Memphis Sports

[Memphis4ever]

On 6/4/2023 at 10:49 PM, MDC26 said:

Downtown Airport?

Unless the stars and dignitaries are flying in on Cessna prop planes, I don’t think the Charles Dewitt Spain airport is an option for private jets. Neither is Charles Baker airport. Would have to be MEM, Olive Branch, Millington, or West Memphis. 

lots of famous people fly into the downtown airport.

[MDC26]

6 hours ago, Memphis4ever said:

lots of famous people fly into the downtown airport.

The runway is only 3800ft. If they are flying on a King Air, they can. But a Learjet or Gulfstream will not be able to use that airport. 

[Memphisborn]

On 6/5/2023 at 9:56 AM, MDC26 said:

I think the renovation plans to become ADA compliant would put fixed seating at MSC at 5,000.  Then you have the ability to have around 2,000 temporary seats around the court.  It would be perfect for an All-Star weekend for the Celebrity All-Star game and the HBCU games and any practices. Landers Center is an adequate facility, but it is far away (17 miles) with MSC only being 4.5 miles. Chicago used their WNBA arena downtown and 5 miles from the United Center, Cleveland used Cleveland St's arena and less than a mile from Rocket Mortgage arena, and Salt Lake used University of Utah's arena which is 4.5 miles away too.  Some cities that have held All-Star weekend in the past and didn't have a 2nd arena, used their convention center with temporary seating.  

Really need those Hotel projects to come back too.  Loew's, Grand Hyatt, Sheraton expansion, The Clipper.  I've thought the 100 N Main could be all hotel.  When Townhouse planned for that, they had 500 hotel rooms planned.  

Regarding the flights, there's only so much that can be done on Memphis' side.  Ultimately, its up to the carriers.  

All excellent points. We will see very Soon what the future of MSC and the Hotels will be.  Dream Hotel supposedly breaking ground soon and Sheraton redo plus expansion as well as the proposed Hard Rock Hotel on or near Beale st. It’s going to be an interesting second half of the year. 

[Memphisborn]

Big 12 officials visit Memphis!! Let’s hope this report means Memphis is next on the Big 12 radar. 
 

https://www.audacy.com/929espn/sports/memphis-tigers/breaking-audio-live-coverage-on-92-9-big-12-visits-memphis

[The Guardian of Memphis]

On 6/8/2023 at 9:25 PM, Memphisborn said:

Big 12 officials visit Memphis!! Let’s hope this report means Memphis is next on the Big 12 radar. 
 

https://www.audacy.com/929espn/sports/memphis-tigers/breaking-audio-live-coverage-on-92-9-big-12-visits-memphis

If Louisville can be in the ACC, the Tigers need to be too.

[JTM1]

On 8/12/2023 at 5:42 PM, The Guardian of Memphis said:

If Louisville can be in the ACC, the Tigers need to be too.

The Tigers should continue to invest in each athletic department, facilities,  and focus on winning, because the school is already nationally recognized. They need to start broadcasting their sports over the Spanish stations and start a yearly regional caravan throughout West TN, Eastern Arkansas, and Northern Mississippi. 

[JTM1]

https://www.tenacityvbc.com/

[The Guardian of Memphis]

On 8/13/2023 at 8:40 PM, JTM1 said:

https://www.tenacityvbc.com/

Awesome. Thanks. Liberty Park is a gem. I hope it will continue to grow.

[JTM1]

On 8/23/2023 at 4:08 PM, The Guardian of Memphis said:

Awesome. Thanks. Liberty Park is a gem. I hope it will continue to grow.

https://www.bizjournals.com/memphis/news/2023/08/23/memphis-sports-event-center-economic-impact-visits.html

From the article. MSEC general manager Antonio Perez recently told MBJ that the facility has seen strong traffic since it opened in December. The MSEC has registered more than 630,000 visitors to date and expects to hit 1 million by the end of 2023…. According to figures from Memphis Tourism, the facility’s major events in 2023 have led to nearly 45,000 requested hotel nights and a total economic impact of $39.8 million. 

It appears the Sports and Events Center is pulling its weight.  Not including ice sports into the design was a mistake and I hope they will someday rectify it. 

[MDC26]

WNBA announces expansion team will be located in San Francisco, and likely 2nd expansion team will be Portland.  

[JTM1]

Last night, at the Grizzlies game, I learned that Charlotte is spending $215 million to makeover the Spectrum Center. I have been in that arena several times, and in my opinion, it’s not quite as nice as FedEx Forum. This includes adding 2500 lower-level seats. In addition to the remake of the Spectrum Center, they are building a $60 million practice facility for the Hornets.  The Grizzlies price tag is $550 million. I am anxious to see the Grizzlies’ renderings now.  

https://www.nba.com/hornets/news/hornets-sports-entertainment-prepares-to-remagine-spectrum-center-with-upcoming-renovations

Here is another article about Spectrum Center. 

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/sports/article284069338.html

One of the things Mayor Young stressed when campaigning was the importance of sports in this city and  that it would be one of his priorities. Now that the Liberty Bowl has been transferred, to the UofM, I expect we will learn more about the Grizzlies plans in the coming days. 

[Memphisborn]

On 10/6/2023 at 9:38 AM, MDC26 said:

WNBA announces expansion team will be located in San Francisco, and likely 2nd expansion team will be Portland.  

Memphis will eventually land WNBA. The league is doing a slow expansion next two teams will probably be added around 2028-2030 

[MDC26]

Article at Daily Memphian is titled “The Memphis Grizzlies have a game plan for downtown and Beale Street”. 
It’s a subscribers only, but this indicates the $550 million is not just for the inside of FEF. 

[James Owen]

11 hours ago, MDC26 said:

Article at Daily Memphian is titled “The Memphis Grizzlies have a game plan for downtown and Beale Street”. 
It’s a subscribers only, but this indicates the $550 million is not just for the inside of FEF. 

The article in question, which is behind a paywall:

The Memphis Grizzlies have plans for Downtown, Beale Street

By Samuel Hardiman, The Daily Memphian

https://dailymemphian.com/subscriber/section/metrocity-of-memphis/article/41388/memphis-grizzlies-plans-downtown-beale-street-fedexforum

To sum it up: The entire pitch being made by the Grizzlies does not just include upgrades to the Forum, but enhancing the area around it. In particular, they are looking at doing a full revitalization of the adjacent Beale Street Entertainment District as part of those plans.

[BnaBreaker]

Full revitalization?  Is it in need of being revitalized?  It has been a minute since I've been to Beale Street, but it seemed pretty VITALIZED to me already... I love the Grizz, and fully support their efforts to give the surrounding area more pizzazz, but when I hear those comments about Beale Street specifically, it makes me fear that they're wanting to Disneyfy it or something.  

[James Owen]

7 hours ago, BnaBreaker said:

Full revitalization?  Is it in need of being revitalized?  It has been a minute since I've been to Beale Street, but it seemed pretty VITALIZED to me already... I love the Grizz, and fully support their efforts to give the surrounding area more pizzazz, but when I hear those comments about Beale Street specifically, it makes me fear that they're wanting to Disneyfy it or something.  

It's not exactly that. It's really more about better connecting the Forum with the surrounding area (like Lower Broadway is to Bridgestone Arena). Among some of the pitches that had been made over the last few years have included potentially adding a Hard Rock Hotel (or its limited-service Reverb brand) along Beale Street and even expanding the district eastward to include improvements to Robert Church Park next door.

[BnaBreaker]

49 minutes ago, James Owen said:

It's not exactly that. It's really more about better connecting the Forum with the surrounding area (like Lower Broadway is to Bridgestone Arena). Among some of the pitches that had been made over the last few years have included potentially adding a Hard Rock Hotel (or its limited-service Reverb brand) along Beale Street and even expanding the district eastward to include improvements to Robert Church Park next door.

Thanks for the clarification!  In that case, I am all for each of those improvements. 

[The Guardian of Memphis]

On 2/3/2024 at 11:04 AM, BnaBreaker said:

Thanks for the clarification!  In that case, I am all for each of those improvements. 

It's much needed. Going north from FedEx Forum is where all the activity is. South of Beale needs more vibrancy. This excludes South Main.

[Memphisborn]

16 hours ago, The Guardian of Memphis said:

It's much needed. Going north from FedEx Forum is where all the activity is. South of Beale needs more vibrancy. This excludes South Main.

Incorporating Robert church park as a gathering place pre/ post game would be amazing as well as adding Hard Rock, even a house of Blues addition would be perfect. More retail shops would also be a nice touch to the game day experience 

[MDC26]

On 2/13/2024 at 5:41 PM, The Guardian of Memphis said:

It's much needed. Going north from FedEx Forum is where all the activity is. South of Beale needs more vibrancy. This excludes South Main.

Yes.  The new hotel planned as well as The Walk on Union would accomplish that, but who knows if/when that will happen.  

It would be really nice if they could do a complete makeover for Robert Church Park to where it was actually used, something that would be appealing to walk through, gather.  

[Memphisborn]

21 hours ago, MDC26 said:

Yes.  The new hotel planned as well as The Walk on Union would accomplish that, but who knows if/when that will happen.  

It would be really nice if they could do a complete makeover for Robert Church Park to where it was actually used, something that would be appealing to walk through, gather.  

Yes a gathering place with food truck park/ retail shops would be a nice touch

[James Owen]

The NBA has upped its requirements for cities to be able to host All-Star Weekend; essentially putting small markets like Memphis, OKC, and a few others out of reach.

Currently, we meet none of those three requirements.

1. The Peabody is the only 5-star hotel we have downtown, although there are a couple of projects - including revised plans for a Grand Hyatt - in the pipeline. However, the need for more large-scale hotels remain.

2. The Renasant Convention Center only has 118,000 square feet of exhibition space, which is way too small under the new rules.

3. Memphis currently has no international flights (despite efforts to lure one, which is ongoing). The only exception being the occasional seasonal flights to Mexico.

Point 1 is doable, but point 2 would require a substantial expansion of the Renasant Convention Center or building an entirely new one altogether (And no, we should not be building a dome. That is not feasible for a market our size and without an NFL team).

[MDC26]

58 minutes ago, James Owen said:

The NBA has upped its requirements for cities to be able to host All-Star Weekend; essentially putting small markets like Memphis, OKC, and a few others out of reach.

Currently, we meet none of those three requirements.

1. The Peabody is the only 5-star hotel we have downtown, although there are a couple of projects - including revised plans for a Grand Hyatt - in the pipeline. However, the need for more large-scale hotels remain.

2. The Renasant Convention Center only has 118,000 square feet of exhibition space, which is way too small under the new rules.

3. Memphis currently has no international flights (despite efforts to lure one, which is ongoing). The only exception being the occasional seasonal flights to Mexico.

Point 1 is doable, but point 2 would require a substantial expansion of the Renasant Convention Center or building an entirely new one altogether (And no, we should not be building a dome. That is not feasible for a market our size and without an NFL team).

Goodness! That's a lot of international flights.  Last year All-Star weekend was in Salt Lake City that has 12 international flights.  Indianapolis (where it was just at) only has 3.   With these requirements, Memphis has no chance of hosting.  Honestly, half the teams in the league may not meet these requirements.  So is it flights per day, or destinations?  I don't know what the importance is in having a bunch of flights to Cancun and Montego Bay to be able to host an All-Star game.