Expo center looks like a winner
Got a chance to visit the new MBT Expo Center at the fair the other day. Wow!
This is one of the smartest moves for the fair in years. Not only does the place seem to have a lot of room, it's air conditioned and has huge, clean, automated bathrooms.
If I understand it, the bank only bought the naming rights (which subsidized the building cost), but the bank name is prominent on the building (which is pretty smart too).
This building certainly will be useful after the fair is over. I can see all sorts of uses for it, including wedding receptions, antique shows, etc.
The problem is it's bound to rob revenue from other venues, including the city's skating rink, which doesn't need to lose a builder show, cat show or any other kind of revenue-generating gathering.
This is one of the smartest moves for the fair in years. Not only does the place seem to have a lot of room, it's air conditioned and has huge, clean, automated bathrooms.
If I understand it, the bank only bought the naming rights (which subsidized the building cost), but the bank name is prominent on the building (which is pretty smart too).
This building certainly will be useful after the fair is over. I can see all sorts of uses for it, including wedding receptions, antique shows, etc.
The problem is it's bound to rob revenue from other venues, including the city's skating rink, which doesn't need to lose a builder show, cat show or any other kind of revenue-generating gathering.
posted by The Observer at 8/04/2007 02:33:00 AM
6 Comments:
The MB&T Expo center is a very nice addition to the fairgrounds. It was much needed and will get a tremendous amount of use.
The Home Builders Show HAS booked this new expo center for the next five years, just for your information. It is a shame that Canlan couldn't keep them from moving, but what can you do. I doubt if they even tried. Maybe that is why Canlan keeps missing its goals every month. They don't have anyone actively trying to bring in new venues to this facility, other than hockey.
Seems like that is the same for downtown Monroe. I see another business closing its downtown doors and moving locations. The Mainstreet Manager under the direction of the DDA should be addressing this problem. It seems that this glorified "secretary" is doing nothing to help fill the downtown or keep it from emptying. Rumor has it that the latest business to move (store next to Village Bistro) went in and asked for help or information from this MS Manager, and she had no answers or ideas to help keep her from moving. Her job needs to be gone and refilled with a competent person.
City Resident is on track with his observations and remarks concerning the Fairgrounds facility. When you go to the city link to the ice arena you are taken to a Canadian site that is full of information concern Canadian providences and their facilities managed by Canlan. Their Canadian web site lists us last as their only US facility to manage. Saskatoon has two rinks and is a great manufacturing town embracing industry tourism and recreation.
If you go to Saskatoon, consider staying at the Saskatoon Inn which is a world class hotel by any standard. Yes, I work there on occasion and love Canadian hockey and curling.
My opinion is that the DDA has outlived its 30 year usefulness and ought to be disbanded before a lack of oversight results in a misuse of funds worse than the logo sanfu. The sparing match on cable TV between the DDA chairperson Floraday and Compora who reflect the thinking of the IACO administration who could not even get a local artist to design the Main Street logo and the rest of the council requesting more time to figure out what the DDA should be doing points out a serious issue of lack of direction Janet Burns (sp) stated the issue in simple quiet terms that should make sense to any reasonable person.
Why don’t we sell the naming rights to the City Ice Rink?
Maybe it could be known as the Monroe Transfer Pond. I’m guessing the city will have to give them the naming rights to settle the lawsuit.
I think it’s time for the city to sell the ice rinks to whoever is out there that thinks they can run the facility for a profit. The city can’t afford to subsidize ice-skating for the small number of citizens that actually want to use the facility. I would rather sell it for the balance of the bond amount and get it on the tax roles than continue to pay and pay and pay.
In my experience private concerns will generally put more effort into making money when they have something at stake. I can’t believe that putting the facility under the Parks and Rec department is the solution.
If all else fails the site would make a good location for the Monroe Municipal Water Department. Sell the stands, Zambonis, and compressors and I think it would be a good new garage for them. That would transfer the debt from the general fund to the water fund. We could then let the townships help pay off the mistake.
Canlan is a good, solid company. They have just hired a new manager, who is trying hard. He is a young guy and has been in Monroe less than five months - give him time.
In today's market, selling the rink would not even cover the bond. Sadly, the City built a facility that was not very well designed and had huge cost over runs.
Are we really being fair to the Mainstreet / DDA manager? She has been on the job less than six months. Is the board of the DDA being held accountable for her job performance? Here is a thought - is the DDA having any involvement with the Jazz Fest? If so, why is the board President hosting a huge "pig roast" that weekend? If he does not see this as a priority than should the manager that he supervises?
Putting the multi sports complex under parks and recs is not the solution - but, it should have been done years ago. However, how much will the parks and rec department head have to say when you consider that she is now supervised by Barry LaRoy and the Chief of Police; how does this make sense?
Dear Roundabout,
That is a good idea. I must state in all fairness that building the rink seemed like a good idea at the time and to be fair, what was thought by a consensus was a good idea just proved to be plain wrong. It is time for Monroe as a small city to get into the small city spending mode. The ice rink could be traded for the present Monroe Transfer property and used as an enclosed scrap processing facility. The Warner RR yard is nearby so that takes care of the need for a rail spur.
The old scrap yard is an ideal location for a playground for aspiring kids with the “Knack” to be engineers. The place could be dumped full of old computer and other electronic junk for the kiddies to play with and make ham radio sets. Old cars and school busses would be handy for making hot rods and club houses.
The ice rink is doomed to failure because kids spend their spare time playing computer games. I think the junk yard would be a good draw for any kid interested in technology.
The ice rink couldn't be sold for what is still owed. I hear about $6 million.
Should the city also sell one of the forty parks, some of which get no use at all? Look at the park behind Walgreens for one, and there are many. If you take the amount to take care of that park, and divide it by how many people use it, then you are probably comparable to the amount paid at the ice rink. Say it costs $5,000 per year, and is used by one person, since there is nothing there, that makes your cost to provide this facility to the public at $5,000 per user. Now, comparing the ice rink at $400,000 per year, but used by 5,000 people (which is low), and that puts your cost at $80 per person. Looks like the city should sell off some vacant "parks" and build another ice rink.
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