Their stadium plan is interesting: http://www.rowdiessoccer.com/stadiumplan

 

The seating has two huge gaps in it, one facing the water and one facing the city, with the stands on opposing corners. It'd make for nice views, but the stadium environment will feel too "open". By comparison, I love the sense of enclosure at Nippert, which is created by the height of the surrounding buildings and the sunken field.

 

I'm glad to see that the Rowdies are leaving the NASL for the USL next season. I really hope the NASL simply folds and those teams get absorbed by the USL and/or MLS. The NASL is too small to be a successful league on its own:

http://www.espnfc.com/united-states/story/3013624/us-soccer-delays-decision-on-reclassifying-divisions-of-nasl-and-usl

 

The "Tampa Bay" Rowdies name is a bit confusing, since they're located in downtown St. Petersburg. That being said, their location for the stadium is pretty neat, right on the water and right next to downtown St Pete.

 

 

The "Tampa Bay" Rowdies name is a bit confusing, since they're located in downtown St. Petersburg. That being said, their location for the stadium is pretty neat, right on the water and right next to downtown St Pete.

 

Technically, it's the region/body of water that is called "Tampa Bay". The principal city is "Tampa". So St. Pete is still in Tampa Bay. It would be similar to a team in Oakland being called the San Francisco Bay Rowdies. Maybe a little weird, but not wrong.

So if FC Cincinnati moves to Covington or Newport can we call them FC Ohio River?

FC Simon Kenton

FC Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky

FCVG

FC Cin-Day-NKY-Hamilton-Middletown Unified Metropolis

The Enquirer lays out a few options for new stadium sites, listing some pros and cons of each site. Based on this shortlist, it's so clear that none of the sites would improve on Nippert. I really hope UC, FC Cincinnati, and the MLS can strike a deal that benefits all parties while avoiding the unnecessary expense of building a new inferior stadium at a worse location.

 

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/soccer/fc-cincinnati/2017/01/24/where-could-fc-cincinnati-build-new-stadium/96947728/

Is there space to build a soccer specific facility at UC? This could be used by both an MLS team and UC. Question would be over ownership, but if Nippert is not an option, the next best option would be to take the soccer field and try and expand that into a 25k seat stadium on campus. (if even possible)

^Definitely not possible. Way too small of a site, would still be owned by UC, etc. There's no room on campus unless you use Nippert itself.

What about Burnet woods, Is that to small? The corner up by MLK and Clifton.

Is there space to build a soccer specific facility at UC? This could be used by both an MLS team and UC. Question would be over ownership, but if Nippert is not an option, the next best option would be to take the soccer field and try and expand that into a 25k seat stadium on campus. (if even possible)

 

There already is a soccer specific site at UC. Gettler Stadium. Capacity 1,400.

What about Burnet woods, Is that to small? The corner up by MLK and Clifton.

 

Much too small if they need 20 acres. They'd have to tear down a whole lot of mature trees.

I really hope UC, FC Cincinnati, and the MLS can strike a deal that benefits all parties while avoiding the unnecessary expense of building a new inferior stadium at a worse location.

 

Center of Cincinnati is the best of those locations.  The location is in the heart of soccer's yuppie fanbase and proximity to I-71 is advertisement for the team.  Unfortunately, that entire development has done nothing but poach from surrounding neighborhoods, and stealing the soccer team will just be one more thing taken at the expense of the rest. 

 

Another con to the Oakley location, Saturday matches are generally at 7PM with a few at 4PM and Crossroads services are at 4:30 & 6:15pm. Traffic in that area is already bad at these times...

Another con to the Oakley location, Saturday matches are generally at 7PM with a few at 4PM and Crossroads services are at 4:30 & 6:15pm. Traffic in that area is already bad at these times...

 

Well hopefully by then the great fraud that is Crossroads will be exposed and it will be out of business.

Is there space to build a soccer specific facility at UC? This could be used by both an MLS team and UC. Question would be over ownership, but if Nippert is not an option, the next best option would be to take the soccer field and try and expand that into a 25k seat stadium on campus. (if even possible)

 

There already is a soccer specific site at UC. Gettler Stadium. Capacity 1,400.

 

Gettler is not "soccer specific" since it is also used for track and field, and as result the bleachers have to be set back from the soccer field. It's acceptable for college soccer, but not exactly the ideal fan experience.

I really hope UC, FC Cincinnati, and the MLS can strike a deal that benefits all parties while avoiding the unnecessary expense of building a new inferior stadium at a worse location.

 

Center of Cincinnati is the best of those locations.  The location is in the heart of soccer's yuppie fanbase and proximity to I-71 is advertisement for the team.  Unfortunately, that entire development has done nothing but poach from surrounding neighborhoods, and stealing the soccer team will just be one more thing taken at the expense of the rest. 

 

 

If only we could redevelop Center of Cincinnati and transform it into a new urbanist neighborhood centered around the new stadium, flowing seamlessly into the surrounding historic neighborhood.

I would prefer for the stadium to be somewhere in the urban basin if it cannot be Nippert. We need to have streetcar/light rail access and the closest thing to this happening would be Nippert. Next would be a line going out to Queensgate/West End which can also connect to Amtrak. I think a suburban-style big box area (as in Oakley) would be a mistake. Oakley had their chance to make this an urban neighborhood and it's a sea of parking.

Is there space to build a soccer specific facility at UC? This could be used by both an MLS team and UC. Question would be over ownership, but if Nippert is not an option, the next best option would be to take the soccer field and try and expand that into a 25k seat stadium on campus. (if even possible)

 

There already is a soccer specific site at UC. Gettler Stadium. Capacity 1,400.

 

Could you take that site and possibly expand to say 25k? It would be tight, but the rest of the infasturcture is already there.

I would prefer for the stadium to be somewhere in the urban basin if it cannot be Nippert. We need to have streetcar/light rail access and the closest thing to this happening would be Nippert. Next would be a line going out to Queensgate/West End which can also connect to Amtrak. I think a suburban-style big box area (as in Oakley) would be a mistake. Oakley had their chance to make this an urban neighborhood and it's a sea of parking.

 

Live in Oakley currently and it's amazing how much of a transition it is when you walk under the railroad bridge. I can walk out of my complex and go left into Oakley Square which is great or right under the railroad and into a sea of parking lots, potholes, and the usual underwhelming Kroger store. There's also the traffic inducing mega church.

 

Madtree's a plus though.

 

As much as I'd love to be within walking distance to the stadium, I think Oakley is a poor choice.

Is there space to build a soccer specific facility at UC? This could be used by both an MLS team and UC. Question would be over ownership, but if Nippert is not an option, the next best option would be to take the soccer field and try and expand that into a 25k seat stadium on campus. (if even possible)

 

There already is a soccer specific site at UC. Gettler Stadium. Capacity 1,400.

 

Could you take that site and possibly expand to say 25k? It would be tight, but the rest of the infasturcture is already there.

 

What would be the point of building another stadium right next to Nippert to perform a function that Nippert is already doing? Except to expose the dedicated stadium requirement as ridiculous.

Move the Bengals practice fields to one of those sites and put the MLS Stadium on the practice fields. If anyone can convince the Browns to do it, its the Lindners.

Move the Bengals practice fields to one of those sites and put the MLS Stadium on the practice fields. If anyone can convince the Browns to do it, its the Lindners.

 

I think this would be a great idea. Is there enough space there? The bengals do not need their practice field there. It can be in the suburbs

Move the Bengals practice fields to one of those sites and put the MLS Stadium on the practice fields. If anyone can convince the Browns to do it, its the Lindners.

 

To paraphrase thebillshark[/member]: "What would be the point of building another stadium right next to Paul Brown to perform a function that Paul Brown could also perform? Except to expose the dedicated stadium requirement as ridiculous."

Move the Bengals practice fields to one of those sites and put the MLS Stadium on the practice fields. If anyone can convince the Browns to do it, its the Lindners.

 

To paraphrase thebillshark[/member]: "What would be the point of building another stadium right next to Paul Brown to perform a function that Paul Brown could also perform? Except to expose the dedicated stadium requirement as ridiculous."

 

In fairness, the FC Cincinnati Stadium would be about one third the size of PBS and could be used for concerts (I saw Guns and Roses at Crew Stadium), high school tournaments, etc

 

Not that I'm disagreeing but by that logic we should go back to shared stadium concept of Riverfront.

FC Cincinnati has now announced their first home game, first road game, and full preseason schedule

 

Preseason:

 

Sunday, February 19 @ 4pm vs. Chicago Fire [uSL] (in Florida)

Wednesday, February 22 @ 4pm vs. Chicago Fire [MLS] (in Florida)

Saturday, February 25 @ 4pm vs. Ottawa Fury [uSL] (in Florida)

Saturday, March 4 @ 830pm Eastern at Sacramento Republic FC [uSL]

Saturday, March 11 @ 7pm against UC Men's Soccer at Gettler Stadium on campus

Friday, March 17 @ 7pm against Xavier Men's Soccer at Xavier Soccer Complex on campus

 

Regular season:

 

First game is at Charlotte Battery on Saturday 3/25

First home game is against Saint Louis FC on Saturday 4/15

 

There will be more games between those two, but the full schedule hasn't been released yet.

With his usual flair for words, "Doc" (aka, Paul Daugherty) drops the hammer on aspirations for a new soccer stadium:

 

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/columnists/paul-daugherty/2017/01/27/doc-real-cost-fc-cincinnati-stadium/97160688/

I was thinking and this is an outside the box idea, but why not build a retractable roof or dome stadium for soccer. It would be a lot cheaper than doing something like that for football because it will only seat about 30,000, but it would have a lot of benefits.

1) We need a new arena because we lose out on conventions and other trade shows because of the size and dated arena. This will help alleviate that problem because it can provide an indoor event center with the seating people are looking for.

2) It could be used for many more events year round besides soccer. We could now compete for NCAA basketball and even Final 4 (with about 35-40k seats). We could compete for DNC/GNC conventions and some of the largest meeting space.

3) It could be used for High school football playoffs without any conflict from the Bengals

4) It could be used by city High School football teams.

5) It would be novel in the MLS world and one of the more distinct stadiums in the league.

6) It could integrate with the city much better as the opportunity to have such convention and exposition space would be best if it were in the downtown corridor.

 

I know it will not happen, but if you are going to build a stadium for soccer, an indoor arena would have benefits.

Not that I'm disagreeing but by that logic we should go back to shared stadium concept of Riverfront.

 

That's not a perfect comparison though, because the baseball infield is problematic for football, and football players destroy the outfield in a way that baseball players never do.  The astroturf that allowed for both sports to coexist in Riverfront Stadium was horrendous.  Soccer doesn't have those problems.

Heard a rumor from a friend that FC Cincinnati is looking at a parcel “next to the Casino” for the stadium. Take it with a grain of salt, however he did know the Cincinnati was getting a pro team probably 3 or 4 months before it was announced. My only guess would be the surface lots/small buildings next to the casino. Is there enough room for a stadium there? Would the city consider eliminating a street to create  a larger parcel? It would be a good spot if it was possible.

^ That would be a great location if they can do it. Heck the Casino could help fund it and you know they would get programming to fill it on non soccer dates.

 

Still say we need a retractable roof or something on it. I really want a Final 4 to come to Cincy.

Heard a rumor from a friend that FC Cincinnati is looking at a parcel “next to the Casino” for the stadium. Take it with a grain of salt, however he did know the Cincinnati was getting a pro team probably 3 or 4 months before it was announced. My only guess would be the surface lots/small buildings next to the casino. Is there enough room for a stadium there? Would the city consider eliminating a street to create  a larger parcel? It would be a good spot if it was possible.

 

Are you thinking take out Reedy street between Court and Eggeleston? You'd lose 2 buildings then- though they're pretty non discript and disconnected from the Urban fabric already. As long as the triangle building on the corner remains, I could live with that.

 

Pluses include dramatic view of Times Star building and P&G Towers. Easy access from Main Street OTR and Pendleton bars.

 

Perhaps the Lindners should call up Dan Gilbert and have him invest in the team and become part owner so they could work on parking/events together with the casino.

 

If a Mt Adams air gondola touched down somewhere in the area it would really be a tourist destination.

 

Would really be bizarre to have the jail right across the street from such a large entertainment complex.

^I agree on retractable roof, but I doubt we could get a final 4 because those get like 70k fans like Indianapolis Lucas Oil.

 

Cincinnati really dropped the ball on that, I know the stadium deal was horrible with Brown, but they really should have spent the extra $100 million or whatever in the clause to make it a retractable roof or dome type structure like Lucas Oil.  I assume Brown didn't want to share and would want the profits, and did all the decision making on all of it, but that was another horrible mistake by the crafters of the football stadium deal

 

*Edit: Did the math, and maybe it wouldn't have been possible because the difference between Open Air of Paul Brown (broke ground in 1998 at a cost of $455 million = $545 million in 2005 dollars) vs. Retractable Roof Lucas Oil (broke ground in 2005 at cost of $720 million) is a difference of $175 million 2005 dollars or $146 million in 1998 dollars.

 

You could argue it may have been worth that cost, though.  On the other hand, Indy went all in with the mecca of sports in the MidWest and they have a lot better infrastructure downtown with hotels it seems than Cincy does, so Cincy probably would have had to do a ton more work too.  Also, Indy gets things like the B1G 10 Championship Game (sometimes it is a Super Bowl light), the Super Bowl, Final 4, and other NCAA Tourney games.

 

You could argue that if FC Cincy built a retractable roof, they could compete up to Regional (16 & 8) games for Men and up to Final Four for women, and maybe some smaller venue concerts (between US Bank and the Reds?), but I don't know what else you could do with a size of 25k or 30k

 

Heck, even Omaha and Des Moines are getting in on the action of First 2 rounds of NCAA Tourney and Memphis and Kansas City, St. Louis, etc. are getting Regional finals.  Indianapolis has two(!) Final Fours in 7 year span! (2015 and 2021)

Yes I would assume you would have to remove that street as it cuts right through the main width of the parcel. A great idea for Danny to get involved but he is already part owner the MLS team in Detroit they are trying to start. Maybe somehow the casino could provide some funding for the stadium and then they could hold events there.

 

Another potential site could be the lots next to P&G where New Street is. But less likely because P&G would have to replace their daycare. 

I don't see how you could fit a stadium in next to the Casino, unless you are remove the garage and the greyhound station. Even then, it'd be extremely tight and the topography would be challenging.

 

I tried to squeeze the smallest MLS stadium (San Jose with 18,000 seat capacity) next to the casino, and here's what you get:

 

^I agree on retractable roof, but I doubt we could get a final 4 because those get like 70k fans like Indianapolis Lucas Oil.

 

Cincinnati really dropped the ball on that, I know the stadium deal was horrible with Brown, but they really should have spent the extra $100 million or whatever in the clause to make it a retractable roof or dome type structure like Lucas Oil.  I assume Brown didn't want to share and would want the profits, and did all the decision making on all of it, but that was another horrible mistake by the crafters of the football stadium deal

 

*Edit: Did the math, and maybe it wouldn't have been possible because the difference between Open Air of Paul Brown (broke ground in 1998 at a cost of $455 million = $545 million in 2005 dollars) vs. Retractable Roof Lucas Oil (broke ground in 2005 at cost of $720 million) is a difference of $175 million 2005 dollars or $146 million in 1998 dollars.

 

You could argue it may have been worth that cost, though.  On the other hand, Indy went all in with the mecca of sports in the MidWest and they have a lot better infrastructure downtown with hotels it seems than Cincy does, so Cincy probably would have had to do a ton more work too.  Also, Indy gets things like the B1G 10 Championship Game (sometimes it is a Super Bowl light), the Super Bowl, Final 4, and other NCAA Tourney games.

 

You could argue that if FC Cincy built a retractable roof, they could compete up to Regional (16 & 8) games for Men and up to Final Four for women, and maybe some smaller venue concerts (between US Bank and the Reds?), but I don't know what else you could do with a size of 25k or 30k

 

Heck, even Omaha and Des Moines are getting in on the action of First 2 rounds of NCAA Tourney and Memphis and Kansas City, St. Louis, etc. are getting Regional finals.  Indianapolis has two(!) Final Fours in 7 year span! (2015 and 2021)

 

You are probably right, however, we could have a fighting chance. Maybe they could get 50k in for basketball or something. That could work. but more importantly, it provides additional programming options that US Bank Arena is not suitable for. We could now compete for huge national or international conventions which precludes us now.

This article says the MLS application identifies two potential sites in the urban core: http://www.si.com/planet-futbol/mls-expansion-prospective-cities-bids-28-teams?sdf#planet-futbol/2017/02/01/cincinnati-mls-expansion-city-usl-lindner-harkes-berry

 

Stadium Plan

The University of Cincinnati’s venerable Nippert Stadium does the job for now. But MLS requires a stadium designed with soccer in mind, so it isn't a permanent solution. Berding said FCC has zeroed in on two potential stadium sites, both of which are in the city’s urban core that stretches connects the river, downtown, Over-the-Rhine and UC.

 

He wouldn’t provide details regarding the financing but said MEIS architects and principal Tim Lambert have been working on the stadium design. Lambert was involved in designing Red Bull Arena, StubHub Center, Toyota Park and Rio Tinto Stadium in MLS. He’s also working on AS Roma’s new arena.

 

“We’re going to submit a plan that meets [MLS] requirements. Our application is going to show a soccer-specific stadium that work on two different sites in our urban core with a funding model where the numbers add up,” Berding said. “We’re going to continue to fine-tune the funding model, and that’s going to be a bit of ongoing work. But at the end of the day, we have a plan that can get it done.”

What is their definition of the urban core?

What is their definition of the urban core?

 

Berding seems to define it as: "city’s urban core that stretches connects the river, downtown, Over-the-Rhine and UC"

I don't see how you could fit a stadium in next to the Casino, unless you are remove the garage and the greyhound station. Even then, it'd be extremely tight and the topography would be challenging.

 

I tried to squeeze the smallest MLS stadium (San Jose with 18,000 seat capacity) next to the casino, and here's what you get:

 

 

Too bad... it seems like they could have fit this in quite easily, if they had thought about it just a few years ago when they designed the casino and garage, and if they were able to move Greyhound down to the RTC.

In 2014, UrbanCincy suggested building a new arena next to the casino. We were very quickly contacted by some people in the know asking, basically, "how did you find out?" So it's clearly something they've though about before. I'm not exactly sure how it would fit on the site, but if you look at the casino parking garage, they have made some interesting design choices that make it pretty clear they have taken future expansion into consideration.

Putting an arena on the casino site makes a LOT more sense to me than a soccer stadium. The casino garage has a footprint of ~320'x550' which would be enough to fit an arena, but not enough to fit a soccer stadium.  So, if the garage was engineered to support additional load, then that'd be an option for a new arena.

 

^Throw the arena there and then build an MLS stadium where US Bank Arena is currently.

I apologize for the crude photoshopping, but here's my proposal for where a new arena could go next to the casino. I'm not sure if you could fit a soccer stadium in that space.

 

 

The red area would be easily doable because I don't think there would be much of an objection to removing those parts of Court or Reedy streets or the few remaining buildings on Reedy that are long disconnected from the urban fabric. You may not even need the Greyhound space but it would be a good location for a box office and other back office functions.

 

The blue area could be added to the site if the Casino agrees to give up the space where Margaritaville is located now.

Having the arena next to a casino is also a pretty good idea for traffic flow. If people don't want to get caught in traffic they can either arrive early or stay late and just hang out in the casino. Of course, since it's also within walking distance of OTR and Pendleton, those would be big pre and post game destinations as well.

If they did that, I think they would have to build a hotel there too.

^I love that idea taestell[/member], I wonder if they could work the existing flat iron type building into a potential stadium. Location would be excellent with nice views and just a block or so from the streetcar.

I think you could still do a soccer stadium if you removed that part of Court St. too. The "short" side of the stadium would be along Eggleston and the "long" side would be along Gilbert. It may be possible due to how the corner of the garage is cut away on the south side there. The garage may still cut into one of the corners of the stadium, but could be designed around.

 

To Echo taestell[/member], "pardon the crude photoshop," but this is Crew Stadium overplayed on that aforementioned casino site. It's too tight to fit Mapfre Stadium's even grandstands on both sides, but if you got creative you could make it happen.