Monday, May 11, 2009

Interesting Idea

Loyal reader Heath Reed has a very interesting idea about the WAC coming to Mesa to play baseball. It could be the perfect in road for MCC to make connections as they transition into a 4 year university.

For many years, MCC has had a respectable athletic program that has been very competitive (especially in areas like soccer), and MCC has also served as a stop-over point for talented athletes as they try to improve their academics before transfering to a big school. An eventual home in the WAC would be a great opportunity to bring even more competitive college atheltics to the valley.

And yes, its many years away, but having a vision of what you want to accomplish, and putting that into place during a formative transition would be a good idea.

2 comments:

Heath Reed said...

Wow, what an honor to be placed on your blog. Thank you. Like you said, I believe this could be an opening in the long process of getting in to the conf. MCC needs to first of course become a university and then in time, if and only if the WAC wants to expand or if a team leaves, they can come into the conf. It takes time, but the seeds can be planted here as the ball starts to roll in transitioning into a university.

I do have more

Heath Reed said...

Now I believe this plays into Hohokam stadium. It is a very nice facility however; it is in a bad location. Money is always going to be an issue and that is why I think the city needs to be very creative and think outside of the box for this. Lets think of the players and issues involved here. The cubs want upgrades to the practice facility and stadium. The WAC is playing its tournament in Mesa. Major league soccer and the USL has looked at Mesa for a possible stadium and team location, the mesa amphitheater has been a great venue, but the residents continue to complain about it and it does not aid to concerts and events after 10pm. If MCC expands into a university and larger campus, (housing, research etc buildings) this could be a great venue for sports, same with high school sports. The last missing piece is that Hohokam does not fully capture the potential tax dollars in keeping people in the area before and after games. The experience outside of the stadium is just as important as the ticket and concessions sales. It can also be an attraction year around too. What I am talking about is expensive of course, but that is why the city needs to seek out a partnership between the cubs, MCC, and or some private developers to reinvest into the downtown area in creating a flex stadium and “mix use “district. That’s my rant for the day.