SPORTS AND ATHLETIC FACILITIES

[markhollin]

CityNowNext has a feature on F&M Bank Arena in Clarksville (5,500 capacity, attached Ford Ice Center), which is getting close to completion.

https://citynownext.com/2023/02/07/skanska-nearing-completion-at-fm-bank-arena-in-clarksville-tn/

Photos courtesy of Robert Looper III:

[markhollin]

Vanderbilt University's Basketball Operations Facility (3 stories, 90,000 sq. ft.) broke ground on Wednesday.  New rendering available.

More behind The Nashville Post paywall here:

https://www.nashvillepost.com/sports/vandy/vanderbilt-breaks-ground-on-basketball-operations-center/article_c25792fa-a82f-11ed-912f-937d683e7182.html

[markhollin]

Station Commons, the 32 acre youth sports complex by RREAF Holdings at 190 Big Station Camp Blvd. in Gallatin could get underway as early as the 2nd quarter. Construction will take 18 months.  The Gallatin City Council approved to adopt the master plan with two reading votes.

It will include:

- 100,450 square foot main building

- 8 hardwood basketball courts that can be converted into 14 volleyball courts.

- Areas for speed and fitness training and indoor baseball training.

- 4 turf field areas for baseball, softball, rugby and football activities.

- Two hotels, a convenience store, and restaurants.

More at The Tennessean here:

https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/local/sumner/gallatin/2023/02/15/gallatin-youth-sports-complex-approved-as-details-emerge-on-mixed-use-plan/69837034007/
 

[markhollin]

The third annual Big Machine Music City Grand Prix (Aug. 4-6, tix on sale today) announces some new additions:

- GT America and GR Cup Saturday night races

- Earlier Sunday start time for the NTT INDYCAR Series main event (11:30 a.m.)

- Turn 9 Club — a private grandstand, air-conditioned tented area with all-inclusive food and beverages from Edley’s Bar-B-Que and Pancho and Lefty’s Cantina

- Increased capacity in NetJets Club RPM

- The Cumberland Stage, which features live performances all day, will relocate to the Fan Zone

- Additional free water stations

- New Family Fun Zone with a shade tent and misting fans

Returning will be:

- The Super Trucks return all three days

- The star-studded Freedom Friday concert honoring military members

- Saturday night concert with to-be-announced headliners

[MLBrumby]

Oops!  Apologies y'all! 

MESSAGE TO THE MODS!!! 

I DID NOT SEE THAT THIS IS STILL UNDER THE TITANS STADIUM.  IF YOU ARE INCLINED TO KEEP THIS ON THIS FORUM, WOULD YOU PLEASE MOVE THIS TO THE COLLEGES/UNIVERSITIES THREAD?

Thanks, MLB

 

 

4 hours ago, japan said:

No reason for Vandy to ever leave the SEC.  Not happening.

TL/DR... Vandy may soon find itself in a situation where it sees its best interests lie in leaving the SEC.  

As an alum, I don't want that to happen either, but hear me out on this if you wish. Below is a portion of a speech I made to the Atlanta alumni club regarding a much wider topic about SEC expansion. I reiterate, I am no expert on the business of college sports, although I researched a great deal for this luncheon presentation. This isn't just MLB talking, but a synthesis of opinions from many alums (2 of whom accompanied me that day). So if you'll indulge my cutting/pasting and editing here, I mean no disrespect in the tone below. I truly want to hear all valid reasons why Vandy will "(n)ever leave the SEC".  At best the only thing we can be sure of at this juncture is that the changes in CFB are happening at warp speed. 

Anyway, here's my take... 

Like it or not, this topic is a frequent one discussed among us alums.  Despite your seeming confidence that won't happen there are plenty of reasons, and they gravitate around (no surprise) MONEY.  Unfortunately, Vandy's small alumni base is overwhelmingly disinterested in football as FirstBank stadium attests with the usual imbalance of school colors in favor of visiting teams. Also as a wealthy school that draws overwhelmingly beyond the region and internationally, most alums don't see being perpetual cellar-dwellers in football as worth the additional revenue of remaining in the SEC.  Research grants and alumni donations dwarf the revenue from the SEC each year. And even in non-rev sports, the other members of the conference have already made deep advances in the areas where Vandy traditionally stands out. Several sportswriters/commentators (e.g. Pat Forde; David Ubben) believe Vandy is quickly approaching an inflection point where they'll be forced to commit one way or the other.

ATM there is no critical mass among alums to leave the SEC, and for sure the administration has made it clear that it wouldn't be for a pittance. However there's perhaps a time-window on that as the SEC is considering moving toward distributing revenues according to TV game audiences in their next media contracts (.  I've heard from one booster that Vandy wouldn't consider anything less than a half-billion "for starters". As a charter member of the SEC, VU clearly has an upper hand where that's concerned, but it may not be entirely their decision soon.

The money in the rev. sports is growing more and more tied to TV market share, and Vandy knows it carries a weak following there. It is not the SEC of the old days; and now that Univ. Texas is joining, they have a record of jockeying for more money from other conference schools. That school was even instrumental in ousting Rice from the old SWC, and challenged TCU and SMU for same reason, attendance.  Conversely, the SEC is not likely to mind surrendering Nashville (which is a far larger Univ. Tennessee market) for another large market; say UNC in a large state, or Clemson which has a large alumni base. There's nothing that says they'd have to take either, but the Big 10 has made it clear they want to grow larger; potentially up to 20 schools. The SEC is likely to do the same. As a driver of growth, the member schools will be looking for large alumni bases and premier name recognition. Of course Vandy has in its favor its academic reputation, but even that is looking less important as member schools' teams become more akin to professional "farm" systems. Even many of the traditional rivalries in conferences are becoming less important; notable exceptions of course still exist at UGA/UF; Bama/Auburn; UGA/AU; LSU/Bama; UTX/OU; etc., but look at the sizes and prospects of those schools. The future of rivalries is beyond the scope of this piece and even the conferences are finding that discussion to be quite challenging. 

As conferences become larger and more competitive, what is likely to happen in future contract negotiations is an increasing disparity in revenue sharing between schools like UGA, Bama, Texas, A&M, etc. and weaker schools. Texas isn't even in the conference yet, and their AD has spoken at alum events about "expanding with new schools and/or replacing some."  It's not entirely an equal split currently but it's close. And the cost of remaining in the conference is going to continue to skyrocket; already VU is spending millions to upgrade their facilities, but that's just a baseline, not even considering the non-obligatory costs, such as NIL and coaching salaries. To be sure, there are clear intangibles for Vandy as a charter member of the SEC, and putting a price on that prestige will be debated for years to come. 

As an alum from the region who still lives in the region and whose family members count more than half the SEC schools as part of their educations, I have more than a casual interest in Vandy as a member of the SEC.  My wife and I have even gone to the six bowl games we've played in  over the past 15 years. Of course the future of bowl games is also very uncertain too.  I don't want "us" to leave the SEC.  However, the reality is that things are changing, and if Vandy doesn't look at what's coming down the road, they may well see their revenue share shrink instead of grow.  Looking ahead at the next 5-10 years, VU may realize that leaving the SEC is the better trade-off. I liken that to keeping up with the Joneses... until the Joneses become the Bezoses, Musks, Gateses, Duponts, etc.

Even as revenues grow, the cost of remaining in the conferences will continue to grow too. If Vandy stays, they'll at least need to rattle cages every year against the bottom half of the conference, and even that will cost a pretty penny. So the questions may soon be: With other conferences looking to expand under the duress of comparatively weaker media contracts (the ACC is locked into a bad one for 10 more years), and an expansion of the CFB playoffs to 12, will the success of schools like TCU, Wake Forest, Miami, and Cincinnati in other conferences compel smaller schools like Vandy to play in a conference that's more competitive to their resources?  They may consider it for a half-billion dollars.. or more. 

Edited April 28, 2023 by MLBrumby

[markhollin]

A $65 million permit has been issued for Vanderbilt Univ. for construction of its future basketball operations facility.

To be a component of the overall $300 million Vandy United facilities initiative, the future 124,150-square-foot four-story venue will be located near the north end zone of FirstBank Stadium and will include renovated locker rooms at Memorial Gymnasium, two practice gyms and hospitality areas.

The facility is being undertaken on Kensington Place/26th Ave.  Barton Malow serving as general contractor.

More behind the Nashville Post paywall here:

https://www.nashvillepost.com/business/development/permit-patrol-1-may-2023/article_3679cc84-e5e8-11ed-af37-f7ab2f9092ee.html

 

[markhollin]

Vanderbilt Stadium renovations underway: south stands coming down; north stands/scoreboard area gone and preparing for new addition that will connect to Vanderbilt Basketball Operations facility.

Looking NE from intersection of Natchez Trace and Jess Neely Drive:

Looking east from Natchez Trace at 26th Ave. South:

[Sean blackdog]

WrestleMania 43 is coming to Nashville, Tennessee in 2027. 
 

Or 

[MidTenn1]

From a recent upgraded rendering of the proposed south end zone improvements. My slide....

[markhollin]

MTSU's new $7.1 million Tennis Facilities are underway.

More at CityNowNext here:

https://citynownext.com/2023/05/09/game-set-match-new-complex-will-serve-the-next-era-of-mtsu-tennis/#more-31882
 

[markhollin]

MTSU's 12,000 capacity Murphy Center will get a make-over.  Here's a rendering:

[Luvemtall]

6 hours ago, markhollin said:

MTSU's 12,000 capacity Murphy Center will get a make-over.  Here's a rendering:

This is good news, does anyone know if this project includes any interior renovations? 

[markhollin]

Vanderbilt's Hawkins Field ballpark will see some major improvements. A 2nd level of seats will put fans on top of the action; multiple new club spaces; seating n top of the iconic left field wall; private suites on a 3rd level above the press box.  This will all be under the $3.2 billion "Dare to Grow" campaign for Vanderbilt University.

More here:

https://vucommodores.com/vandy-united-ushers-in-new-era-at-hawkins-field/
 

[Nash_12South]

I didn't realize that Vandy has no women's softball team. It appears the only SEC school to not have one. 

[markhollin]

Vanderbilt Stadium renovations underway: south stands are completely down above street level; more drilling in north stands/scoreboard area for new addition that will connect to Vanderbilt Basketball Operations facility.

Looking NE from intersection of Natchez Trace and Jess Neely Drive:

Looking east from Natchez Trace at 26th Ave. South:

[MidTenn1]

It is being reported that the Arizona Diamondbacks baseball team are looking to move to either Nashville or Buffalo (source; an old high school classmate of mine who now lives in Phoenix). That makes 6 possible teams that could expand or relocate to Nashville according to recent rumors. They include, Arizona DBs, Baltimore Orioles, Tampa Rays, Philadelphia, Kansas City, Oakland A's, California Angels and an MLB expansion team.

If all this happens, it's going to be crowded here, but I have a plan for locating of all these teams within the Nashville metro area.

1. Bellevue Diamondbacks. They would be close to Kingston Springs where I grew up in the country and had more than a few close encounters with rattlesnakes (I actually rode a bicycle over one once), So, it seems appropriate to me. If Bellevue gets the team, I'll move back to KS.
2. Murfreesboro Rays. Since we are dividing up the metro by six, Rutherford County gets one. And nobody else wants the Rays.
3. Franklin/Brentwood Orioles.  I think the owner lives there.
4. WeHo A's. They could play in the racetrack at the Fairgrounds since they are used to playing in a dump. Ingram can't complain about the noise since no one in WeHo cares about baseball anyway and won't come and watch.
5. The Sobro Southbankers. The expansion team would go on the Tishman property and adjacent lands between the amazing downtown skyline and the City Lights apartments. Because it's an expansion franchise, it can wait for a few years until all the lawsuits are settled.
6. The Nashville Angels. They would play on the East Bank in a Domed Stadium. It would only cost another $2,000,000,000. And the the California team gets the dome since west coasters are sensitive to humidity and it makes them sad.

So, there you go. That should do it until the White Sox, KC Royals, Marlins and Pirates come calling.

P.S. And the Brewers

 

Edited June 10, 2023 by MidTenn1

[MidTenn1]

Ok, I'll do it!!

1. White Sox to Mt. Juliet with a stern, finger wagging lecture that if you take the State Fair, you have to take a baseball team. No ifs, ands or buts about it.
2. Marlins to the Germantown Sounds stadium. We would have to tarp off some of the unused seating.
3. Pittsburg to the current Belmont stadium upgraded to MLB standards. They get the fantastic skyline view they are so famous for.
4. The Royals to Goodlettsville. For no reason.
5. And the Brewers to the Beaman property. Beer and Broadway, Get it?

[markhollin]

Vanderbilt Stadium renovations update.

Looking NE from intersection of Natchez Trace and Jess Neely Drive:

[smeagolsfree]

I thought the A’s were moving to Vegas.

[MidTenn1]

2 hours ago, smeagolsfree said:

I thought the A’s were moving to Vegas.

The City of Las Vegas is backing off of building a stadium, for now.

[MidTenn1]

On 6/12/2023 at 10:15 PM, MidTenn1 said:

The City of Las Vegas is backing off of building a stadium, for now.

That ^^^ was Monday.

This is Tuesday. >>>> Las Vegas 'A's

[MidTenn1]

I know I was having fun with my earlier postings, but this is a little more serious...yesterday from Forbes.

Quote

Hedge Fund Founder Looking To Buy Tampa Bay Rays For $1.85 Billion

Trip Miller, founder of Nashville hedge fund Gullane Capital Partners, is looking to buy the Rays, who created the blueprint for cobbling together a good baseball team on the cheap

.....

People familiar with Miller’s plan say he is looking to be the control person of the Rays with an investment of $200 million cash. The biggest investment would come from the family of local businessman Dan Doyle Jr. The Athletic first reported about the Doyle family’s interest in buying the Rays in May, but the article did not mention a price for the team or Miller’s potential investment.

My assumption from this news it that it is the first step in relocating the team to Nashville. Nashville is usually considered to be first in line for an expansion franchise, but in spite of the Stars effort, I wondered where the money would come from. There is no information on any relationship between Miller and the Stars, but the 'show me the money' question may be answered. The Rays would be an awesome 'get' with the Yankees and Red Sox coming to town twice a year. Those four weekends would be huge. And the Blue Jays would bring a lot of Canadian fans to the city, no doubt. 

 

Edited June 17, 2023 by MidTenn1

[subkyle]

Holy crap that looks like it could have some legs!!!

[markhollin]

Vanderbilt Football Stadium renovation update.

Looking NE from intersection of Natchez Trace and Jess Neely Drive:

[Sean blackdog]

XFL come to Nashville? 
https://xflnewshub.com/columns/xfl-expansion-2025-exploring-potential-new-horizons-with-san-diego-san-jose-nashville-and-more/