So the talk of new arenas has died down... bummer

So now they are going to remodel the Delta Center for the new hockey team instead of building a new arena.

On one hand that is great news. Some of these politicians and millionaire-billionaire sports franchise owners get drunk on their own ideas of spending our tax dollars on crap we don't need. Remodel the Delta Center? yeah, I can see that and justify that. 

Build a new arena? nah, c'mon. The Great Salt Lake is one or two bad years of snowpack away from disappearing and you want to spend your energy on dreaming of new sports arenas. Wake up! 

Now, on the other hand, I am kind of bummed. I was hoping with all this talk of building new arenas, (don't forget they are still trying to woo a new Major League Baseball team to Utah), I could present a plan to Salt Lake City and the legislature to get a bullfight arena built to help vitalize the city. 

I mean, it would be perfect. 

They are talking about revitalizing the Rio Grande area and building a new train station and all, maybe even one underground. They could put a Plaza de Toros right by the train station, just like they have in Valencia Spain. It would be perfect.

 

I can just picture a beautiful Plaza de Toros in an old Spanish architecture style right down there by the Rio Grand train station welcoming weary travelers to our bustling city.

We could hold a Spring Fair like Sevilla does in April and have a week of bullfigths, in July just like Pamplona we could do a running of the bulls through the streets of Salt Lake City in celebration of the 24th, and in the fall as the leafs are changing color and the weather is perfect in Utah we could have a Feria de Otoño like Madrid and Zaragoza and have a week of bullfights then too. The possibilities are endless.

And if the animal rights activists get their panties all in a knot like they probably would we could make the bullfights "bloodless bullfights" like they do in California. 

https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/bloodless-bullfighting-a-portuguese-tradition-kept-alive-in-central-valley/

And these wouldn't be amateur bullfights, we would get the biggest and best matadors. Do you know the most popular bullfighter in the world right now, and has been for the past few years, is a kid from Peru?  Andrés Roca Rey. 

He just had a very successful performance in Sevilla on April 20th where he was carried out "la Puerta del Principe" after cutting ears from both of his bulls that day. 

I mean, we could get him here, the Peruvian community would go crazy. It would be so awesome. We could tie it all together and have a huge Latin America festival with bullfights as the center piece. Sure, we'll have dances, concerts, farmer markets as part of it, but the bullfights will be the most important part.

But no, now that they have decided to be somewhat fiscally responsible and not build a new hockey arena I'm going to have to forego my dreams of having a world class Plaza de Toros in Utah. 

Hmmmm..... wait a minute. 

Ogden is kind of a dump, always has been. I know, I grew up there. 

They could use some revitalizing down and around the train station on Wall Ave. 

We could still do a running of the bulls through the streets of Ogden for the week of the 24th of July! 

This has possibilities !!!

Keep your calendar clear Roca Rey, I will get you to Utah yet to fight some bulls.

No new arena? Ryan Smith reveals new vision for Delta Center

(ksl.com 4-19-24)

Ryan Smith envisioned a new arena being constructed when he set out to bring in a National Hockey

League franchise to Utah, but that vision hit some snags.

There wasn't much land for a new arena in downtown Salt Lake City; and while he looked for land "south" of Utah's capital, following a trend in sports of relocating stadiums to the suburbs, there wasn't much support there from state or local leaders.

Smith, who finalized a deal to acquire and relocate the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday, was left to reimagine his initial vision.

His new plan — now that the NHL in Utah is a reality — is to remodel the nearly 33-year-old Delta Center and instead focus on ways to improve the city experience around the arena. It will also keep the Utah Jazz, the other team Smith owns, in downtown Salt Lake City.

"The entrance of the experience for this downtown isn't when you come in the door, it actually starts in the blocks surrounding," he said. "That's way more important to me than building a new arena."

Remodeling the Delta Center

The switch from considering a new arena to a revamped arena started with pushback from the Utah Legislature and local leaders, Smith explained during an introductory press conference Friday afternoon. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver also weighed in on stadium discussions.

But the biggest turning point may have come last week.

Smith said he was presented with a plan to remodel the interior of the existing Delta Center, which helped him stick with the new vision.

Interior renderings have not been released yet, but he said the plan would fix the arena's sight lines issues and bump the seating capacity to about 17,500 people — a significant boost from the 10,400 seats that were made available during NHL preseason games played at the arena in recent years. What's more, he said it wouldn't change the Jazz experience that much.

"We're using new technology to figure out — specifically on the ends, behind the hoops and behind the goals — to be able to turn from hockey to basketball, and back and forth," he said. "I'm actually super excited about it. I think it will be an improvement on the arena; it'll be an improvement of the fan experience."

Those adjustments would come "in relatively short order the next couple of years," according to Bettman, who has seen the proposal.

The vision, Bettman said, appears to be much less controversial than a brand new stadium, something that held up the Arizona Coyotes for years before this week's sale and relocation.

"I've been assured by a number of the local leaders that we'll have no arena drama. Based on where we came from, I'd prefer no arena drama," he said with a chuckle.

Minimal construction is expected to take place this summer to prepare for having a second home team in the arena. This would include a new locker room for the new NHL team. A genuine remodel of the arena could begin as early as next year, but that may depend on what happens between local and state leaders over the part of the project Smith says he's now more invested in.

A reinvestment zone

Friday's update comes after Smith Entertainment Group applied to partner with Salt Lake City on a downtown "revitalization" zone on April 4. It launched what will be a series of processes outlined in a bill that the Utah Legislature passed this year to set up the zone.

The legislation allows for a district of up to 100 acres in downtown Salt Lake City surrounding an NBA or NHL arena.

The group's proposal has yet to be publicly released; however, Smith dropped some hints on Friday about what is included. He said he would like to see more residential spaces surrounding the arena and more places for people to stick around downtown before or after a game.

He added he'd like to see some adjustments to existing downtown locations, such as the Salt Palace Convention Center across 300 West from the arena, so the whole area can "come flow together a little bit better."

The biggest hurdle is how it all gets funded. The bill authorizes Salt Lake City to implement a sales tax increase of up to 0.5% for 30 years within "the local government's boundaries" to help pay for projects or repay bonds used to make improvements within the district.

Salt Lake City Councilman Darin Mano said he's excited that professional sports is slated to remain in downtown Salt Lake City. He's also happy that Smith is interested in bringing in more residential spaces and entertainment options to the area, something that the City Council has looked at for years.

Yet that doesn't mean he's completely sold on approving the tax increase.

"Raising our sales tax is not a small thing, and I don't take it lightly," he said. "It's going to be really big, and I think (there are going to be) really difficult conversations."

If approved, the state would also sign off on any agreement. All of this would have to be completed by the end of the year.

Mano said he's not sure what happens if any of it falls apart.

Smith sidestepped that thought, instead focusing on the plan ahead. That plan, he said, goes beyond sports. He argues it's something that can help Salt Lake City as it continues to grow.

"This isn't about the arena. ... It's actually about having more flow, more energy, more passion, more activity, more arts, more education and being able to look back 30 years from now and saying that's the center of Salt Lake City, that's a center of Utah. That's where it starts," Smith said. "These are the things that we're needing to reimagine."

https://www.ksl.com/article/50986404/no-new-arena-ryan-smith-reveals-new-vision-for-delta-center

With NHL hockey coming to SLC, will RSL become even less relevant?

So, it's happening, professional hockey is coming to SLC. And with it I predict RSL will become even less relevant than it already is.

I listen to 700 ESPN radio quite a bit, at least to the Bill Riley show and the Drive with Spence Checketts. And I have to say, even though they do talk about RSL once in awhile, they are all ga-ga over the NHL coming to Utah. I can't see them taking RSL seriously once hockey season is in full swing. Nor can I see the casual sports fan caring about RSL anymore once they attend a fast-paced hard-hitting hockey game and discover what they've been missing.

And who can blame them? In my opinion, because of rampant and greedy expansion to the highest bidder, MLS and US Soccer have diluted whatever excitement soccer once enjoyed in this country.

But what do I know? I'm just a guy that lived and breathed soccer and now can't even stand to watch five minutes of a match. 

Messi who? Is he even a thing any more?

Oh, and people say it won't matter because the NHL season won't overlap the MLS season much. Umm... yes it will. NHL regular season runs October through April pretty much, with the playoffs in the month of May and the Stanley Cup in June. 

July, August, and September are the only months MLS won't have to contend with NHL. 

But of course those months are now dominated by talk of the upcoming college football season so.... yeah. 

When is the lease up at Rio Tinto stadium? (or whatever the name of the stadium is now?) How soon before we hear talk of the team possibly relocating?

Don't scoff, it could easily happen. 

San Antonio once wanted a team. Phoenix and Detroit too. 

NHL's executive committee has reportedly approved Coyotes' move to Salt Lake City

(ksl.com 4-15-24) 

Utah is a step closer to landing a NHL team.

The NHL's executive committee has approved the move of the Arizona Coyotes to Salt Lake City, according to a report from Sportico. The relocation vote will now go to the league's Board of Governors, which is expected to approve the franchise's move to Salt Lake City for the 2024-25 season.

The executive committee features 10 franchise owners; the Board of Governors includes all 32 franchises.

It's a complicated transaction that will feature the league purchasing the team from Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo and then selling it to Ryan Smith for $1.2 billion, according to multiple reports. Meruelo will receive $1 billion with the other $200 million going to the NHL.

While Arizona's hockey operations department — including the players, coaching staff, and front office — will be relocated to Utah, the Coyotes' name will remain in Arizona. Meruelo will maintain the name, logos and trademark as part of the deal and will be given priority for an expansion club, per multiple reports.

Meruelo will continue to pursue building an arena and stadium district with the hopes of resurrecting the Coyotes in the future. He'll have five years to get that done, according to Politico. If he's successful, he'll pay back the $1 billion for the expansion franchise.

The Coyotes will begin its Utah era in the Delta Center while a new arena project is developed in Salt Lake City. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed SB272 last month, setting up a "Capital City Revitalization Zone," which includes funding for a new arena.

"Utah has the foundation of being the next major sports and entertainment destination in the United States," a Utah Senate statement said in January. "With the fastest growing economy, youngest population in the country and a long history as a premier winter sports destination, Utah is excited about the prospect of being the new home to an NHL franchise."

General manager Bill Armstrong told the Coyotes players and coaches about the move Friday before their game in Edmonton, Canada — a move that sources have described as him "going rogue." The deal wasn't yet done, but with reports of the move being imminent, he wanted to give the team some clarity.

"I think our guys showed a lot of character in the last week," Coyotes coach Andre Tourigny, who will remain the coach in Salt Lake City.

Since the relocation news first broke last week, the Coyotes — who currently have the sixth-worst record in the league — strung together two overtime wins against playoff teams.

The Coyotes will play their final game in Arizona on Wednesday at the 5,000-seat Mullet Arena. The Coyotes moved to Arizona from Winnipeg in 1997.

"How about I digest that one?" Tourigny said when asked how he'll prepare for that farewell game. "We'll figure that out. It'll be a day off tomorrow (Monday), well-earned after that long trip and all the emotion."

https://www.ksl.com/article/50981168/nhls-executive-committee-has-reportedly-approved-coyotes-move-to-salt-lake-city