Franklin Park - White Stadium Renovation

Bananarama said:
I don't. Cities are more than just buildings. The new one will host youth summer camp programs too for the community outside of Wentworth. Way better than the huge surface parking lot there currently.
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This is how you perpetuate a housing crisis.
 
Bananarama said:
It's really not. I wish you could have a nuanced take instead of constant hyperbole.
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Wentworth doesn't need a 2.5 acre athletic field and Boston doesn't need another sports stadium in a transit desert.
 
Bananarama said:
I don't. Cities are more than just buildings. The new one will host youth summer camp programs too for the community outside of Wentworth. Way better than the huge surface parking lot there currently.
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And the youth programs are a perfect example of why we want such facilities to be transit adjacent. What's better for teenagers? The field at English School, a block from a T station? Or the field at West Roxbury Educational Complex, sort of near one low frequency bus line?
 
This plan for fixing up White Stadium includes a chapter on transportation.

It covers existing parking, train service, and bus service. Plus plans for running shuttle busses to Green St., Forest Hills, and satellite parking. Plus breakdowns of expected mode shares. Plus other stuff.

Shout out any problems you find with the plan. But people who really want this project to succeed have thought through the logistics of moving ~11,000 people in and out of the stadium on game days.
 
One big issue in that report is that the consultant who wrote it doesn't understand about the BPS special routes. They show several buses passing through Franklin Park that do so only once a day in each direction, transporting students to Latin Academy. Those buses will not be useful for White Stadium events.
 
I read that the new woman's pro soccer team Boston Unity won't start until 2026...so plenty of time for a White Stadium renovation.
 
HenryAlan said:
One big issue in that report is that the consultant who wrote it doesn't understand about the BPS special routes. They show several buses passing through Franklin Park that do so only once a day in each direction, transporting students to Latin Academy. Those buses will not be useful for White Stadium events.
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Or the consultant is very much aware of this but is showing existing transit in the most positive light possible to counter act people saying this is a 'transit desert', which is much much less accurate than showing an extra bus number on a route that has buses running on it full time.
Besides the intent is not to overwhelm existing T bus routes with spectators anyway. Extensive shuttle system will be in place.
 
LOI: https://bpda.app.box.com/s/c90aysi878fo47d7pzl8fyaguzblrt74

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Ironically enough, Mayor Wu is behind this (so am I). While we kill each over the Everett proposal, could this be a compromise for the Revs? I go hard in the paint with Wu, because she has a NIMBY aura about her. With that said, could she be standing in the way of Everett because she might envision the Revs playing at White Stadium?

As mentioned in the Revs Stadium thread, both sites have their own Transit challenges.
 
kingofsheeba said:
she might envision the Revs playing at White Stadium?
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I doubt it, because this one would be much too small. The Revs want a 25,000 seat stadium, while White Stadium only holds about 11,000. White Stadium is quite a bit smaller than the current smallest MLS stadium, which hold 18,000 in San Jose. Maybe someone floats the idea that the Revs could play here, but I doubt that would be a serious proposal.

kingofsheeba said:
As mentioned in the Revs Stadium thread, both sites have their own Transit challenges.
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Absolutely, this is a useful comparison. White is a much smaller transit challenge because the pedestrian environment is already far better and White will be less than half the people of a Revs stadium. But they're both similarly far from the Orange line and have some bus connectivity. Also, White already has a detailed plan for how to handle game day traffic (in section 5.6). It involves a fleet of shuttle busses running to/from the remote parking lots, the Orange Line, and Commuter Rail. This isn't my field, but it looks like a reasonable plan. I couldn't say how easily it scales up for a stadium more than twice its size.
 
ritchiew said:
White already has a detailed plan for how to handle game day traffic (in section 5.6). It involves a fleet of shuttle busses running to/from the remote parking lots, the Orange Line, and Commuter Rail. This isn't my field, but it looks like a reasonable plan. I couldn't say how easily it scales up for a stadium more than twice its size.
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I’ll admit that this would be a good short term plan for Everett. Reasonable and cost-effective solution. I’ll give her that.
 
Help me to understand this...

If The Revolution, as well as a women's team, both want stadiums, why not build one and let both of them use it?

I get that the women aren't the same draw as the men, but there are ways of dealing with that. It seems like an awful waste of space to have TWO pro soccer stadiums when one would be sufficient.
 
MrDee12345 said:
Help me to understand this...

If The Revolution, as well as a women's team, both want stadiums, why not build one and let both of them use it?

I get that the women aren't the same draw as the men, but there are ways of dealing with that. It seems like an awful waste of space to have TWO pro soccer stadiums when one would be sufficient.
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It might come to this where Kraft abandons Everett and strikes a deal with Wu (highly unlikely).

To answer your question, for this to happen would require Kraft chipping in with the city and add more seats over the years to get the capacity up to 25k.

Sidebar: I was thinking about it a second ago. When the Boston Unity of the NWSL formed and Wu came out with the soccer ball, I think that in her mind was the notion that she would get all the notoriety of being the first Asian woman mayor who helped ink the deal of bringing a pro-women’s soccer team.

Then there’s Kraft himself. To say that Kraft doesn’t have an ego is preposterous. Even I know that he’s probably a very screwed person. His treatment of Asian woman at the Orchids spa in Florida where he laid down some of that Kraft Dressing probably isn’t winning over Wu anytime soon.

There are several complexities between existing policy framework, eccentric billionaires with their own self-inflicted issues, and politicians who are losing touch with the voting public. When you pile these obstacles on top of each other, we get this end result.

However, I am hopeful that the Revs Stadium will get back on track.
 
MrDee12345 said:
Help me to understand this...

If The Revolution, as well as a women's team, both want stadiums, why not build one and let both of them use it?

I get that the women aren't the same draw as the men, but there are ways of dealing with that. It seems like an awful waste of space to have TWO pro soccer stadiums when one would be sufficient.
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But White Stadium already exists. It can never be satisfactory for the Revolution, but can certainly be a great fit for a women's pro team. This is a sensible way to upgrade some public infrastructure and avoid stigmatizing the women as somehow less deserving of an appropriate venue than the men. I'd be more inclined to agree with your point if the proposal was building two brand new stadiums, but this is not that.
 
MrDee12345 said:
Help me to understand this...

If The Revolution, as well as a women's team, both want stadiums, why not build one and let both of them use it?

I get that the women aren't the same draw as the men, but there are ways of dealing with that. It seems like an awful waste of space to have TWO pro soccer stadiums when one would be sufficient.
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What @HenryAlan said.
Also, the professional sports teams only use the stadium maybe 20 days a year. Having two stadiums makes sense if they both get used for lots of other stuff the rest of the time. For example, White Stadium will still be owned and primarily used by Boston Public Schools. They also say they're developing more programming with other local youth sports, YMCA, Boys and Girls Club, etc. The possible stadium in Everett will host similar things for non-Boston cities, and also concerts and other events. They're all just plans now, but that programming likely adds up to justify two stadiums.
 
Keep in mind that this is in a public park. The NWSL team made a deal with the city that fixes up White Stadium in a way that it is really good for the public too. The stadium that the Revs needs is much larger and would not be able to thread that needle.
 
Here's the 2023 attendance for the NWSL. Only 6 out of 12 teams averaged over 10k people per game, while the other 6 didn't come close. Also note which teams did NOT do well for attendance, including NY/NJ and Chicago.
soccerstadiumdigest.com

2023 NWSL Attendance - Soccer Stadium Digest

Another strong week on the 2023 NWSL attendance front in Week 22, as the league's final week of the regular season saw big crowds.
soccerstadiumdigest.com soccerstadiumdigest.com

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