Montgomery OKs plans for Stuart Sports Complex - The Beacon News - Aurora (IL)

MONTGOMERY — Plans for the Stuart Sports Complex are closer to reality after a unanimous vote by the Village Board.

The Fox Valley Park District has been in the planning stages for the Stuart complex expansion for the past few years. Recently revised plans for the facility sport a price tag of $8.6 million, and call for soccer fields, lighted baseball and softball fields, a dog park, playgrounds, walking trails and other amenities.

"What about areas that won't require a fee for the public?" asked Stan Bond.

He said the public would like to have access to open areas for general recreation. "Is there gong to be a place to fly a kite?" he asked.

"We will have those open spaces and are working on plans for general use," said Jeff Palmquist, director of planning, development and grants with the Park District.

Palmquist said in the winter those spaces may be used for cross-country skiing.

In other action this week, trustees raised several questions about village zoning requirements in relation to the new Gray's Mill restaurant at 211 N. River St.

Gray's Mill was seeking a special use ordinance that allows the establishment to serve alcohol during outside events.

The restaurant along the Fox River will have a bar that overlooks the water as well as a special outdoor tent for wedding and banquet receptions.

Under a recent village ordinance, the owners would have to install a bike rack outside the restaurant. The owner of Gray's Mill, Tim Ivers, told trustees he would do whatever they want him to do.

Trustees questioned the current requirement for bike racks at new businesses.

"All new developments in the village require bicycle racks to comply with zoning," said Michael Brown, village planner.

The requirement has been in place since January 2007. Jamie Belongia, assistant to the village manager, said the issue was raised when the village made the decision to be greener and promote pedestrian friendly areas.

"Do we want to look at this policy?" Mayor Marilyn Michelini asked. "This community has a history of supporting bicycles."

Brown said the ordinance requires bicycle racks but doesn't specify how large or how many spaces are needed to comply. He said bike racks for one to two bicycles can be purchased for as little as $24 to $100.

Volunteers Bring Naches Sports Complex to Life - Yakima Herald-Republic

If you want to get something done, do it yourself.

That's just what a group of volunteers did in the town of Naches,population 715. They proposed a regional park to be called theClemans View Park and Sports Complex, and then built two baseballfields relying almost entirely on donated labor and equipment in twoyears.

'Here's a project that is working, it isn't falling flat. We'regoing to have kids playing there this spring,' said Joe Holman,treasurer for Upper Valley Sports and Recreation Association basedin Naches. The nonprofit group formed in early 1999.

Two more baseball fields should be completed by this spring,possibly in time for Little League baseball opening day.

The association has already remodeled the former Boot and SpurClubhouse, adding a stage, a fireplace and wraparound deck. At timesthe volunteers, headed by Jeff Ranger, a seasonal worker for theNaches ranger district, worked by the light of their automobileheadlights.

The association has estimated that its ambitious project willhave a $500,000 price tag, but Holman said the group thinks it canget the job done with volunteers and donations.

This summer, the fearless volunteers will begin work on:

-- two tennis courts;

-- an adult soccer field and two youth soccer fields, which couldalso be used for football;

-- a concession stand with restrooms;

-- a parking lot;

-- a small paved trail similar to the Yakima Greenway's paths,following the course of the Naches River;

-- picnic tables.

The trail and picnic tables may not be typical ball parkfeatures, but Holman said they will be important to this park.

'This is the gateway to the Yakima Valley if you are coming fromthe west side. This shows what the Yakima Valley is all about,' hesaid.

During the summer, the association will develop the tennis courtsand soccer fields on The Boot and Spur Club, which disbanded in 1999and donated the 18-acre plot of land, the former rodeo grounds justsouth of Naches off Highway 12.

Donors, such as Superior Asphalt & Concrete Co. of Yakima, havealready offered to donate materials and equipment for a parking lot.Coca Cola of Yakima donated scoreboards.

The association will raise money through clubhouse rentals andoffer the ball fields for regional sports events, as well as UpperValley Youth, the local Little League.

Much has been accomplished, but much remains to be done,association members say. Holman cautioned the project still needsvolunteers and donations. Work on the project resumes in February,and the target date to finish is next fall.

Dean Patterson, a county planner, said that the baseball fields,which are set on a 13-acre parcel, were approved in late 1999.Although the planning department attached a dozen conditions, that'sa good sign, Patterson said.

Sports Complex In Boston Has It All - Except Name - Chicago Sun-Times

BOSTON The new arena that will replace the storied Boston Gardenis almost done. Its roof arches across the city skyline, and itsinterior is being fitted with all the amenities of a modern sportscomplex.

Only one thing's missing: a name.

It was supposed to be called Shawmut Center; 15,000 seat numbertags already were emblazoned with the name and the profile of aShawmut Indian leader, Chief Obbatinewat, at a cost of $18,000.

That's now unlikely. Fleet Financial Group announced last weekthat it will buy the arena's owner, Shawmut National Bank. Includedin the $3.7 billion price tag were the rights to name the building.

GIULIANI WANTS CITY SPORTS COMPLEX.(SPORTS) - Albany Times Union (Albany, NY)

Byline: Associated Press

NEW YORK -- Mayor Rudolph Giuliani on Thursday proposed the city develop a sprawling sports, convention and entertainment complex that would bring into the same neighborhood a domed football stadium, a new Madison Square Garden and the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.

The mayor described the proposal as an economic engine that would bring new vitality to the largely underdeveloped area on Manhattan's West Side, as well as an opportunity to lure back the New York Jets, the football team that left for the Meadowlands in New Jersey years ago.

Details were sketchy. The mayor didn't put a price tag on the project or set a date when it might be built, and provided only a vague outline on how the development would be funded, apparently through a combination of public and private dollars.

He also alluded only generally to how the land could be acquired.

If completed, he boasted it would become a stage for huge concerts, major sporting events and conventions, lucrative business that New York now often loses to cities with domed stadiums and big convention centers.

``What you would see in development in this whole area would pay for this many, many times over,'' the mayor said in his annual address to the City Council. ``This would become the most famous sports facility in the world.''

The proposal comes at a time when the city has been negotiating new stadiums with baseball's New York Yankees and Mets. The Mets plan to stay in Queens, but Giuliani has faced some of his toughest criticism over his openness to the possibility of moving the Yankees out of the Bronx.

DEMOGRAPHICS LURE GIANT SPORTS COMPLEX TO GREENBRIER AREA.(CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER) - The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, VA)

Byline: Staff reports

When Chesapeake residents want to dine, shop, watch a movie or playminiature golf and video games, all they have to do is cruise the Greenbrier area.

Merchants, lured by thousands of young families choosing Greenbrier homes, offer a variety of ways for entertainment-seekers to while away time.

Bowling, ice skating, billiards and laser games soon will join the list.

Allan B. Harvie Jr., a Richmond businessman, announced this week that he plans to build a sports complex that will include two ice-skating rinks and a 32-lane bowling alley.

One of the ice rinks will be Olympic size, 200 feet by 100 feet, the other will be National Hockey League size, 200 feet by 85 feet.

Fun-seekers will be able to play tag with high-tech lasers, or play pool on one of 12 billiard tables. There will be a lounge, a 4,000-square-foot arcade center, a soft-play area for kids, a nursery, a fitness center, meeting rooms and party rooms.

There will be a professional team locker room, because Harvie hopes to entice the Hampton Roads Admirals hockey team to use his complex for practices.

All told, the complex will be 96,000 square feet and will cost $6.5 million.

The project is to be constructed in two phases. The first phase, which includes one of the ice rinks, will get underway within two months. It's scheduled to be finished in late August.

Construction on phase two, which includes the second ice rink and the bowling alleys, will begin early next year and be finished by the summer of 1997.

In a news release, Harvie said he chose Greenbrier for the same reason other merchants have.

``This area of Chesapeake is rapidly becoming a major shopping and entertainment center for the Tidewater resident,'' he said.

Other recent additions to the fast-growing Greenbrier section include Circuit City and Regal Cinemas Funscape, also an entertainment complex. Several shopping centers are under construction now.

Harvie estimates that his center will employ more than 180 full- and part-time workers.

SPORTS COMPLEX HEADS TO NOV. 1 OPENING - The Buffalo News (Buffalo, NY)

The price tag has risen by more than $1 million, but plans for anindoor sports complex in the Town of Hamburg are progressing, with aNov. 1 opening date now projected.

The $6.5 million, 90,000-square-foot facility will feature adriving range and baseball, soccer and lacrosse fields on a 16-acresite on Commerce Place, off Camp Road.

No objections were voiced during a public hearing Tuesdayconducted by the Hamburg Industrial Development Agency, which isconsidering tax incentives that could total close to $500,000 over15 years.

The IDA won't vote on the incentives until after the townPlanning Board rules on whether a full environmental impactstatement will be required. That decision -- expected to be that afull impact statement is not required -- is expected May 19.

Philip Christ is president and Jeffrey Walker vice president ofSouth Towns Sports Complex, LLC. Four other partners have been linedup who prefer to remain unnamed, Walker said. They include a currentNational Hockey League player who lives in the area.

Plans call for indoor miniature golf, a putting green and a 50-station, two-tier driving range, with seven devices thatautomatically place the ball on the tee.

The baseball field will be 225 feet down the first and third baselines and 300 feet to center field. At it highest point, the roofwill be 85 feet high.

Plans also call for a restaurant, pro shop, conference room andbanquet room.

Outdoors there will be miniature golf, a putting green and adriving range with 30 to 35 stalls.

Walker emphasized after the hearing that the structure 'is not adome,' which is air-supported, but rather a steel frame with afabric cover.

The company is in the process of selling the naming rights andhas run into what he termed a small problem with the ThruwayAuthority, which restricts the size of signs near the highway.Walker said the company is working to resolve the issue.

The project carried a $5 million cost estimate when firstannounced in September.

IDA members indicated support for the project.

'I'm very excited about it and believe there is a demand for it,'Kathleen C. Hochul, a Hamburg Town Board member, said.

Michael Bartlett, IDA executive director, said the tax incentiveswould involve property tax abatements, an exemption from sales taxand, if there is a mortgage, an exemption from the 1 percentmortgage transfer tax.

The land currently is vacant and not providing significant taxrevenue, he said.

ROCKETDYNE PROPERTY SOUGHT FOR VALLEY SPORTS COMPLEX - Daily News (Los Angeles, CA)

In a scenario that mirrors the seismic economic forces at workin Southern California, a proposal has been floated to convert a16-acre portion of aerospace contractor Rocketdyne's Canoga Parkplant to build a 9,000-seat sports and entertainment complex.

The proposed $60 million project will be unveiled tonight at 7before the Woodland Hills/West Hills Neighborhood Planning AdvisoryCouncil in a public hearing at the Fallbrook Mall, the first step inan approval process that would end with the Los Angeles City Council.

The ambitious plan by self-described entertainment executiveMark Steele of Tarzana includes a bus and rail 'transit center,' afeature designed to alleviate any community concerns about increasedtraffic resulting from the project.

The arena would feature attractions such as a minor-leaguehockey team, professional men and women's volleyball teams, aminor-league indoor soccer team, concerts and 'family-oriented'events such as circuses, ice shows and team tennis.

The complex also would include a general-use recreation centerfor volleyball, two major theme-oriented restaurants andapproximately 20,000 square feet for sports-oriented retail space.

'We think this is the type of development that the (SanFernando) Valley has been crying out for,' said Steele, 32. 'Thedemographics and other factors are perfect. . . . We want to createan atmosphere that simply doesn't exist right now in the Valley.'

The proposal also is a microcosmic reflection of a Los Angeleseconomy that has seen a decline in defense industry jobs and theincreasing dominance of entertainment- and tourism-relatedemployment.

'I think it (the sports arena) sounds like a great idea,' saidBill Huber, president of the Woodland Hills Homeowners Association.'Anything that brings jobs to the Valley, especially something likethis, would be welcome.'

Rocketdyne - a division of Rockwell International - buildsreplacement space shuttle engines, the electrical power system for aspace station and engines for the Atlas and Delta commercial rockets.The contractor also will build engines for the experimental X-33spacecraft project announced recently.

About 3,000 people work on Rocketdyne's Canoga Park campus.Rocketdyne hit a peak of 9,300 jobs in 1989 but now has a work forceof about 5,200 at three facilities, two in Canoga Park and one in thehills northwest of Chatsworth.

The property coveted by Steele is a parcel of land at thenortheast corner of the intersection of Canoga Avenue and VictoryBoulevard, now the site of two Rocketdyne production buildings and alarge parking lot.

Steele said he has been in negotiations with Rocketdyneofficials for about three weeks, since it was suggested by LosAngeles City Councilwoman Laura Chick's office that he pursue thesite. He said he hoped to submit a final bid for the property asearly as next week.

Rocketdyne spokesman Paul Sewell was less forthcoming, sayingonly that Steele had 'approached' Rocketdyne about the property, 'buthe hasn't quantified anything yet . . . it's wait-and-see.'

One source close to the negotiations said the price tag for theproperty is in the $20 million range.

Steele's track record is spotty. He was one of four finalistsfor a proposed redevelopment of Cal State Northridge's DevonshireDowns, but the contract was awarded to another bidder.

He said he currently is involved in a number ofentertainment-related projects, including Triumph Music, a group ofsmall record labels for which he is seeking a distribution deal.