Talk about a stadium not being ready on time: Biloxi

[Count Istvan Teleky]

http://msbusiness.com/blog/2014/07/09/biloxi-reveals-baseball-stadium-bids-today-opening-day-deadline-looms/#utm_source=WhatCounts+Publicaster+Edition&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=MBJ+E-Bulletin+%e2%80%94+MetroCast+Mississippi+acquired+ by+Ohio-based+company&utm_content=Biloxi+reveals+baseball+stadium+bids%3 b+opening+day+deadline+looms

Wa-a-a-a-y behind already.

Wondering if they could play some of their games at USM until their stadium is ready.

[drunkernhelldawg]

It's a disaster caused by city officials and MDA people negotiating in secret and announcing BIG PLANS with little time for public input before the final decision was reached. I really hope it's successful, but all I see now is fraud and boondoogle. FYI, the state is putting in 15 million through MDA (through some legal miracle, they can just do that, just because), so all citizens of Mississippi have a stake in this FAIL.

[Political Hack]

with the amount of money the coast sends Mississippi, Mississippi really shouldn't be moaning about a risky $15M investment in the tourism/entertainment industry down there. That said, being a month a half behind schedule is unacceptable. given the professionalism of the construction companies down there and the speed in which they repaired the casinos (as compared to NOLA) after Katrina, I still wouldn't be shocked if it's done on time.

[drunkernhelldawg]

With the bids coming in 8+ million over budget, the situation seems pretty dire at this point. Rebidding takes 45 days.

[Cabo32]

What is already shitty..is the fact that they have invested over 9 mil on the property already.. "It was a terrible decision to bring a team to biloxi" said captain hindsight

[starkvegasdawg]

What is already shitty..is the fact that they have invested over 9 mil on the property already.. "It was a terrible decision to bring a team to biloxi" said captain hindsight

Captain Obvious agrees with Captain Hindsight but up the chain of command General Disarray loves it.

[Political Hack]

maybe they can build bowling alley or pool hall instead.

[drunkernhelldawg]

maybe they can build bowling alley or pool hall instead.

Do you really think they can get a pool hall worthy of Biloxi bid out and built in time for billiards season? Maybe, but it's only a dream and a shaved lot at this point.

[drunkernhelldawg]

with the amount of money the coast sends Mississippi, Mississippi really shouldn't be moaning about a risky $15M investment in the tourism/entertainment industry down there. That said, being a month a half behind schedule is unacceptable. given the professionalism of the construction companies down there and the speed in which they repaired the casinos (as compared to NOLA) after Katrina, I still wouldn't be shocked if it's done on time.

Don't want to spill off topic, but it's kind of a myth that we did so much better than Louisiana after Katrina. The situations were totally different. Which looks better now?

[Johnson85]

with the amount of money the coast sends Mississippi, Mississippi really shouldn't be moaning about a risky $15M investment in the tourism/entertainment industry down there. That said, being a month a half behind schedule is unacceptable. given the professionalism of the construction companies down there and the speed in which they repaired the casinos (as compared to NOLA) after Katrina, I still wouldn't be shocked if it's done on time.

That costs money though.

What messed them up was their initial construction estimate. They started off late because they didn't take into account some of the public approvals that either law or politics required, and then wasted time rebidding components, as it looks like the GC prices are reflecting the same higher prices that were included in the components that were rebid. They probably should have gone the GC route in the beginning considering their time frame and considering they have two companies in Yates and Roy Anderson with a major presence down there that have those capabilities.

ETA: I don't think you can call the $15M an investment. Sports arenas in general are terrible 'investments' for cities with outdoor football stadiums being the worst and indoor arenas that also have the capability to do concerts and other events the best. If the state wanted to invest in the coast, it would have dropped $15M into the windpool, or maybe even better simply drop $15M into the windpool that would only go to reduce premiums on commercial policies and residential policies for houses north of the railroad tracks.

I personally like the baseball stadium b/c I won't be paying taxes for it and I will probably enjoy it some, but for the average person living in Biloxi, it will probably be a bad deal.

[Cabo32]

Now the mayor of Huntsville is saying he had no clue about the team leaving. Said they're in the middle of a 2 year contract, so I guess if they do come to biloxi we'll have to pay the fine for them breaking their contract. The officials responsible for pushing and making this decision should be removed from their "respected" position

[Political Hack]

Don't want to spill off topic, but it's kind of a myth that we did so much better than Louisiana after Katrina. The situations were totally different. Which looks better now?

the speed of the clean up and recovery effort isn't even close. the coordination at the federal, state and local level was a million times better in MS than LA. Now the will of the people to come back and build on the beach given the insurance issues have impacted long term recovery, but that's individual choices. The government had their shit together in MS... at least in comparison to LA.

[Political Hack]

That costs money though.

What messed them up was their initial construction estimate. They started off late because they didn't take into account some of the public approvals that either law or politics required, and then wasted time rebidding components, as it looks like the GC prices are reflecting the same higher prices that were included in the components that were rebid. They probably should have gone the GC route in the beginning considering their time frame and considering they have two companies in Yates and Roy Anderson with a major presence down there that have those capabilities.

ETA: I don't think you can call the $15M an investment. Sports arenas in general are terrible 'investments' for cities with outdoor football stadiums being the worst and indoor arenas that also have the capability to do concerts and other events the best. If the state wanted to invest in the coast, it would have dropped $15M into the windpool, or maybe even better simply drop $15M into the windpool that would only go to reduce premiums on commercial policies and residential policies for houses north of the railroad tracks.

I personally like the baseball stadium b/c I won't be paying taxes for it and I will probably enjoy it some, but for the average person living in Biloxi, it will probably be a bad deal.

I love the idea. will enjoy it. think it will be a great venue if planned accordingly with shows, etc.. at the Beau and is kept to a relatively small capacity crowd.