As I predicted back in 2006 when it first came to light, Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey is pushing hard for the city to abandon Rosenblatt Stadium and build a new facility downtown, to seal his legacy and shore up the monied interests who are at present redeveloping "NoDo" (that's "North Downtown" to you and me) for their own economic benefit.
He is doing this, he says, because the total cost of re-renovating Rosenblatt is nearly identical to that of building new, and that therefore in the long run, building new is a better financial deal. He also claims this will ensure that Omaha can negotiate a 20-year contract to continue to hold the College World Series in Omaha, to the city's long-term financial and economic benefit.
I cannot quarrel with the facts and figures. I can quarrel with some of his assumptions and with some of the things he ignored in making this decision.
I am not opposed to a new ballpark per se. Rosenblatt is a wonderful place, but it does need more than mere renovation can feasibly provide. What I am opposed to is moving the stadium from the Rosenblatt site. Backers of the new stadium say that it will be more attractive and will give a view of Omaha's skyline [such as it is--Ed.] and will create synergy between the downtown hotels, the Qwest Center, and even the Old Market, by putting more entertainment options within walking distance of one another.
(1) Why would anyone prefer a view of Omaha's skyline to the wonderful, expansive, tree-filled vistas (and the Zoo) one sees from Rosenblatt?
(2) Why would anyone prefer to watch a ballgame in the middle of summer from a down-at-river-level concrete sauna to being up on a hill where the wonderful breezes make even the most humid day at the ballpark not just bearable, but enjoyable?
(3) Why would anyone enjoy playing a game in a ballpark where the pitching orientation is turned to show off that Omaha skyline when the players will suffer problems from the afternoon sun they wouldn't have if the field were oriented in the traditional direction?
(4) What's to guarantee that the NCAA won't just say "we don't do long-term contracts anymore--it's nice that you went to all the trouble, but all we're going to give you is another 5-year extension"? Fahey has been promising that a new stadium will guarantee Omaha keeps the College World Series for another 20 years. What's he going to say if and when this turns out not to be true? If I were the NCAA, I wouldn't care how long the CWS has been in Omaha--under current conditions, I wouldn't sign a long-term committment to play in ANY single location.
As I predicted in 2006, it's already a done deal, however, even if all the problems I note materialize. If an entirely new stadium is a "must have," I'd prefer to see Rosenblatt razed and the new stadium erected on the Rosenblatt site. But that's already been taken off the table. The Mayor says we'd lose the CWS for the year or more it would take to do that, and once we lose it, it's never coming back. But he and his study committee didn't show any facts or figures or statements from the NCAA to bolster that. It's just another assumption on the Mayor's part.
And now the Omaha Royals, Triple A farm team of the Kansas City Royals, may not stay--either in an Omaha-abandoned Rosenblatt or in the new stadium. I wonder, especially now that the big league Royals are winning again, if we can afford to lose the Omaha Royals forever for the sake of getting the two-week influx the CWS brings.
Even more, I wonder if the citizens of Omaha will support the CWS in a new stadium they way they always have at Rosenblatt. For the first two or three years, everyone will be enchanted by the new facility, I think. We all like our shiny new toys. Once "Reality" sets in about (1) the humidity with no breeze, (2) the afternoon sun problems due to the field facing the wrong way, and (3) the hassle of the locals having to drive to NoDo and pay $10 (or more) to park per game, however, I suspect that disenchantment with Fahey's Folly will grow . . . and the NCAA may move the CWS elsewhere due to lack of fan support. Indianapolis and Oklahoma City, to name just two, would love that.
In that case, we'd be out something like $140 million, the CWS, and the Omaha Royals. Talk about an economic disaster for the city and the entire metro area!
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