forward by the administration of Mayor Michelle Wu, the city and Boston Unity Soccer Partners will invest $50 million in the renovation of the stadium, which the soccer team will lease. The city has not yet determined how much of the funding will come from the soccer team. The planned renovations include reconstructing the facilities inside the grandstands, expanding the track from six to eight lanes and redeveloping the southern portion of the facility.
Louis Elisa, president of the Garrison Trotter Neighborhood Association, said that for several years he and other neighborhood activists have been asking the city for a traffic study of the area. While Irish said the city is putting together a team to conduct a study, Elisa countered that a traffic study should have come before the city decided on a plan for the stadium.
"They get it in their head what they want to do," he said of the city, "and then they try to bully you into agreeing with them."
In July, city officials announced a plan to lease White Stadium to a professional women’s soccer team, allowing for 20 games a year in a March 16 through Nov. 17 schedule. During that time, football will not be allowed on the...
The problem with this facility is that it could have a negative effect on the Cross Country course. The stands on what is the backstretch in the stadium will be taken down and a new building will be put up and will most likely alter the 1st and 4th loop. There's a chance that Cross Country will no longer be able to be held at the course. Also, if the stadium is being built for women's soccer, the track is going to be the secondary priority. I'm a big believer in the promotion of women's athletics but there are many more options of locations for this stadium that won't have such a negative effect on so many other sports.
There is indeed that possibility of the current XC course being unusable, particularly for larger / higher level meets as no discussions on the project nor artist renderings of the stadium have addressed the rebuilt stadium footprint on the existing XC course path. Moving from a track with 6 narrow lanes to an 8 lane track is going to require some side to side expansion. Also, no pictures have included field event locations, either for in-stadium jumps or out-of-stadium throws areas.
white stadium project is a waste of money, no wear to park thousands of people for any kind of event (BAA half marathon shuttles everyone in and XC at franklin park has no parking either). Not an event space, if Boston is going to build an outdoor track do it Moakley park. Nearby parking (bayside expo center) red line right there, could view of ocean and carson beach, etc.
white stadium project is a waste of money, no wear to park thousands of people for any kind of event (BAA half marathon shuttles everyone in and XC at franklin park has no parking either). Not an event space, if Boston is going to build an outdoor track do it Moakley park. Nearby parking (bayside expo center) red line right there, could view of ocean and carson beach, etc.
Moakley probably would have been a better location for the soccer stadium except its in a major floodplain. The expo lot is getting redeveloped and its technically illegal to park there anyways.
The new revolution stadium will be complete by 2027. The women should also play there.
1. Build a 10,000 seat stadium for women's soccer that no one is interested in (see WNBA) that will get maybe, if they're lucky, 1,000 people per game (2,000 maybe on the "community outreach weekend" when they bus-in local youth soccer teams directly from the Saturday games in the burbs, after bribing them free tickets, t-shirts, and food).
2. Kick-out local high school football programs that are predominately black and brown from an iconic, historical inner-city stadium.
3. Permanently alter a cross-country course used by thousands of people at the high school, collegiate, and club level drawing people to Boston from the entire state, Northeast, and country. While mark my words: any potential "remediation" to maintain the course along the back stretch before Bear Cage will be a neglected, laughable afterthought (ie. you'll run for 200m on pavement). Let me repeat that for all of us in the LRC community: maintaining the cross-country course will be an afterthought with this kind of project regardless of the lip service they pay us.
Krispy's Solution: have a modest but meaningful renovation and build-out of the existing structure. This would include everything from power-washing and fresh paint to full-rehab/build-out of the bathrooms, perhaps a modest new structure on existing grounds for locker-rooms/personnel-area/media and a build-out of seating along the southern turn.
This first step could be: done at a fraction of the cost, allow for there to be an updated/new feel to the existing facility, and, if I'm wrong and this team is miraculously successful, allow for future demolition and new-project build.
Otherwise, if they go through with their plan, what we'll get is: a wildly under-utilized facility that shuns locals/community with only a few exceptions (think Sanders over at the BU indoor track), the displacement of high school sports teams (predominantly black and brown), the permanent degradation of a portion of the cross-country course -- and ultimately, all of this will limp along for a few years before shutting down leaving us with a facility that is too nice for the regular public to use on a regular basis.
Any other stadiums have portable bleachers over the track? The Olympic stadium in London attempts to do this but for soccer I know people complain the angles aren't that great.
(Image: www.gogeomatics.ca) I’ve always enjoyed running on tracks, and I’ve always been fascinated by them. Maybe that makes me an eccentric. After all, I have the impression that most …
1. Build a 10,000 seat stadium for women's soccer that no one is interested in (see WNBA) that will get maybe, if they're lucky, 1,000 people per game (2,000 maybe on the "community outreach weekend" when they bus-in local youth soccer teams directly from the Saturday games in the burbs, after bribing them free tickets, t-shirts, and food).
2. Kick-out local high school football programs that are predominately black and brown from an iconic, historical inner-city stadium.
3. Permanently alter a cross-country course used by thousands of people at the high school, collegiate, and club level drawing people to Boston from the entire state, Northeast, and country. While mark my words: any potential "remediation" to maintain the course along the back stretch before Bear Cage will be a neglected, laughable afterthought (ie. you'll run for 200m on pavement). Let me repeat that for all of us in the LRC community: maintaining the cross-country course will be an afterthought with this kind of project regardless of the lip service they pay us.
Krispy's Solution: have a modest but meaningful renovation and build-out of the existing structure. This would include everything from power-washing and fresh paint to full-rehab/build-out of the bathrooms, perhaps a modest new structure on existing grounds for locker-rooms/personnel-area/media and a build-out of seating along the southern turn.
This first step could be: done at a fraction of the cost, allow for there to be an updated/new feel to the existing facility, and, if I'm wrong and this team is miraculously successful, allow for future demolition and new-project build.
Otherwise, if they go through with their plan, what we'll get is: a wildly under-utilized facility that shuns locals/community with only a few exceptions (think Sanders over at the BU indoor track), the displacement of high school sports teams (predominantly black and brown), the permanent degradation of a portion of the cross-country course -- and ultimately, all of this will limp along for a few years before shutting down leaving us with a facility that is too nice for the regular public to use on a regular basis.
Krispy says no.
It’s overbuilt for sure. 6-8,000 would be more reasonable. But they need to project high interest to make the numbers work on the investment.
What is sad is that the city can’t pay for the renovation themselves. Taxachusetts has fallen to one of the lowest taxed states in the country and investment in our youth is falling to pathetic levels. It’s tragic.
1. Build a 10,000 seat stadium for women's soccer that no one is interested in (see WNBA) that will get maybe, if they're lucky, 1,000 people per game (2,000 maybe on the "community outreach weekend" when they bus-in local youth soccer teams directly from the Saturday games in the burbs, after bribing them free tickets, t-shirts, and food).
2. Kick-out local high school football programs that are predominately black and brown from an iconic, historical inner-city stadium.
3. Permanently alter a cross-country course used by thousands of people at the high school, collegiate, and club level drawing people to Boston from the entire state, Northeast, and country. While mark my words: any potential "remediation" to maintain the course along the back stretch before Bear Cage will be a neglected, laughable afterthought (ie. you'll run for 200m on pavement). Let me repeat that for all of us in the LRC community: maintaining the cross-country course will be an afterthought with this kind of project regardless of the lip service they pay us.
Krispy's Solution: have a modest but meaningful renovation and build-out of the existing structure. This would include everything from power-washing and fresh paint to full-rehab/build-out of the bathrooms, perhaps a modest new structure on existing grounds for locker-rooms/personnel-area/media and a build-out of seating along the southern turn.
This first step could be: done at a fraction of the cost, allow for there to be an updated/new feel to the existing facility, and, if I'm wrong and this team is miraculously successful, allow for future demolition and new-project build.
Otherwise, if they go through with their plan, what we'll get is: a wildly under-utilized facility that shuns locals/community with only a few exceptions (think Sanders over at the BU indoor track), the displacement of high school sports teams (predominantly black and brown), the permanent degradation of a portion of the cross-country course -- and ultimately, all of this will limp along for a few years before shutting down leaving us with a facility that is too nice for the regular public to use on a regular basis.
Krispy says no.
1. Actually there is a lot of interest in NWSL recently. The last city I lived had games often sell out and other teams see similar. There is a lot more interest in this league than the WNBA - not similar situattion at all.
2-3 . See above. Women's soccer is hot right now. Boston is a good market for the nwsl team, but a new stadium should be built - not one that alters franklin park. There are plenty of colleges the women's team could play at in the interim. I agree with you on the rest.
A series of Boston Planning and Development Agency meetings about the proposed renovation of White Stadium for a proposed National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) team will continue online next Thursday at 6 p.m. – with construc...
Help us build the best running shoe review site for a chance to win a LetsRun t-shirt.Help us build the best running shoe review site for a chance to win one of 10 LetsRun t-shirts.
