Smith Center Replacement/Renovation

haroldminer said:
Why are blaming the students? The students could have been given better seats but the administration stuck them in the corners to sell the seats to people more important.
Click to expand...
The building had to be 100% funded.

The Smith Center has paid for itself many times over…..

The “students”*** had a chance to participate in funding the project in exchange for GREAT seats. They chose no; the adults stepped up and funded the Smith Center. The students for decades missed out on those seats.

If the adults hadn’t stepped up, Men’s hoops would be playing in Carmichael (and students wouldn’t have all those seats on the West Wall) and the outstanding Olympic sports programs wouldn’t have happened.

Yes. A good amount of blame lands on the students at the time of the referendum.
 
Zoo_View said:
The building had to be 100% funded.

The Smith Center has paid for itself many times over…..

The “students”*** had a chance to participate in funding the project in exchange for GREAT seats. They chose no; the adults stepped up and funded the Smith Center. The students for decades missed out on those seats.

If the adults hadn’t stepped up, Men’s hoops would be playing in Carmichael (and students wouldn’t have all those seats on the West Wall) and the outstanding Olympic sports programs wouldn’t have happened.

Yes. A good amount of blame lands on the students at the time of the referendum.
Click to expand...
It is called the student activity center except it isn’t for students. The boosters didn’t fund the stadium. They bought personal seat licenses. Playing in Carmichael would have been fine but the administration wanted a glory project.

Why should students have to pay for a public stadium to be built? That’s silliness.

Sadly, unc students also already pay $300 a semester in athletic and sports fees and apparently even that’s not good enough.
 
As I said Zoo I've never seen the actual proposal amd amount or perhaps more importantly HOW it was presented to students.

But let me get your scenario straight. The project had or planned to get $29 Million of the $34 million from private "donors."

According to your theory, or perhaps statement (were you there), the students did not come through. So the PTB had to scramble and sell off an entire one side of the court the students wouldn't pay $5 Mil for to even more "donors."

So one side of "donors" got their seats for 29 million. The other side got their courtside seats for just $5 million (what was supposed to be for students?)

I'm not buying it. And maybe that's why the student's didn't either. It sounds like they were never in play for the lower bowl at all. Maybe just the one section behind one basket with the pep band, just as it has always been.

I think they gave up some sections together up top, for the now spread out ring of rows all along the rafters.

I would have voted to stay in Carmichael also. The bottom line is that the program was taken from students, would have been even if they voted yes, and was sold to the highest bidders of "donors."
 
I think it sounds more like a screw you from the students so the fundraisers said screw you back. At the time it was great pride that no public money was used and the fundraisers did what they had to do.
 
Zoo_View said:
No school in the US built a 100% privately-funded arena the size of the Smith Center, especially with a 50 meter x 25 yard swimming and diving complex built as part of the same project. It was unique.

UNC tread uncharted terrain and water in funding and building the Smith Center.

The people who funded it have built UNC’s excellent athletic program AND funded the enormous growth in the endowment, the Carolina Covenant, and more.

A certain group of students is to blame for the seating arrangement in the Smith Center.

At some point in the fundraising process, UNC had to make a call. It didn’t look like enough money was going to come in to fund the project as designed. The first cuts were to the Natatorium - fewer seats, lower ceiling (anyone remember the 1987 Olympic Sports Festival?*** The ceiling tiles above the diving area had to be removed because the great Greg Louganis kept hitting them).
Click to expand...
Sure, that’s all well and good. Like I said, I understand the “why”.

My only point is that it’s too bad that one of the top programs in the sport doesn’t have a hostile home arena and raucous student section setup when plenty of other programs have figured out a way to make it happen.
 
Faucette said:
I think it sounds more like a screw you from the students so the fundraisers said screw you back. At the time it was great pride that no public money was used and the fundraisers did what they had to do.
Click to expand...
Public state level funding is a slippery slope....next NCSU, ECU, and other universities will have their hands out and the Hornets/Panthers will expect state funding as well.
 
NCK9 said:
Public state level funding is a slippery slope....next NCSU, ECU, and other universities will have their hands out and the Hornets/Panthers will expect state funding as well.
Click to expand...
You do realize that over $400 Million in public money has already gone into PNC, correct? I get that they share it with the Hurricanes, but it's their building too and a LOT of public money built it and continues to be poured into it.
 
wmheel1287 said:
You do realize that over $400 Million in public money has already gone into PNC, correct? I get that they share it with the Hurricanes, but it's their building too and a LOT of public money built it and continues to be poured into it.
Click to expand...
Yes, it was brought up repeatedly when Charlotte was figuring out how to pay for the Spectrum center. "Why did the state fund an arena for RTP but not Charlotte?"
 
NCK9 said:
Yes, it was brought up repeatedly when Charlotte was figuring out how to pay for the Spectrum center. "Why did the state fund an arena for RTP but not Charlotte?"
Click to expand...
Okay for the record There was some initial State involvement-but the vast majority of Public funding has been the Centential Authority or whatever it is ..I "think " it is hotel tax in large part At least that is what most cities do
(Not saying I think it is a good idea...)
 
NCK9 said:
Yes, it was brought up repeatedly when Charlotte was figuring out how to pay for the Spectrum center. "Why did the state fund an arena for RTP but not Charlotte?"
Click to expand...
The bigger issue in Charlotte is not that the state provides no money, but that the legislature has to approve of how the city/county decides to pay for things itself. If the city votes to increase a sales tax the legislators from Burgaw have to approve it. The state also locks in hotel taxes so they must be used for "tourism" and cannot go to schools or other needs. The meddling of the legislature in local issues when they aren't providing the funds is ridiculous.
 
NCK9 said:
Also the official name of the building is the Dean E. Smith Student Activities Center which is a bit comical.
Click to expand...
We made up tee shirts when the Dean Dome opened, it was a drawing of Dean posing like Uncle Sam in the Army recruiting posters pointing out, and underneath it said "Dean Smith wants you in the SAC". Wish I still had one of those..
 
mpaer said:
Okay for the record There was some initial State involvement-but the vast majority of Public funding has been the Centential Authority or whatever it is ..I "think " it is hotel tax in large part At least that is what most cities do
(Not saying I think it is a good idea...)
Click to expand...
I'm sure you're right about that, but I don't think PNC has a very large hotel draw so that's largely just a gift. A HUGE proportion of those folks coming to Hurricanes and NCSU games never spend a hotel night in Raleigh. The two fanbases have a huge level of overlap. I'd bet that at least 50% of those people who regularly attend Hurricanes games are NCSU season ticket holders. I'd venture to guess that Walnut Creek Ampitheater and Red Hat do more for drawing hotel stays than PNC does overall.
 
wmheel1287 said:
I'm sure you're right about that, but I don't think PNC has a very large hotel draw so that's largely just a gift. A HUGE proportion of those folks coming to Hurricanes and NCSU games never spend a hotel night in Raleigh. The two fanbases have a huge level of overlap. I'd bet that at least 50% of those people who regularly attend Hurricanes games are NCSU season ticket holders. I'd venture to guess that Walnut Creek Ampitheater and Red Hat do more for drawing hotel stays than PNC does overall.
Click to expand...
Oh absolutely Its funny but I bet your comments about Walnut and Redhat are true also
My main point was that it is Raleigh-not State govt gifting the owners of the Hurricanes
 
mpaer said:
Okay for the record There was some initial State involvement-but the vast majority of Public funding has been the Centential Authority or whatever it is ..I "think " it is hotel tax in large part At least that is what most cities do
(Not saying I think it is a good idea...)
Click to expand...
18 million from the state of NC per wikipedia (fwiw). Charlotte hit the state up for a similar amount for the construction of the Spectrum center and was denied.
en.wikipedia.org

PNC Arena - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
I'm generallly against public money funding sports venues. Especially single purpose like NFL that are used a few days a year. Owners cry but after afer a few years they reap huge profits upon selling. But..

One of the differences with PNC was it provided a much needed place for concerts, Disney on Ice, etc to come to not just for the lolers and Canes. So it is visited and used by more than just sport fans.

Greensboro had been the closest for oh so many years. It was damn nice when I could drive 5 (um maybe a bit buzzed) miles to see a concert vs 50.

The Dean dome has shitty acoustics and ingess/egress is horrible let alone any kind of administating that stuff.

To add. Before they played a game at the DD, they had a preview ceremony deal one night. A good friend worked at Vilcom at the time and took me to it. 4th row seats.
 
So let's assume they build a new arena with luxury accommodations somewhere. What happens to the DES Student Activities Center? To my way of thinking, unlike administration and wallets, his legacy goes at the top.

I hate to see them give up seating capacity, particularly if average attendance is 20k+. Heck, I'm old enough to miss Carmichael, Thacker-Packer and The Pilot.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top