“Please Sir, I want some more.” Such spoke Oliver Twist, begging the cook at the orphanage for another spoonful of gruel. We KC Wizards fans ask for similar sustenance – a pro soccer specific stadium. And we are not alone. We form part of the Major League Soccer orphanage, of fans destined to fill half-empty American football parks or pack decadent decades-old baseball stadiums. “Please, Sir, I want some more.” The global recession aside, what has gone wrong in each case?
Bleeding Kansas
The KC Wizards currently play at Community America Ballpark, and I wont rehash my previous criticisms. The original stadium plan called for a location to Kansas City, MO, where the old Bannister mall was destroyed. The plan was urban revitalization, which has gone the way of the dodo given current lending restrictions.
And then, as Back Post reports, Kansas City, KS entered the picture. White knight or opportunistic vulture? Nobody can deny the success of the KC Legends entertainment area, which provides dozens of bars for post, pre, and postnatal game festivities. While the current Community America Ballpark lacks soccer design, the location is killer.
And unlike the lead-footed KCMO government, Wyandotte County has moved with the speed and cunning of an in-form Davey Arnaud. No agreement has been reached, but both sides look at one another with a lover´s eye.
Load of Red Bull
The year is 2008. You are a Red Bulls fan. Your beloved Metrostars have pried away the allegedly talented Juan Carlos Osorio and a new stadium is in the works. Your team makes the finals. The stadium is in the works. The 2009 season starts poorly. The stadium is in the works. Juan Carlos Osorio resigns. The stadium is in the works.
The good news is that the stadium should be ready for 2010. The bad news is we´ve heard that story before. The official NYRB site still lists the Meadowlands, which has the charm of a dilapidated mausoleum. The story is simple: construction delays. At least ground has been broke.
And the virtual rendition has been completed.
DC Divided
The DC situation mirrors Kansas City – a city council that is all smiles until the time comes to open up a wallet. But there is one difference – no white knight has appeared to save the Barra Brava from the dated confines of RFK American Football stadium.
RFK is in such bad shape that is has become a hazard to fans.
I like RFK´s location in the District near a metro stop. In fact, RFK shares the same stop as the City jail! But dont worry – the daily headcount is almost always one or two off.
However, the parking lot is a death trap for players and fans alike.
We dream of a brighter future, of foster parents who will love and nourish us with regulation goalposts and appropriate chalklines. But until that day comes, we choke back tears and chow on gruel.