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southernindianaballer

southernindianaballer

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I heard a couple people were in TH today with ISU and local officials looking at the riverfront area for stadium/convention ideas. Heard a dome is being considered? Is this true? Anyone else hear this?
 

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Assume the two options are... add to the Hulman Center or move to the riverfront area... Riverfront, IMHO, gives more space, parking (build garage) and easier access for big rigs. Go with a multifunction, large space, type of facility that can be partitioned off and function as a football, soccer, indoor track facility for ISU and even high school teams in order to get optimum utilization for the community... Big enough to support Diesel Fest activities and bring those patrons to the riverfront and downtown areas for some additional tax revenue. Big enough for medium size fireman shows, tractor pulls, etc. A couple small convention areas for nice receptions, chamber events, etc. A combination of permanent and retractable seating and curtains can be utilized to support the multifunction idea. Just a thought that RHIT and SMW could also utilize the facility for special indoor sporting events. Seating of about 18k for football? Remember, student population is growing along with retention. Scenario: ISU funds 30 million, TH/Vigo funds 30 million plus their 2 million per year to fund extra and pay down debt.
Here is a 30 million dollar multi function indoor football facility and convention center... We should be able to get something pretty nice for 60 million.
https://www.crsfieldhouse.com/
Again, 30 million for that facility with nice conference space. Think about it...
 
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I’ll believe it when I see it. I hope they do it right, but my hometown is a lot like the Palestinians - they never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.

It makes more sense to partner with ISU on a multipurpose football stadium/convention center than it did to build the convention center onto HC, but that bridge got totally torched last year.

Pair this with a resort/casino and you could have the makings of something sustainable. If it’s done right. These are building blocks, not the endgame. And that’s where it will fall apart.
 
To give both ISU and TH some credit, the revitalization of the downtown and campus has been pretty remarkable. It's taken a really long time, but both would be hardly recognizable if you traveled back in time 20 years. I think good things will come in another decade or two, but hopefully sooner.
 
Hautians who don't want to spend an extra 20 cents at Chilis or Real Hacienda are the same ones who complain and say there is nothing to do in Terre Haute lol
 
bent20 said:
To give both ISU and TH some credit, the revitalization of the downtown and campus has been pretty remarkable. It's taken a really long time, but both would be hardly recognizable if you traveled back in time 20 years. I think good things will come in another decade or two, but hopefully sooner.
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Everytime I'm there with my kids they learn new words associated with not being able to find something that was there back then. they sound like the words I use when they golf with me.
 

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Jason Svoboda said:
Who's paying for it?
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I heard you were issuing some chump change and getting naming rights for the Bodadome.
Really, TH/Vigo seem to be committed to 30 mill or so... Let's be real.... if ISU truly wants to step up they can find 30 mill too. They always find it when it's needed. Using a facility for football, soccer, etc. Is a small part of the year which is why a partnership with TH/Vigo makes sense. I think the ROI is there if they are committed to utilization. You agree Or disagree? Commitment there?
 
southernindianaballer said:
I heard you were issuing some chump change and getting naming rights for the Bodadome.
Really, TH/Vigo seem to be committed to 30 mill or so... Let's be real.... if ISU truly wants to step up they can find 30 mill too. They always find it when it's needed. Using a facility for football, soccer, etc. Is a small part of the year which is why a partnership with TH/Vigo makes sense. I think the ROI is there if they are committed to utilization. You agree Or disagree? Commitment there?
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My question would be how much does the school sink into memorial stadium each year just to keep it usable? In the long run, would 30 million for a new facility with much less upkeep make more fiscal sense than the continued money pit of memorial?
 

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southernindianaballer said:
I heard you were issuing some chump change and getting naming rights for the Bodadome.
Really, TH/Vigo seem to be committed to 30 mill or so... Let's be real.... if ISU truly wants to step up they can find 30 mill too. They always find it when it's needed. Using a facility for football, soccer, etc. Is a small part of the year which is why a partnership with TH/Vigo makes sense. I think the ROI is there if they are committed to utilization. You agree Or disagree? Commitment there?
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It will be interesting to see what happens.

I don't think Indiana State is going to be involved this time around - I could be wrong but I feel like that ship has probably sailed. They might be part of a land swap or something like that to help make it possible. But I think it would be a bit of a reach to think they would reengage in athletic facility / convention center talks again. I'd be a bit surprised if Gibson let that happen.

Riverfront? Maybe... I'd love to see us develop that resource and keep the momentum going. So many other cities have seen growth and revitalization around river fronts. I just have a had time believing that Terre Haute can get everything together to make that happen. I just don't think this city has the money. Be it individual wealth, business wealth, or fiscal strength of our local government. I just feel like we have too much working against us to make that become a reality. Although I am behind the effort 100% and would love to see it happen.

Maybe even more interesting is the drastic ebb and flow of our conversation surrounding our football program. Annually, we have a discussion that last around 2 to 4 months about the long term viability of our football program. Each year it feels like more and more people seem to agree that the writing is on the wall. Then miraculously the conversation shifts to the hope of building a new stadium. Meanwhile the reality of the matter lies in the middle - our football program continues to struggle and our facility continues to suck. The fact that we have discussed both scenarios year in and year out is ridiculous.
 
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southernindianaballer said:
I heard you were issuing some chump change and getting naming rights for the Bodadome.
Really, TH/Vigo seem to be committed to 30 mill or so... Let's be real.... if ISU truly wants to step up they can find 30 mill too. They always find it when it's needed. Using a facility for football, soccer, etc. Is a small part of the year which is why a partnership with TH/Vigo makes sense. I think the ROI is there if they are committed to utilization. You agree Or disagree? Commitment there?
Click to expand...

southernindianaballer said:
... Let's be real.... if ISU truly wants to step up they can find 30 mill too. They always find it when it's needed...
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Can you defend your position of ISU truly wanting to "step up" and "find $30M"?
 
bent20 said:
To give both ISU and TH some credit, the revitalization of the downtown and campus has been pretty remarkable. It's taken a really long time, but both would be hardly recognizable if you traveled back in time 20 years. I think good things will come in another decade or two, but hopefully sooner.
Click to expand...

I agree with this. If you remember how the campus was in the 60's you are even more impressed. On the other had downtown TH was impressive at that time. As for now, things are definitely looking up in the downtown area.
 
4Q_iu said:
Can you defend your position of ISU truly wanting to "step up" and "find $30M"?
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I could defend it if I wanted to or if I made a statement that warranted defending... I said, "if ISU truly wants..." so there is nothing to defend... It is quite obvious that if any entity truly wants any particular thing bad enough they will find a way to get it - at least in most cases - so it is an implied assumption.
ISU has no problem finding that kind of money each year for expansion projects... and then some...
Frankly, I think an indoor facility without the conference area is something ISU can go alone... I new stadium is in the master plan.
 
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