Hourcar and the Minnesota State Fair

Hourcar is a nonprofit car share organization serving Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota.  It's a rare non profit organization in the field that has survived--many of the initial firms sold themselves to for profit providers around the time that they needed to raise funds for the first wholesale replacement of the original fleet of cars as they aged.

The Minnesota State Fair works with vendors to provide a unique food and drink program.   Branding focuses on the Fair more than the individual firm, at least with cups for beer.

Judging by all the articles in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune (especially about food and drink, like this article about Pyres Brewing, "Pryes Brewing is going big at the 2026 Minnesota State Fair. Here’s why."), the Minnesota State Fair is a big deal.  This year, instead of providing a special drop off area for cars at the Fair, they're encouraging people to use special drop offs set up at the parking lots that are staging points for free transit shuttles to the fair.

That makes more sense than warehousing individual cars at the Fair.

Big League States: Illinois versus Indiana | Maybe Illinois Wins By Losing

"Big League City: Small Cities" discusses how professional sports teams can help to redefine smaller communities by putting the city into global media systems communicating about particular sports leagues, especially the NBA, which like soccer outside of the US, is a more internationalized brand.

"Big League City: Big League States | The real advantage is held by the sports team" discusses the competition between states when sports teams are located in metropolitan areas spanning two states.  

That entry focused on Kansas vs. Missouri in landing a new facility for the KC Chiefs NFL football team, and the offering of over $1 billion in incentives.  

"Big League City: Big League States: Part 2, Salt Lake/Utah" discusses how success of the Utah Mammoth hockey team having moved from Phoenix, is helping to reposition the Salt Lake City metropolitan area as competitive for professional baseball, even though it is a small market.

Towards the tail end of the Kansas vs. Missouri "win," Indiana threw itself successfully into the competition for a new stadium for the Chicago Bears football team.  The team had been playing off Chicago versus the suburb of Arlington Heights, where it bought an old horse racing track as a site for a new stadium, but they had a hard time getting the kind of tax breaks they wanted from the various taxing districts especially schools.

Indiana saw an opportunity and seized on it, and now according to Sports Illustrated ("Bears Heading to Indiana and It's Obvious Who Is Most to Blame"), after the Illinois Legislature failed to pass the kind of bill that the Bears wanted to facilitate their suburban location for the team are going to Indiana.  From the article:

The city and the state have had three years to take the Bears seriously and only now realize they should have. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is the chief culprit here. He drove the Bears to Indiana by insisting it had to be Chicago or he wasn't supporting it.

Illinois and Chicago chasing both business and residents away is a very common theme. This is just another example. If not, then why did Indiana have no problem getting their plan in order to add a second NFL team?

Nashville, Buffalo and Cleveland all eventually got stadium situations resolved one way or the other. Illinois' legislators and Chicago chose to take the route Kansas City, Mo. and New York City took. They let business leave.

It's all been going on in Illinois since before the Bears even batted an eyelash at Arlington Heights. And how is that kind of general approach toward business working out, by the way?

Ironically, a stadium in Hammond is easier to reach for many in the Chicago metropolitan area compared to the Arlington Heights location ("'They were running into typical bureaucratic meandering, and here we are' | Bears board votes to move team from Chicago to Indiana," WTHR/NBC).

Given that football team stadiums cost so much money, and have few events, maybe Illinois is the real winner here, especially as the Chicago White Sox continue to seek public monies towards a new development for that team, as well as other sports projects seeking public funds (men's soccer, women's soccer, etc.).

If they are going to allocate scare dollars to stadiums and arenas, do it for the ones that have the most activity.

Although at least for in-city locations, football teams are starting to do a better job planning for more events, although only Miami seems to be doing it successfully, well Las Vegas maybe too but more indirectly because it's a good location for signature concerts.

-- "You get what you plan for: the multi-use Miami Hard Rock Stadium versus typical football stadiums | Washington Commanders"

Things I learn going to events by closely observing and analyzing them

Movable table, but no chairs.

As mentioned in the previous entry, last Saturday was the Celebrate at the Confluence event sponsored by Seven Canyons Trust, held at Three Confluences Park on Salt Lake City's West Side.

I went.  While I was there the turnout was pathetic, which underlies the recent entry, "There should be community bulletin boards in commercial districts (and other places)."

I found out about it from a posting on NextDoor.  Again, I don't subscribe to various social media sites, where I may have been able to get information about it.  But what about all the people that get those notices, where were they?

Compared to the "grand opening" event four years ago, there were way fewer public organization participants, only one food truck, BUT a beer tent, and like before, music on the plaza.

I still enjoyed it, not just because of the beer, but because part of my enjoyment comes from the analysis.

Some of the things I learned:

• Movable tables and chairs are really cool, pioneered by Bryant Park.  But put out more chairs than two per table.  Larger groups will take chairs from empty tables, leaving nowhere to sit.
• If you want to make that particular park great, it needs to be regularly programmed.  Including activities for Spanish speakers, who make up a goodly segment of the population in the Greater West Side.
• There were only four groups with booths.  Three were issue related: Seven Canyons Trust, Jordan River Commission, and Utah Rivers Coalition.  Plus booths for doing stuff by Make Salt Lake, a makers space.
• The City Parks agency and other city agencies like the Mayor's Office or the Councilmember weren't represented.  Neither was the Glendale Community Council, which has banners up on the street.
• In 2022, the independent convenience store across the street marketed bait for fishing.  They don't anymore.
• They had corporate volunteers from Goldman Sachs and Delta Airlines--the major operator at Salt Lake International Airport.  Sugar House Park needs to develop similar relationships.  A couple people from Delta flew in from NYC, probably mostly for a vacation and service credits, but they weren't needed based on the turnout.
• I need to bring my own bag or backpack to events and shouldn't expect a booth to be offering bags
• Too many temporary recycling cans, not enough trash cans.  It would have been a good time to put those posters about what is appropriate to recycle and what isn't as an environmental education opporunity (and SLCGreen, the sanitation department could have been an exhibitor)

• Provide larger rolling carts (like from Home Depot) to help exhibitors move stuff from their vehicles to the site and back more efficiently.
• Some big events--and this wasn't--have ATM machines.  What about creating temporary phone charger setups?  I guess my battery is getting too much use and is starting to lose its charge.
• Usually the corporate volunteers get lunch provided by their firm.  Do they contract with food trucks for it?  If not, they should because that increases the demand and profits for the food trucks, making it more worthwhile to come out to the site.

• The beer garden area, granted it was on a hill, didn't have chairs and just a couple of tables.
• This was an unusual event with beer in a Salt Lake City Park.  It's allowed, not brought in by individuals, but as a special event permit.  Usually in a fenced off area.  They didn't have a fenced in area, but "signs saying no beer past this point."  With monitors at those points.  It seems a lot more chill to do it that way.
• I figured a cheat code on beer--I don't drink much anyway so it wouldn't matter to me.  Bring a couple different plastic cups to be able to have the same type as they use on the site, and bring your own beer and surreptiously pour one for your own consumption.  
• Although to be fair, Fisher Beer, a great brewpub in the city, charged the same prices at the event that they do at their brewpub.  But if you drink a lot, and its cheap swill type beer, the idea of bringing your own might pay off.

Music

• The Main Street Approach trainings I went to said that special events have to provide something to do, something to eat and drink, music, and restrooms.
• The problem with music is that depending on how loud it is it competes with everything else.  The exhibitor booths were placed too close to the music--even though it wasn't particular loud--so that it was hard to talk and hear, especially as those of us who age are losing some of our hearing.
• Place the exhibitor booths farther away from the amplified music
• As part of the music offerings, why not have one or two slots for karaoke, to get more community involvement.
• Provide larger rolling carts (like from Home Depot) to help musicians move their often heavy equipment like amps and speakers from their vehicles to the site and back
• Does it make more sense to provide a set of speakers that people can just connect to?
• The handwashing station had soap and paper towels, but no water.
• Technically this is a design issue for tent manufacturers.  The stage was set up with a 20 foot wide? tent.  It had three poles on each side.  If the middle poles were replaced with hard clear plastic instead of metal, view of the performers would be less obstructed. You can't see it in this photo, but the lead singer/guitarist often stood right in front of that pole.
• The items in the Silent Auction weren't that great.

Park/Urban Design/Maintenance

• Note that the Park has great design features wrt "the water}, allowing people to get close to the water in some areas, to view it from higher up in others, and where you don't want people to walk, incorporates native plantings.  It's okay to have one off special treatments for particular parks, depending on land and design context.
• Speaking of plantings.  Damn good.  Pretty much damn good too for the interpretational signage, which makes sense because the park is one of the newest in the system, so it was able to get new signage following the more recent guidance in the Salt Lake City Parks, Open Space, and Trail Signage Guidelines.  They didn't have to pay to replace older signage, which is always put on the back burner.
• There isn't a good gateway sign for the Park.  Salt Lake City Parks don't have dominant gateway signs at parks.  They have a blade sign with small type as their newest version.  It would disappear among the plantings, and can't compete with the commercial signage next door and across the street.  I suggest using a sign sized just like the V&L Auto Repair location next door.
• The standard size is 7 feet tall and 18 inches wide.  Too small.

The V&L Auto Repair sign is in the distance, but on the street, would dwarf the typical 7 foot tall city park entry/gateway sign.

I'm just dying to be able to put a parking garage style neon sign at the entrance to Sugar House Park, or on buildings we hope to develop in the future.

• Speaking of gateway signage, there should be a sign on the east bank of the Jordan River Parkway Trail.
• The interpretation signage at the Park should have included gnarly photos of before.  Most government communications tries to be positive.  And planning documents.  Show bad practice. People need to be able to see before and after to understand the depth of improvements and change. 
• One interpretation sign is slightly broken.  Were I holding an event, I'd try to do a walk through with enough time beforehand so that such problems could be fixed in advance.
• On the Parkway at the trail point where the bridge across the Confluences connects to the east bank of the River, there is no Jordan River Parkway trailhead sign.
• Restrooms and signage would enable the site to serve as a formal trailhead as part of the Jordan River Parkway.
• There were temporary porta potties, but if you want to make the park great, it needs a permanent restroom.  
• There are a couple of blank walls, one for the scenic overlook on the north side of the confluence, one on the south side, the retaining wall separating the Park from the abutting auto repair shop.  Seems to me an opportunity for public art as a way to ward off the potential for (more) graffiti. 
• This also relates to my point about thinking creatively about incorporating public art into facilities.  This would be an art program, safety and maintenance program all in one.  See: "Gaps in Parks Master Planning: Part Five | Planning for Public Art as an element of park facilities" and "Gaps in Parks Master Planning, Part Six | Art(s) in the Park(s) as a comprehensive program."
• Another opportunity may have been with a creative/artistic set of bicycle racks rather than the traditional hoops.

Fish decorative bicycle rack, Education Center with mural, 

Colorado Lagoon Park, Long Beach, California

A lot of empty space on that wall is perfect for graffiti.

• Even in 2022 I recommended that Parks invest better in walking and biking connections to the park, including crosswalks.  It still pertains.

 

• People had dogs, could we create street furniture appurtenance "hooks" for them to be tied to?
• As I have been recommending since 2003, electric plugs should be placed in tree boxes for more connections.  That would allow lighting for display booths and later hours.
• They do have a main box supporting electricity needs for the stage.
• Electrical connections should be provided for food trucks to reduce negative environmental impact including noise.
• As plantings have grown since the park opened in 2021, signage is obscured.  Make sure it's visible through pruning.
• The entrance to the park is set up as an upside down Y, connecting at an inner walkway.  Right there they have a bicycle rack.  A bicycle rack should really be placed more on the side of the space.
• Maybe they think it's okay in terms of its relationship to the Plaza, not the walkways.

Visitor center/trailhead/restroom facility

• Next door to the park is an old bungalow, that doesn't seem to be kept up very well these days.  But they allowed a bike valet service to set up in the front yard and there was an ambulance on call for first aid parked in the back yard.  I don't know if the City or Seven Canyons Trust or another entity owns that house.  But someone should.  It could be converted to a visitor and community center for the park.

• An example is how the University Neighborhood Partners program of the University of Utah has its office in a similar bungalow next to Jordan Park ("University of Utah University Neighborhood Partners program and community revitalization in West side Salt Lake City/County").  Although it doesn't seem as if it is designed to be a space open to the public.
• You could at least have some open hours and access to restrooms even if the building is closed.  The historic house across from Draper Centennial Park
• More parks should plan for this kind of co-location

Public restrooms for the Draper Historic Park, Draper, Utah

are located on the back of the Sorenson Home Museum

Conclusion.  All in all, I had a fun day.  I got to make many observations.  I picked up some great collateral materials which help trigger ideas for Sugar House Park.  (Couldn't get big printed documents from Utah Rivers Council, will have to go to their office.  I also noticed a printout for "Tabling Guidelines."  I hope I can get a copy.)  And a beer in a beautiful setting at a decent enough price.

Most importantly, incredibly great weather.  It was gorgeous day to be out.

Big events as priming actions: Pittsburgh and the NFL Draft | Go big, medium, or little? Go for a few projects or many?

My first big professional conference that I attended was the National Trust for Historic Preservation in Cleveland in 2002, and it was simultaneous with an architecture and urban design conference.  I went on a bunch of tours and saw some amazing projects, and it seemed like many were timed to be ready by the time of the conference. 

I have past entries about big events like when the MLB All Star Game was in DC and the missed opportunity to move forward with more velocity some necessary infrastructure improvements ("Urban design considerations for the area around Washington Nationals Baseball Stadium in advance of the 2018 All-Star Game," "Sadly, DC won't show so well during the Baseball All-Star Game"), and the same about the Super Bowl, such as in Minneapolis ("Minneapolis Super Bowl: Urban Revitalization and Transformational Projects Action Planning") and the Olympics.

The reason special events like the All Star Game or the Super Bowl don't work out so well for the locals is that out-of-town visitors no longer are that interested in consuming the local experience outside of the event, and most of the money they spend: on transportation and accommodations in particular doesn't stay local because the firms aren't locally-based; although these visitors do spend money on food and drink, which tends to be the most benefits reaped by locally-owned businesses.  

The challenge is to convert the claims ("An All-Star Game in your hometown offers memories to last a lifetime," Washington Post) into reality.

But in terms of visionary projects, in my writings the problem is the difference between big and little.  This blog has a pretty expansive vision, e.g., at the scale of cities like Bilbao, Liverpool, Helsinki, Toronto and even Edmonton as discussed in a process I call "transformational projects action planning" ("Updating the best practice elements of revitalization to include elements 7 and 8 | Transformational Projects Action Planning at a large scale").

As well as the International Building Exposition (IBA) and the International Garden Festival process in Germany, where a region commits to an "international exposition" in ten years or so, planning, developing and implementing projects on a massive scale.  

IBA Hamburg Dock Building exhibit hall.

I saw some of that in Hamburg and Essen, but even in Hamburg, after ten years there were still projects to do.  Among Hamburg's projects were efforts in ten neighborhoods to do major, but holistic, development projects ("IBA Hamburg, a German approach on sustainable urban development," Construction21).

-- The contemporary International Building Exhibition (IBA) : innovative regeneration strategies in Germany, MIT thesis

The reality is that my expansive vision slams into the reality of project planning and financing on the ground.

Even ten years might not be long enough to achieve implementation--e.g. one such project in Hamburg was rebuilding a highway along side major rail lines, in order to recapture space and reknit communities that had been ripped apart by highway building decades before.

And that's one project.  Imagine working on several big projects simultaneously.  Competition for labor and materials drives up costs.

And with the time frame presented by the event owner like the Olympics or FIFA--they don't provide enough time to build major projects in democracies, which require a public process although they seem to have an easier time of it with autocracies.

Even the Milano-Cortina Olympics found them still building the hockey arena days before the Opening Ceremony (and interestingly, the Washington Post had an article, "The biggest sporting event in Milan on Saturday wasn’t the Olympics," about how soccer there still mattered a lot more.

Anyway, maybe I should compromise amongst three choices:

1.  Think IBA and IGF and minimum of 10-15 year time frames that can extend  even further (Hamburg converted its IBA project into a community development corporation charged with finishing all the projects IBA had conceptualized.).

2.  Maybe a big project or two, but mostly small ones.

3.  Small projects only.

But definitely, if you don't do much in response to the opportunity you won't get much real economic return  ("Panini Chowdhury: Pittsburgh can use the NFL Draft to change the city").

Mega-Events, Modest Returns. Independent research finds that projected windfalls routinely overshoot reality, with the spectacles having little sustained effect on metro employment or fiscal trends. The pattern of short-term visitor spending and long-term budget hype repeats from Super Bowls to All-Star Games to drafts.

Leading sports Economists like Victor Matheson find that while host cities often project hundreds of millions in windfalls from mega-events, the actual net gains are usually only 10 to 25% of forecasts, with little to no long-term impact on jobs or regional GDP. In reality, host cities rarely recover the full costs of staging an event like the NFL Draft, once expenses for public safety, public works, infrastructure upgrades and staff hours are accounted for.

That’s why Pittsburgh must look beyond the party. The city (and the region) must make changes in policies and practices that will improve the Draft event but have a positive long-term effect on life here.

Crowds fill an area outside of the draft stage during the second round of the NFL football draft, Friday, April 26, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

Definitely (3) is the case for the NFL Draft.  I am still skeptical of the reports about how it is an economic boom ("San Francisco is not Santa Clara: How Santa Clara/San Jose are poorly represented by Super Bowl programming, even though it's home to the event").

I mean, is Pittsburgh really going to have 700,000 visitors from it ("As NFL Draft in Pittsburgh gets closer, registration for fan experiences opens," "How the NFL Draft exploded from hotel ballrooms to a massive outdoor spectacle," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "NFL draft attendance record set with more than 775,000 fans attending the event in Detroit," AP).

The reality is that my job isn't to be skeptical (well it is) but to figure out how to best leverage the revitalization potential of such events.  

It it helps a community to bring about inward investment on improvements to infrastructure and placemaking, you would be foolish to not take advantage of the opportunity.

That's what Pittsburgh is doing.  The NFL Draft Day Event is April 23-25.  

In the meantime, projects like a 100 foot fountain at Pointe Place Park ("Point State Park fountain reaches over 100 feet — just in time for the NFL Draft," PPG), refurbishment of downtown parks ("New riverfront park completed, the first of several Downtown projects to wrap up ahead of NFL Draft," PPG) and a number of other improvements are coming on line ("Pittsburgh unveils branding and color strategy for 2026 NFL draft").

From the park article:

Riverlife broke ground on renovations in April 2025. Over the past year, the group has replaced the park’s weathered surface with new, bluestone pavers, removed struggling plants and planted 35 new trees. Riverlife also expanded open areas to create space for small pop-up events and upgraded the park’s lighting.

“What you're seeing is a space that is now truly accessible,” Riverlife President and CEO Matthew Galluzzo said, flanked by the Andy Warhol and Rachel Carson bridges at the front of the new space. “It's more resilient and more welcoming.”

The $5.4 million renovation is the first in the park’s three-decade history. The space was once a “6-foot concrete sidewalk,” said Laura Solano, a partner with the New York-based architecture firm Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates. Working with the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, Ms. Solano helped transform it into one of Downtown Pittsburgh’s first riverfront parks in the 1990s. “Do-overs in life are just so rare, and yet here we are in the reimagined and incredibly beautiful upper level park,” she said.

The article also discusses other projects.  Maybe I can criticize them as being small and ephemeral.  After all, I argue that all projects need to be conceptualized as part of a bigger whole, creating and connecting and building a larger path of improvement.  For example, the park project is part of a larger project aimed to fill in open space gaps across the Downtown.  

In a few weeks, Arts Landing, the new outdoor venue, will open to the public behind the Allegheny Riverfront Park. Crews on Thursday filed in and out of the construction site, where an arched, white canopy hovers atop a bandshell at the tip of the 4-acre complex.

Soon after, a revamped Market Square will be unveiled, with expanded space for outdoor dining and a new open-air pavilion.

And across the Golden Triangle, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership will complete more than 100 different “vibrancy” projects before the end of the month, including new, pop-up retailers, window displays in vacant storefront and sidewalk repairs.

... The park’s completion comes just over a month after Riverlife and the city of Pittsburgh launched a new initiative to provide different organizations with resources for riverfront trail and park maintenance. Through the program, several riverfront trail cleanup events will be held before the NFL Draft, focusing on areas expected to see the most foot traffic during the event, Mr. Galluzzo said.

"Railroad trestles at Strip District entrance will be painted black and gold for NFL Draft"

Conclusion.  Pittsburgh might disagree but I'd argue that they chose the "small projects only" route.  The thing is that all the small projects contributed to a greater plan, so that the cumulative impact is greater than evaluating on a project by project basis.

Going forward, the trick is to sustain, build upon, and continue the momentum ("The NFL Draft gave Downtown a deadline. Now, leaders are eyeing the future," "Editorial: Pittsburgh prepares for its Draft Day close up").  From the editorial:

But if the last weekend in April is to be worth the effort and resources that are going into it, the extravaganza will also have to be a beginning. The Pittsburgh that emerges on the other side of the draft cannot be the same city that was chosen two years ago. Projects, programs and policies designed to make the city ready for tourists and television cameras should, if successful, be made permanent. And the national limelight must be leveraged for long-term gains to the city’s economy and reputation.

Like the title of the The The song, "Life is What You Make It?"  Pittsburgh shows that you can leverage such events for long term improvements.  

“It gave us a deadline,” Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato said at the meeting. “It helped us meet goals we didn’t know were possible.”

Other places and past experience show that not doing taking that approach fails to generate multiplicative improvements, inherently reducing the return on investment.

Multiple paths to success.  Although big multiple projects for places like Bilbao, Liverpool, and Edmonton have also been good approaches.  And the "Metropolitan Area Projects" approach in Oklahoma City ("Change isn't usually that simple: The repatterning of Oklahoma City's Downtown Streetscape").

It shows that there isn't "one best approach, one best fix."

WRT the plethora of projects in Pittsburgh, also see:

-- Litter reduction: "New initiative — dubbed the ‘Immaculate Collection’ — aims to clean up Pittsburgh ahead of the NFL draft"

-- Outdoor vending: "As NFL Draft nears, city adds new outdoor vending locations in Downtown"

-- Draft beer bar crawl: "PicksBURGH is cranking the NFL Draft to 11 with a music crawl and more"

-- Road and public space improvements: "Pittsburgh begins $16.3 million street paving with NFL Draft focus: Downtown streets around Market Square, Arts Landing get first attention" and "Ahead of the NFL Draft, Pittsburgh is getting a facelift — and officials say changes are here to stay"

-- Speculation about special out of sight out of mind approaches to homelessness: "NFL Draft in Pittsburgh could be 'incredibly difficult' for those experiencing homelessness, advocates say"

-- Free transit sponsored by the Scheetz convenience store chain: "The T will offer free rides during NFL Draft weekend in Pittsburgh with a boost from Sheetz," also "PRT gets $350,000 to expand bus and light rail service for NFL Draft weekend" and "How Pittsburgh transit and city leaders plan to move 500,000+ visitors around the NFL Draft"

-- Ongoing development in the stadium district: "Ahead of the NFL Draft, Pittsburgh's North Shore is changing rapidly"

-- Leveraging the event: for running "Course map for 5K during NFL Draft in Pittsburgh released" and improvement of the presentation of history, "Fort Pitt Museum to close for upgrades ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft"

Three ways to put additional checks on professional sports facilities after a contract is signed

The arena is pictured towards the bottom right of the photograph, as a round building.

1.  Conditional Use Permit.  Madison Square Garden has a conditional use permit to operate an arena on top of Penn Station.  

The original term was 50 years.  The permit was renewed for 10 years in 2013.  MSG asked for a permanent permit before its expire in 2023.  This obtains from the Zoning Regulations Section 74-41.

Stakeholders want MSG to accede to new developments in and around Penn Station to make it function better as a railroad passenger station.  This would include land transfers and other acts.  MSG hasn't been cooperative.  The station's location on top of multiple railroad and subway lines means that a majority of its patrons use transit to get there.

Because of MSG's recalcitrance about redevelopment, the most recent renewal was only for five years to put pressure on them to participate ("Five-Year Madison Square Garden Permit Inflates Pressure to Play Ball," The City).

In any case, a conditional use permit provides the opportunity to renegotiate elements of the original agreement, in line with current conditions.

Photo: Danielle Parhizkaran / The Boston Globe.

Annual license.  A provision in the State of Massachusetts code provides that arenas and stadiums are licensed annually for the program they present.  The World Cup is a modification.

The license gives the locality extraordinary opportunity to manage and mitigate elements of the operations of the stadium and its effect on the community.

Much to the chagrin of Kraft Enterprises.  Annual license.  The town of Foxborough, Massachusetts refuses to agree to a license for the soccer World Cup until they receive the money they requested for police and other security measures that would have to be provided by the town ("The $90-a-month Foxborough Select Board members taking on FIFA’s Goliath," Boston Globe).  

Kraft Enterprises pays for security costs for football, concerts, and other large events held at the stadium complex.

Kraft Enterprises and FIFA are up in arms about this ("Boston’s World Cup games still in doubt after funding shortfall proposal rejected," The Athletic).  Foxborough hasn't budged.  From the CBS News story "World Cup security update: Foxboro "shocked and dismayed" by Kraft Group's latest statement on funding":

The town insists that FIFA and Boston 26 pay the $7.8 million security bill upfront ahead of the matches, but the organizations have said that they will reimburse the town, or that the equipment they need for security will be available by June 1.

... “The Town’s public safety team has spent thousands of hours in conjunction with regional, state and federal partners to develop a comprehensive security plan. While the total cost for such services is a microscopic fraction of the revenue that the events will generate, the Town has been met, at every turn, with resistance from the Kraft Group and other event organizers.

“That such entities may have miscalculated the cost of hosting the World Cup is not a reason to compromise on event security. The Town cannot and will not finance the Kraft Group’s losses by sacrificing public safety.”

It turns out that Kraft Enterprises operates Gillette Stadium in part through an annual license wrt the number of events, and other conditions.  It can be modified during the year, e.g. to add a concert to the list of events, etc.  From the license agreement:

In accordance with Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 140, Section 183A, Chapter 136, Section 4, Chapter 140, $181, and Chapter 229, Section 6 of the Code of the Town ofFoxborough (the “Governing Law") the Board of Selectmen of the Town of Foxborough (the "Board") licenses Kraft Sports and Entertainment LLC and its affiliates (collectively "KSE") to conduct live entertainment and sporting events at the premises controlled by KSE inside Gillette Stadium, including activity in the parking areas and plazas surrounding the Stadium that is incidental to events being held inside it, subject to the following terms.

El Paso claims President Donald Trump's political campaign owes more than half a million dollars for police and public safety services from a February campaign rally. REUTERS/Leah Millis.

An aside: Trump and his rallies.  The license approach is interesting.  

If cities had used such a process for dealing with Trump rallies for his election/re-election, they wouldn't have been stiffed ("Cities seek more than $750K in unpaid bills for Trump campaign events since 2016," NBC, "Why the Trump campaign won’t pay police bills," Center for Public Integrity).  From the CPI:

That depends on who you ask. The cities are adamant Trump should pay up. But in many of these cases, there are no signed contracts between the municipal governments and the Trump campaign. The cities dispatched police officers to secure Trump’s events because they believe public safety required it — and the U.S. Secret Service asked for it.

Transportation demand management plans. In "Framework of characteristics that support successful community development in association with the development of professional sports facilities" (2021) one of the sections is on transportation, with examples.  

Most contracts between a locality and the sports team don't have detailed requirements for transportation planning, and the contracts can't really be changed after the fact.

The Washington Wizards and Capitals have an informal agreement to pay for Metrorail service after the system closes, if games go late.  But this doesn't extend to playoffs.  The Washington Nationals baseball team has no similar agreement, formal or informal.

OTOH, the Chicago Cubs are required to have a transportation demand management plan, and it has been tweaked for improvements over time.  The codified document is difficult to find.  The 2018 Cubs Neighborhood Report describes the traffic measures on pages 1-6, including remote parking, shuttles, bicycle valet services, and a focus on CTA rail transit.

The 161st Street Subway Station is directly across from Yankee Stadium.

The Barclays Arena/Brooklyn Nets have a TDM requirement.  Yankee Stadium has a more informal agreement, with possibilities outlined in the environmental impact statement, but it has no public parking lots or garages, and most people arrive by subway and CitiField (NY Mets).  MTA provides extra express subway railroad trains on game days.

Meadowlands Stadium in New Jersey has the Meadowlands District Transportation Plan 2045, but it doesn't always work ("‘Mass-Transit Super Bowl’ Hits Some Rough Patches in Moving Fans," New York Times).

Other arenas that have investments in transit, including free transit fares to and from games and non-sports related concerts include Chase Arena (Golden State Warriors), Climate Change Arena (Seattle Kraken), and Talking Stick Arena (Phoenix Suns).

Other teams have contributed to transit stations and other facilities. Facilities in Australia even include extensive special bus and train services, including for concerts ("Transperth transit (Perth, Western Australia) provides free transit to certain events, like the Red Hot Chili Peppers concert on 2/12/2023," "Perth traffic: TransPerth offers range of travel options for Ed Sheeran concert attendees," Perth Now).

Some casinos too.  While not a sports team, the Springfield Massachusetts MGM Casino was required to create a TDM plan too, although they call it a Traffic Mitigation Plan.  

They complement public transit ("Despite Low Ridership, Springfield's Casino-Funded Bus Service Keeps Moving," WBUR/NPR) with special shuttle transit services ("MGM Springfield launches new shuttle service to Connecticut," Fox61)..  

Springfield doesn't have the same array of transit services as the casino in Everett (next paragraph) so it makes sense that the primary focus is on vehicular transit.

There is also a TDM plan for the Wynn Casino in Everett, although some complain that it maximizes the benefits to the casino, and doesn't work to extend transportation infrastructure improvements beyond the casino site ("New transit links could transform Everett’s access to Boston," Boston Globe).  A soccer stadium will be constructed proximate to the site as well.

However, the state is interfering with these programs to capture the revenues otherwise diverted from the state budget ("‘It couldn’t come at a worse time’: Legislature strips casino mitigation funds amid municipal budget woes," CommonWealth Beacon).

DC: Professional Tennis and a new football sports complex | The missed connection for good planning, transit, and intensifying uses where appropriate

Rock Creek Tennis Center, Washington DC.

The National Park Service has put forth a tender to rehabilitate the William Fitzgerald Tennis Center in Rock Creek Park ("Feds seek private money to upgrade tennis center that hosts DC Open," Washington Post).  From the article:

The National Park Service this week issued a request for proposals seeking a long-term lessee to renovate and operate the aging tennis complex in Rock Creek Park, calling for at least $25 million in private investment and setting an unusually compressed timeline for bids.

The request was posted late in the day [December 17th]. Proposals are due Jan. 20, just 34 days later, with the agency indicating it hopes to have a lease in place as soon as March.

The short term of the tender makes people think the project is dialed in for venture capitalist Mark Ein, who runs the tennis tournament there.

Area resident Binta Robinson had the great idea of marrying the tennis center to the plans for the development of a new football stadium at the RFK campus, based on the example in Miami and the tennis complex integrated into the Hard Rock Stadium there.  I thought it was a great idea, and wrote about it ("You get what you plan for: the multi-use Miami Hard Rock Stadium versus typical football stadiums | Washington Commanders").

I also submitted public comments on the stadium project ("Public comment period: Redevelopment at the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus | Closes December 19th").  Those comments were due two days after the release of the Tennis RFP.

But obviously, these two projects are not seen as potentially complementary but located the stadium. Although Ein owns a stake in the NFL Commanders football team as well.

Google Earth view of the Rock Creek Tennis Center in between Rock Creek Park and the residential neighborhoods east of 16th Street NW.

A big problem with the tennis center and the Mubudala Open there is that it's located in a neighborhood, not in a place with multiple transportation options--definitely not Metrorail access, and limited parking.  It's not the kind of use that's congruent with neighborhoods.

Of course, given it's DC and that it's the Park Service, lack of vision shouldn't be a surprise.

This is what I call "designing conflict in," when the purpose of planning (not that there is planning going on here, more like project management) is to "design conflict out."

It's not that I don't believe in mixed use places.  But placement of uses ought to use the Dutch method where uses with high transportation demand are put into places where the infrastructure (road, transit, bike, pedestrian) already exists ("ABC Zoning: An Integrated Approach to Mobility Planning," Dutch Cycling Embassy).

In the Netherlands, there is a decades-long tradition of steering the cars to the highways in order to create more safety and more room for other users on the subordinated networks. In the Utrecht SUMP, the strategy aimed strongly for cars to use the ring road around the city in order to free up space for cyclists in the heart of the city. And the mobility strategy is not only about the routing of cars, but also about the strategic planning of parking places and traffic management. This all can help to create more space for other modes in the heart of the city.

While the Dutch, unlike the US, are focused on maximizing the shift of trips from motor vehicles to sustainable modes, the general point pertains.  Put high demand for traffic uses in places where the infrastructure already exists, to leverage existing public investment.  

This is doubly true given the amount of public investment for infrastructure that will be going into the RFK site. (Sadly, DC has already truncated the possibility of adding streetcar service within the RFK campus, "s.")

You get what you plan for: the multi-use Miami Hard Rock Stadium versus typical football stadiums | Washington Commanders

Upper Northwest DC resident Binta Robinson has a letter to the editor of the Washington Post, "How to fix D.C.’s crumbling sports infrastructure," making the point that even with renovations ("Rock Creek Tennis Center set for repairs, but neighbors have questions") the Rock Creek Park tennis courts aren't a great place for the Mubadala Citi DC Open, a stop on the professional tennis circuit as they are embedded in a neighborhood with limited parking and transit options and owned by the National Park Service, which isn't positioned well to run such an event in the facility, even though there is a "public-private partnership" which manages the facility.

She suggests the forthcoming Commanders football stadium ("Mendelson reaches deal with Commanders on RFK site amid growing pressure") as a better alternative, based on how the Miami Open tennis tournament plays at the Hard Rock Stadium ("How The Miami Open Is Repositioning Itself At Hard Rock Stadium And Increasing Ticket Sales," Forbes).

I am embarrassed to write that I didn't know that Hard Rock Stadium is a huge exception in football stadiums ("Framework of characteristics that support successful community development in association with the development of professional sports facilities," ) in that they deliberately plan to have multiple events, partly by additional tenants, so that they are likely to have 4x as many events as a typical stadium, making public financing at least tolerable ("Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium: A Modern-Day Multi-Purpose Venue," Forbes).

The home of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins and University of Miami Hurricanes football team, Hard Rock Stadium has turned into an example of using both the stadium and the site for mega-events far beyond just one sport. Even after the stadium adds a marquee football event to its roster, hosting the Orange Bowl Jan. 9, one of the College Football Playoff’s semifinals, the 265-acre site will transform as the regular home to one of the largest tennis tournaments on the sport’s calendar, hosting the Miami Open each spring since 2019, and one of the newest stops on the worldwide F1 circuit, hosting the Miami Grand Prix since 2022.

That’s not all. Hard Rock Stadium will also host FIFA World Cup games in 2026, eight FIFA Club World Cup matches in 2025, the College Football Playoffs national championship game in January 2026 and plenty of additional concerts, such as Shakira, Post Malone and Cold Play.

... “I think we are fortunate to have an owner who had a vision to make this a global entertainment destination,” Boyan says. The site has hosted the Dolphins for over three decades and also welcomed MLB for 19 years. The venue once resembled a more traditional multi-purpose stadium. That all changed when the baseball team moved out and a 2015 major overhaul set the stage to host new events to bring in a diverse mix of fans.

... The 17 practice courts and nine competition courts outside the stadium get resurfaced every year. The stadium court, inside Hard Rock Stadium, is built on the football field with a 6,000-seat temporary structure with suites, a press box and luxury seating all pushed against the south sideline of the stadium to create a 14,000-seat stadium within a stadium. It takes a couple of months to build the structure ahead of the roughly two-week event.

This 23-acre tennis complex is situated around Hard Rock Stadium, featuring 18 practice courts, 10 tournament courts, a 5,000-seat grandstand court, and a 14,000-seat stadium court inside the stadium structure. The tennis campus seamlessly connects to the existing stadium via a centralized plaza and public squares

At the same time, outside bleachers are going up around the courts and sponsor activation areas, food and beverage spaces, hospitality and plenty of décor takes shape. “Our group does a good job of trying to evolve and improve every year,” Boyan says, “and the design of what we do we try to take up a level every year.”

While each stadium and each market come unique, Boyan says the international flavor of Miami with the site and climate allows the venue to really embrace such a range of events on its calendar. “We have found content we think is great for south Florida,” he says. “Each city needs to look at what their assets are and what makes sense for them.”

Formula 1 racing in Hard Rock Stadium. 

That’s how stadiums can build a modern-day multi-purpose event space. “Multi-purpose facilities are not different types of content in the seating bowl,” Boyan says, “but what else can you do to generate content on the property? Each stadium is a little bit different.” For its part, Hard Rock Stadium has created an internationally flavored blueprint.

My original blog entry "Framework of characteristics that support successful community development in association with the development of professional sports facilities" (2021) is a continuation of a thread that dates to the mid-2010s, and in particularly was spurred by a minor league ballpark area planning initiative in Salt Lake, which made the point that when the stadium was built in the early 1990s claims for revitalization were made, but nothing happened.  But there was a reason, the stadium wasn't built with a purposive area development plan.  Any benefits would be "trickle down" if at all as a result.

In the piece, football stadiums are criticized for having few events, which means even more minimal contribution to the city and regional economy.  

RFK campus

You could take that for granted, or as the Miami Dolphins NFL team shows us, you could require a "programming plan" as part of the original contract, in return for financial contributions, and as part of stadium planning and zoning more generally.  Although maybe the Miami location is better for its appeal to South America, and the related ability to market to a greater audience.  Basically, programming plans for football stadiums will vary considerably, depending on potential opportunities. 

Note that the concept of a broader programming action plan dovetails nicely with the statement expressed by former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk that arenas can be thought of more broadly as performing arts centers ("Good quote on arenas and stadiums as "performing arts centers" attractions for cities" [2024]).

And that's the problem with the Commanders stadium proposal for DC.  There's no time for planning.   It's a bum's rush.  I haven't written about it but meant to do so.  

First, I am against public financing for such ventures, which are purely profiting for the team owner, with only scraps for the local jurisdictions.  Second, despite opposition, in most cases public financing is approved, unless local laws require a vote of citizens for final approval.  Third, that's why I have the "Framework" entry, to help communities make the best of a bad situation.  

Especially because fourth, at least in DC, you can augur development in the RFK stadium site without a football team ("Yes, modify and extend the RFK Campus lease; No, don't do it for the Washington Redskins football team" [2018], "Capital One Arena, Wizards and Capitals may move to Alexandria | Why not the RFK campus?" [2023], "I wonder if Mayor Fenty hadn't dissolved the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative in 2007, merging it into another city agency, if development would have happened faster?" [2024]).

But the Commanders thing is even worse than that because the city is under an artificially strict deadline for an agreement, which means THERE'S NO TIME FOR PLANNING of any sort, at least to get items into the preliminary agreement.

An example is how most of the Mayor's arguments in favor of a stadium are incomplete and wouldn't stand up to an impartial review.

DC Mayor Bowser claims that only a football stadium can bring about new development to that site, a point about which most people disagree ("Arguments in defense of a stadium at RFK fall short of a first down," and "Alternative anchors for RFK await." GGW, and my entries).

Binta Robinson's idea of co-location of professional tennis at the Commanders site is brilliant and a great way to improve the benefits to the city, as well as improvements in tennis facilities, and the ability to host a top-notch tennis tournament, as opposed to a half-assed program at the Rock Creek Tennis Center.

No time for negotiation.  No time to bring the parties together.  Even though the party behind the is Mark Ein, a minority investor in the football team.

Another item that should be negotiated for but there is no time, is Nick Stementelli's point, at Greater Greater Washington ("Whether or not it gets a stadium, RFK needs a second Metro station"), that another Metrorail station could be added to the site at the northeast, the station that was originally proposed for the system at Oklahoma Avenue.  (I've suggested that too, in various posts about "east of the river" revitalization.) 

Another problem with professional sports teams is that communities have no input into the ownership.  They aren't necessarily good partners ("Public entities ought to be more careful of whom they do business with" [2016]).

In that vein, Josh Harris, the Commander's managing partner, screwed over Philadelphia in negotiations of a possible relocation of the 76ers basketball team ("Fool me once, fool me twice: Mayor Bowser has it all wrong about the Washington Commanders football team," 2025).  DC needs to strongly negotiate upfront, or it won't get these "nice additions" of ancillary development unless the team agrees.  

For example, the Washington Nationals don't pay extra for Metrorail service past system closure.  It should have been a requirement as part of the contract, as part of transportation demand management planning for the site.

DC should not make the same mistake twice.

Southern California Museums “Free-For-All” day: March 16th

I think coordinated "Open Doors" events like this are a great way for the cultural community to market itself while providing access to people who might not otherwise visit.

-- Southern California Museums “Free-For-All” day, Sunday March 16th

The only thing is one day probably isn't enough, I'd do the full weekend.  The downside of such Open Doors events, like the one the Smithsonian Museums sponsors in September, is that they are super crowded and can be uncomfortable.

Although in the SoCal case, it turns out that some of the institutions aren't open on Sundays, only Saturdays, so it works out.

Cultural heritage tourism. When you travel, looking for such events can be pretty cool.  So many cities have them, such as New York City, Pittsburgh, and Toronto.