Citi Field Construction

[Onemoredayatshea27]

I like your idea. The Yankees made a crap load of money just allowing companies to plaster their names throughout the ballpark, and were able to keep the ballpark's identity. The Mets should have done this also. For 200 million or so, Citi would have the rights to some clubs, prime advertising spots, and would be one of the Mets major sponsors, but not ballpark naming, logo designing, etc.

The Wilpons need to find their cojones and explain to Citi that they can have a little bit of something or they will have nothing. Take it or leave it.

[nymTom]

I like your idea. The Yankees made a crap load of money just allowing companies to plaster their names throughout the ballpark, and were able to keep the ballpark's identity. The Mets should have done this also. For 200 million or so, Citi would have the rights to some clubs, prime advertising spots, and would be one of the Mets major sponsors, but not ballpark naming, logo designing, etc.

The Wilpons need to find their cojones and explain to Citi that they can have a little bit of something or they will have nothing. Take it or leave it.

thats what im talking about. At this point for both parties Involved, something is better then nothing...

[Petemc1969]

My 2 cents....I think most people are not seeing the big picture here. Some of you are calling for Wilpon's head for the patch screwup, the naming rights fiasco, yada yada. At the end of the day, thanks to the persistence of the Wilpons and the cooperation of the city, we are getting a first class baseball facility to watch our beloved Mets play.

Personally, I don't care what the name of the place is, what pizza patches are stitched onto their sleeves, what PILOTs or bonds were issued, how big the HD scoreboard is, what color the dugout walls are, or whatever. All I know is that I will be able to see a ballgame (with & without my kids) in this beautiful stadium for years to come. Shea served it's purpose for 45 years and I will always have the fondest memories (and worst nightmares) of games & events that took place there, but it's time to move on.

[Oct251986]

My 2 cents....I think most people are not seeing the big picture here. Some of you are calling for Wilpon's head for the patch screwup, the naming rights fiasco, yada yada. At the end of the day, thanks to the persistence of the Wilpons and the cooperation of the city, we are getting a first class baseball facility to watch our beloved Mets play.

Personally, I don't care what the name of the place is, what pizza patches are stitched onto their sleeves, what PILOTs or bonds were issued, how big the HD scoreboard is, what color the dugout walls are, or whatever. All I know is that I will be able to see a ballgame (with & without my kids) in this beautiful stadium for years to come. Shea served it's purpose for 45 years and I will always have the fondest memories (and worst nightmares) of games & events that took place there, but it's time to move on.

Bravo!

[islandxtreme26]

My 2 cents....I think most people are not seeing the big picture here. Some of you are calling for Wilpon's head for the patch screwup, the naming rights fiasco, yada yada. At the end of the day, thanks to the persistence of the Wilpons and the cooperation of the city, we are getting a first class baseball facility to watch our beloved Mets play.

Personally, I don't care what the name of the place is, what pizza patches are stitched onto their sleeves, what PILOTs or bonds were issued, how big the HD scoreboard is, what color the dugout walls are, or whatever. All I know is that I will be able to see a ballgame (with & without my kids) in this beautiful stadium for years to come. Shea served it's purpose for 45 years and I will always have the fondest memories (and worst nightmares) of games & events that took place there, but it's time to move on.

Wow. Well played, sir - Well played indeed

[Mister B.]

My 2 cents....I think most people are not seeing the big picture here. Some of you are calling for Wilpon's head for the patch screwup, the naming rights fiasco, yada yada. At the end of the day, thanks to the persistence of the Wilpons and the cooperation of the city, we are getting a first class baseball facility to watch our beloved Mets play.

Personally, I don't care what the name of the place is, what pizza patches are stitched onto their sleeves, what PILOTs or bonds were issued, how big the HD scoreboard is, what color the dugout walls are, or whatever. All I know is that I will be able to see a ballgame (with & without my kids) in this beautiful stadium for years to come. Shea served it's purpose for 45 years and I will always have the fondest memories (and worst nightmares) of games & events that took place there, but it's time to move on.

Well said.

I think much of this is just hot stove filler debate that will fade away once the season starts. Like last September when these boards were filled with pennant race talk, and then in October it was back to when will they be putting the new grass in, etc.

[nymTom]

Well said.

I think much of this is just hot stove filler debate that will fade away once the season starts. Like last September when these boards were filled with pennant race talk, and then in October it was back to when will they be putting the new grass in, etc.

Exactly as Good as Petemc1969 's post was, Mister B followed it up to a T. This is all just wash women banter until we start the season, get into the stadium and enjoy it, until then its all heresay anyways...

[bluenautica]

I used to be one of those people that couldn't wait for Willets Point to be redeveloped, but after seeing this video, there is no way that I can have that same view. Yes there are places that definitely need to go and they are only renting anyways. But NYC definitely neglected Willets Point so much, and its really not fair to the land owners of successful businesses to pay for it. Watch this video, its very insightful:

http://current.com/items/87589751/wi...e_curbline.htm

[Onemoredayatshea27]

What monsters have we become wanting to mow down this part of Queens. We are in an economic recession and we want to remove more jobs from the USA!
This is a shame...

Mike Bloomberg I'm calling you out... this is a disgrace to Queens, to New York City, to New York, to America!

This video has opened my eyes. Thanks.

[RodneyHamp]

WOW...FMart just hit a BOMB for the DR in the Caribbean World Series...

1st AB that I care about in 2009......so far, so good...NOT a bad omen I guess....

MLB network if anyone else cares...

[bluenautica]

What monsters have we become wanting to mow down this part of Queens. We are in an economic recession and we want to remove more jobs from the USA!
This is a shame...

Mike Bloomberg I'm calling you out... this is a disgrace to Queens, to New York City, to New York, to America!

This video has opened my eyes. Thanks.

Yea, it had the same effect on me, can't believe Koch, Guliani, and Bloomberg have all neglected these businesses. The chop shops can go, put whatever you want in their place, but the other businesses deserve better.

[metsforever7515]

WOW...FMart just hit a BOMB for the DR in the Caribbean World Series...

1st AB that I care about in 2009......so far, so good...NOT a bad omen I guess....

MLB network if anyone else cares...

Saw that, future of the Mets organization right there.

[parlo]

He had a great point though. Why is JUST CITI getting all the heat. I myself could name alot of banks with sponsorship deals that got money from the bail-out off the top of my head.

A lot of the bailed out institutions are taking heat for their frivolous spending. AIG took heat for their half million dollar retreat at some spa near Pebble Beach. Wells Fargo is getting all kinds of bad press because of their Vegas vacation. The auto companies all flew to Washington in separate corporate jets.
Citigroup also received a lot of backlash for purchasing a $45 million dollar jet recently. And of course there was the whole bonus outrage that is still going on.
Maybe the sports sponsorships haven't been highlighted, but then again, maybe a lot of those are older arrangements and therefor haven't received as much scrutiny. It is what they are doing NOW with the money, that is receiving so much criticism.
I am sure a lot of this will continue with luxury boxes etc.

[JoseJoseJose7]

My father just called me from willets point and the LED ribbon board is being tested right now. can anybody get any pictures? because his picture phone sucks.

[dp2345]

nelson doubleday was the biggist cheapskate there was .... i use to work for aramark at shea and was his back up suite attendent ... he was the worst and his kid duke..... bunch of drunks. kept u there like 4 hours after the game was done im talking about the stadium was pitch black lights turned off and he would just say thanks kid and give me a cheap mets hat not even an authentic not even a jersey ..... doubleday would have used faux brick used the same h.r. apple , he would have recycled the same seats... trust me i can speak for experience...... i dont wan't him nor steve phillips they are the anti-christ...................................

[Onemoredayatshea27]

Yea, it had the same effect on me, can't believe Koch, Guliani, and Bloomberg have all neglected these businesses. The chop shops can go, put whatever you want in their place, but the other businesses deserve better.

How hard is it to put some sewers and sidewalks in?

If they can build an 800 million dollar ballpark across the street in less than two years, why can't the install BASIC necessities such as a sewer system.

Could you imagine Willets Point with clean streets, less chop shops, trees, paved roads, and no lakes. Apparently the city can't.

[metsforever7515]

Yea, it had the same effect on me, can't believe Koch, Guliani, and Bloomberg have all neglected these businesses. The chop shops can go, put whatever you want in their place, but the other businesses deserve better.

Wow. Someone needs to get that video out there. I would have never even thought that the city did that to them. It's horrible. I still think the businesses in the Iron triangle could clean up a little bit. But businesses like the ones in that video deserve better. Thats just horrendous. Very, shameful on the city's part. They deserve soooooo much better.

[BiggieSmalls]

Yea, it had the same effect on me, can't believe Koch, Guliani, and Bloomberg have all neglected these businesses. The chop shops can go, put whatever you want in their place, but the other businesses deserve better.

Of course that video was paid for and created by the businesses that wanted to get more moeny for their land..

Oh by the way.. 95% of them have since settled with the city and are now making plans to move to their new locations.

[parlo]

Full WSJ article below.

I think there are several major facts fairly presented in the article.

1. TARP money is not being used.
2. This is $20 mil/year for 20 years, not $400 mil at once.
3. Citi will have to pay a penalty if they break the contract. This is silly, so was the penalty they had to pay to break out of the plane contract. They were selling 2 older planes and had to pay a penalty on the new one...what was the real net savings?
4. Why is there no outrage regarding Citi's other sports deals or directed at Bank of America and other bailed out companies?
4a. As BoA points out, these sort of deals are good for these companies.
5. Forcing Citi out of this contract will hinder them as a company while entering into future deals with companies.

spoof://online.wsj.com/article/SB123...ref://digg.com

Those are not really "facts" !
Many of those are just Citigroups version of things. There is a big difference between what IS,,,,, and what a spokesperson or lawyer SAYS.
For them to say that it is not TARP money is ludicrous. They are receiving bailout money from the Federal Government in order to secure their financial footing.
If I borrow money from you to help pay my rent or mortgage, and then spend lavishly elsewhere, I would expect you to be critical. Me telling you that my excessive spending was not done with the money you lent me, would be a really lame excuse.

[Captain Mac]

I want Citi or whatever the name of the park is, to be surrounded by a nice neighborhood like some of these other ball parks.
Camden Yards just down the block from the harbor
The Ballpark at Arlington close to an amusement park (Six Flags?)
just to name a couple of examples.

However, after watching about six minutes of that video, I think it comes down to HOW this is all handled.

Corporate Bailout? BOA had the nerve to show up at the Super Bowl and all the swank parties. Damn them! They squander the money anyway.
Small businesses suffer daily and now these poor guys are expected to just move, and at what cost to them?

Why not give these SMALL Business owners a hand up, not a bail out?
Don't just help monetarily with the move, but a simple thing like footing a part of the bill for advertising and other things.

Put them all in the same area and develop it just as they want to develop the area by the new stadium. They probably all know each other and can help one another adjust or whatever.

This may sound corny to some but I believe it's about relationships. If the city visited these small business owners and took time to not talk to them but LISTEN to their concerns and needs, this could work out.

[Captain Mac]

Oh by the way, we all get a pat on the back for our prediction that at the least, there would be the discussion that Citi would consider backing out of its deal.

May I suggest renaming the park, "The Ballpark at Flushing Bay", or "Flushing Bay Park", or how about this one although it would be an absolute longshot:
"Metropolitan Veterans Park".

[OBomb]

My guess is that should Citi back out of its naming rights deal with the Mets, the stadium would probably - and temporarily - be named Mets Park, Mets Field, Mets Ballpark, or even Mets Stadium. This is based on the recent trend of ballparks being named for the teams which occupy them either after a naming rights deal fell apart or a team was waiting to get one. Look at the Astros, Rangers, Angels, and Nationals as examples.

[metsforever7515]

Oh by the way, we all get a pat on the back for our prediction that at the least, there would be the discussion that Citi would consider backing out of its deal.

May I suggest renaming the park, "The Ballpark at Flushing Bay", or "Flushing Bay Park", or how about this one although it would be an absolute longshot:
"Metropolitan Veterans Park".

I like Flushing Bay Ballpark. Easily abbreviated (FBB) and it just rolls off the tongue. It would never happen though. If Citi ever backs out we'll just have another corporate sponsorship deal come right in after it.

[WillMissShea]

Of course that video was paid for and created by the businesses that wanted to get more moeny for their land..

Oh by the way.. 95% of them have since settled with the city and are now making plans to move to their new locations.

True. This video has been floating around for a while. At least a year. Well before the banking mess. Don't you guys remember the big rally this group staged before a game early last year? Well, it wasn't that big because not many people showed up and the fans didn't really support them. This is old news. Biggie is right, most of these people are already on their way out.

[BMF]

Of course that video was paid for and created by the businesses that wanted to get more moeny for their land..

Oh by the way.. 95% of them have since settled with the city and are now making plans to move to their new locations.

when did get up to 95% last i heard it was around half.. when is the date for them to leave without being eminent domained