New seats at BDS

[rgw]

The lux boxes may go empty if the post-Saban reality is another valley such as ones experienced between Bryant and Stallings then Stallings to Saban.

I doubt the Regions or EBSCOs of the world are going to give up their boxes but what about these companies with less roots in the region once the Saban era comes to an end?

 

[81usaf92]

The lux boxes may go empty if the post-Saban reality is another valley such as ones experienced between Bryant and Stallings then Stallings to Saban.

I doubt the Regions or EBSCOs of the world are going to give up their boxes but what about these companies with less roots in the region once the Saban era comes to an end?

Mercedes might be one of the bigger ones. But Tuscaloosa isn’t a big metro like many of the NFL cities are. I just don’t see the push for big corporate.

 

[rgw]

I guess they’re hoping private defense contractors and other software shops in HSV that are booming now can become a revenue source for them.

I dunno, I feel like this is going to be very bad for UA Athletics and the fanbase once the Saban era ends. Hell, I think entire city has a reckoning coming if Byrne or the next AD fails to hire a guy who keeps this sports car between the white lines. Tuscaloosa is on a major retail and condo/apartment bubble that will burst as soon student population goes down when the national titles stop.

 

[4Q Basket Case]

I guess they’re hoping private defense contractors and other software shops in HSV that are booming now can become a revenue source for them.

I dunno, I feel like this is going to be very bad for UA Athletics and the fanbase once the Saban era ends. Hell, I think entire city has a reckoning coming if Byrne or the next AD fails to hire a guy who keeps this sports car between the white lines. Tuscaloosa is on a major retail and condo/apartment bubble that will burst as soon student population goes down when the national titles stop.

Good point.

It seems a bit disingenuous for the rank and file fan to simultaneously hold the ideas that (1) we have the best coach in college football history (which, BTW, I do believe), and (2) the next coach will be just as good (which I don’t believe). Nevertheless, a lot of people see it differently, mostly because, “We’re Bama.”

In my lifetime, we’ve had the two best coaches in the history of college football. Between which, there was a 25-year walk in mostly wilderness, punctuated with brief moments of bIt success.

But none of those brief successes really translated into the City of Tuscaloosa. Since 2008, however, investors have built a lot of condos and hotels, and the University has built a lot of big-ticket infrastructure (both athletic and academic), on the back of the 2008 - present success in football.

How long it can continue, I don’t know. How long it can continue AS (after Saban), I really don’t know.

I do know that I f you could short real estate, I’d short Tuscaloosa.

 

[rgw]

The commercial real estate bubble is the concerning one for me because the scar it will leave on the city. Nothing looks worse than empty, abandoned retail and Tuscaloosa is poised to have a lot of it right in the middle of the city. While my wife was shopping somewhere in the Midtown mall, I walked around and was astounded by how many things were up for lease. The Chuy’s location in the other open air mall that opened right across the street from Midtown which is across the highway from University Mall...yep it has already closed. There are a few other places in there that I just have my doubts that they make it another 6-8 months. Downtown, the old Mellow Mushroom spot was vacated after their lease was up and they took a year to move into a spot behind Innisfree and there has yet to be anything to replace it in the original location. Feel like the owner of that building mis-measured what that location is worth or simply no chain restaurant big enough to afford that place was willing to move in.

I fear the way the city was rebuilt after the tornado is ultimately going to lead to a similar scar on the town. It is just going to be two open air malls that slowly wither up. Especially the newest ones - The Shoppes, you know it is classy when shops is spelled funny! - use to be residential housing with a mix of owners and renters from the college and local communities. I gotta tell you, a declining subdivision looks far better than an empty, weed-covered retail/commercial lot. At least the declining subdivision has utility even if you wouldn’t put it in a brochure.

 

[BamaNation]

The NFL has a lot of corporate sponsors buying those fat cat boxes and a lot of well off individuals with the metros also doing so as well. I really don’t know if that model is going to work for Alabama.

But I agree that most of this is for the 1% and not for the 99%. But they are expecting the 99% to pay for it.

Not sure how the "1%" paying $166K + $16k/yr every 5 years is the 99% paying for it. I'm not sure how you factor that. Maybe your econ class was different from mine. I guess my overarching question would be to anyone getting upset over this is "Why are you worried about what 'fat cats' do/get?" Is your seat being eliminated? Costs are going up across the board. The Loge seats are toward the middle of the "fat cat" tiers & pricing.

Unless you're saying that a few thousand seats having to be eliminated to make way for these new club-level seating is 'paying for it'. Fact is, thousands of seats are about to not be filled and they know it because of folks like me. If they can replace 5 $2k/yr (or $300/yr or $1k/yr etc) seats with 2 $16K year seats (etc etc) then they'll do it (and probably should). The next generation is willing to pay premiums for "experiences." Also, >50% of entering students are not from Alabama so no longer are those alums coming to all the games every season. Unlike me, those that do come want all the nonsense noise and timeout entertainment and food bars, and all the stuff being added.

Someone mentioned that TV is making college football rich. We need no better view of that than a) the new deal being bantered about for the SEC and b) the lack of any attendance at bowl games where payouts are $1mm+ per team 2 weeks before Christmas.

Go to the game if you want & can afford it. If you can't/won't then don't. Not showing up and not buying tickets will be the biggest statement you can make. But more than likely, someone is standing behind you with cash in hand to buy your seats. When that happens, just show up with a few dollars in hand at the game and buy from those who aren't actually attending!

This is getting very close to being a political discussion. I'm on the side of whatever allows UofA as a university to be the most successful and Bama as a team to win more games. It's going to change the culture (and already has) of what I grew up loving and being a part of and attending, but to not do so exposes us to everybody else trying to knock us off the mountain.. I'm ok with that and am certainly not going to blame "fat cats" who are ready, willing, and able to depart with free cash flow to support future growth.

The outcome of these endeavors remains to be seen and hopefully they've calculated the cost of offending those who get offended easily or who aren't willing to support the new ventures.

 

[LSUgrad2BamaDad]

Corporate Tax Deductions and all... probably will!

I’m not a tax expert, but I believe new tax laws prevent corporations from deducting entertainment expenses such as football tickets and suite leases.

 

[81usaf92]

Not sure how the "1%" paying $166K + $16k/yr every 5 years is the 99% paying for it. I'm not sure how you factor that. Maybe your econ class was different from mine. I guess my overarching question would be to anyone getting upset over this is "Why are you worried about what 'fat cats' do/get?" Is your seat being eliminated? Costs are going up across the board. The Loge seats are toward the middle of the "fat cat" tiers & pricing.

All of the price gouging, asking for constant donations, increasing tickets, and asking to pay a fees to stay on lists is all centered around paying into the Crimson Standard. Which almost all of it is luxury suites and boxes that the overwhelming majority on here is probably not able to afford or willing to pay for. My point is that they should've focused on improving the average fan experience before even thinking about luxury boxes. Yeah Alabama is big now, but what about in 10 years? If we fail to hire a worthy successor then we are going to have a priced out average joe class fan base, and a bunch of empty boxes that no one uses.

Go to the game if you want & can afford it. If you can't/won't then don't. Not showing up and not buying tickets will be the biggest statement you can make. But more than likely, someone is standing behind you with cash in hand to buy your seats. When that happens, just show up with a few dollars in hand at the game and buy from those who aren't actually attending!

Not really. With these mega stadiums you are going to have tons of empty seats regardless of the game. Ive been to just about every home game since 2014 and with the exception of the 2014 Auburn, 2015 LSU, and 2019 LSU games Ive rarely seen the stadium without thousands of empty seats. The advancement of entertainment technology has killed attendance across the board, and the NFL got ahead of the curb with building Taj Mahals that have 70k capacities and tons of fan amenities.

This is getting very close to being a political discussion. I'm on the side of whatever allows UofA as a university to be the most successful and Bama as a team to win more games. It's going to change the culture (and already has) of what I grew up loving and being a part of and attending, but to not do so exposes us to everybody else trying to knock us off the mountain.. I'm ok with that and am certainly not going to blame "fat cats" who are ready, willing, and able to depart with free cash flow to support future growth.

This isn't disparaging "fat cats" this is stating the obvious problems moving forward... and they are 1) the average joe accounts for 99% of the stadium and 2) when Alabama takes a step backwards they aren't going to be a must go see or take your client to go see them in Tuscaloosa. So why not make advancements in the average fan experience first so that you can be safer down the road.

 

[rgw]

Obviously there are just material realities to playing college football at the top level and almost all of them come down to revenue. Insuring prospective draft picks, top medical care, top athletic training, great coaches, national recruit. These things cost money and continued revenue generation is just a fact of this operation. I don’t really buy the “99% are paying for the 1%“ concept because the top donors are contributing SIGNIFICANT money. My problem is the long-term sustainability of the approach.

I’m more on the side of the arguments being made here that highlight that the stadium should be right-sized and the money go into making the experience appreciably better for all season ticket holders. This has become a product more like the NFL for the costumers and I think stadium design cues from the NFL are worth considering. What seems to have been done here is across the board donor contribution and due increases that have almost no value-add for most donors. I’m willing to be corrected on that fact though but I seem to remember that almost all of the nice things any season ticket holder, fans, or student could have enjoyed were scraped.

 

[B1GTide]

IMO, the only part that is not sustainable is the Tide Pride cost for a seat in the stadium. Things like Tide Pride were born before a strong secondary market for tickets became available. It made sense for those who really wanted to be sure that they could attend games. Only 20 years ago, the only way to get tickets to games was to pay membership, or show up on game day and hope to scalp tickets.

Today, I am not sure why anyone would pay those fees for a regular seat. Seriously, I can sit in any section for any game at BDS for less than the Tide Pride member paid for those seats when their Tide Pride fees are taken into account - usually far less.

Things like Tide Pride amount to a PSL model, but you have to continue to pay every year. At least the standard PSL model only requires that you "buy" the seats once. And you can sell your PSL if you desire.

 

[BamaNation]

What 99% fan experience is it that you want improved.

All of the “improvements” they’ve done so far are generally things I can’t stand. i harp on piped in noise, flashing lights, 4 hour games, etc. old grumpy pants here I just want to go to a game, tailgate, watch, cheer, win, and go home. That would be a huge improvement to what I experience now. I’m obviously in the minority. Fine.

What “experiences” that don’t cost money (Or that you want the 1% to pay for you) are you wanting? What as an average fan are you missing out on?

If I could afford the “fat cat” seats I would get them to not have to deal with the swearing, drunk, vaping morons who I’ve sat by the last few games I have attended.

 

[BamaNation]

My problem is the long-term sustainability of the approach.

Only 20 years ago, the only way to get tickets to games was to pay membership, or show up on game day and hope to scalp tickets.

Today, I am not sure why anyone would pay those fees for a regular seat.

These statements are much more valid concerns than the class argument.

 

[81usaf92]

What fan 99% fan experience is it that you want improved.

All of the “improvements” they’ve done so far are generally things I can’t stand. i harp on piped in noise, flashing lights, 4 hour games, etc. old grumpy pants here I just want to go to a game, tailgate, watch, cheer, win, and go home. That would be a huge improvement to what I experience now. I’m obviously in the minority. Fine.

What “experiences” that don’t cost money (Or that you want the 1% to pay for you) are you wanting? What as an average fan are you missing out on?

If I could afford the “fat cat” seats I would get them to not have to deal with the swearing, drunk, vaping morons who I’ve sat by the last few games I have attended.

How about better seating by subtraction, expanded concourses that don't make you feel you are going to fall to your death on Bryant drive from the upper deck, cheaper food items, more concessions and restrooms like Kyle Field has.

 

[rgw]

My top change for all ticket holders would be to replace all the bench seating with comfortable outdoor bucket seats that have built-in cupholders. It’ll lower the capacity undoubtedly but don’t we have a filling-the-capacity problem?

 

[81usaf92]

IMO, the only part that is not sustainable is the Tide Pride cost for a seat in the stadium. Things like Tide Pride were born before a strong secondary market for tickets became available. It made sense for those who really wanted to be sure that they could attend games. Only 20 years ago, the only way to get tickets to games was to pay membership, or show up on game day and hope to scalp tickets.

Today, I am not sure why anyone would pay those fees for a regular seat. Seriously, I can sit in any section for any game at BDS for less than the Tide Pride member paid for those seats when their Tide Pride fees are taken into account - usually far less.

Things like Tide Pride amount to a PSL model, but you have to continue to pay every year. At least the standard PSL model only requires that you "buy" the seats once. And you can sell your PSL if you desire.

Really the only advantages for Tide Pride are 1) You know where you are going to sit and 2) if you are high in points you get away and postseason games at face value.

 

[81usaf92]

My top change for all ticket holders would be to replace all the bench seating with comfortable outdoor bucket seats that have built-in cupholders. It’ll lower the capacity undoubtedly but don’t we have a filling-the-capacity problem?

Amen.

 

[The Ols]

My top change for all ticket holders would be to replace all the bench seating with comfortable outdoor bucket seats that have built-in cupholders. It’ll lower the capacity undoubtedly but don’t we have a filling-the-capacity problem?

Agreed. While I don't necessarily think the view from The Zone seats is the best for a game, the amenities are and the seating is soooo much better than the general seating.

 

[B1GTide]

Really the only advantages for Tide Pride are 1) You know where you are going to sit and 2) if you are high in points you get away and postseason games at face value.

To have enough points for #2 you have to pay far more than you save getting those tickets at face value.

 

[bamacon]

yup, pretty soon Bama will be playing in a soccer stadium filled with our opponents fans.

 

[81usaf92]

To have enough points for #2 you have to pay far more than you save getting those tickets at face value.

Yes, but it is useful in high demand games like the 2011 NCG, 2012 NCG, and 2017 NCG in which second hand dealers are jacking nosebleeds to the upper 1ks