Jump to content

Columbia's loss, Greenville's gain

krazeeboi

By krazeeboi
in South Carolina

Recommended Posts


  • Replies 45
  • Created
  • Last Reply
gs3 Metropolitan Area

gs3

Posted
Posted

I love Columbia, so this isn't a negative on Columbia, but whats up with the mayor there? Why would he not present a plan to keep the Bombers and build a new stadium downtown? It isn't about A, AA, AAA or even Major League, it's about bringing people downtown. Columbia's mayor could take some lessons from other cities both inside and outside of South Carolina.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Spartan Gigalopolis

Spartan

Posted
Posted

I don't have time to read the article right now, so I apologize if this has been said or isn't relevant- But part of the problem I see is that the Bombers wanted Columbia and USC to fork up the vast majority of the money. They were only going to throw something like $3 million into the hat? Meanwhile in Greenville they are funding the entire $13 million stadium. So an agreement couldn't be reached? Yeah right. Something is fishy there. I'm not so sure it wasn't planned that way so that the Bombers could give the impression they wanted to stay, even though they had their eye set on Greenville.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
g-vegasman Unincorporated Area

g-vegasman

Posted
Posted

I don't have time to read the article right now, so I apologize if this has been said or isn't relevant- But part of the problem I see is that the Bombers wanted Columbia and USC to fork up the vast majority of the money. They were only going to throw something like $3 million into the hat? Meanwhile in Greenville they are funding the entire $13 million stadium. So an agreement couldn't be reached? Yeah right. Something is fishy there. I'm not so sure it wasn't planned that way so that the Bombers could give the impression they wanted to stay, even though they had their eye set on Greenville.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Spartan, I think you hit the nail right on the head!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
vicupstate Metropolitan Area

vicupstate

Posted
Posted

I don't have time to read the article right now, so I apologize if this has been said or isn't relevant- But part of the problem I see is that the Bombers wanted Columbia and USC to fork up the vast majority of the money. They were only going to throw something like $3 million into the hat? Meanwhile in Greenville they are funding the entire $13 million stadium. So an agreement couldn't be reached? Yeah right. Something is fishy there. I'm not so sure it wasn't planned that way so that the Bombers could give the impression they wanted to stay, even though they had their eye set on Greenville.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

From the article, with emphasis added....

We will perhaps never know the real reasons why a joint-use stadium for USC and professional baseball did not pan out. We do know that at one point the Bombers and USC reached an agreement to contribute equal parts toward a stadium, and Columbia Mayor Bob Coble refused to present that proposal to City Council.

It sounds as if the city did not have to put in money, so it is surprising that it was not offerred to the council. My guess is that Coble agreed to be the "heavy" and USC never intended to share a stadium with the Bombers.

Regardless, it is a loss for the city because USC would have played in the joint stadium had it been built, plus the Bombers would have added still more visitors to the Vista. As it stands now, Cola will probably not have a A, AA or AAA team for at least a decade or better, unless of course, it goes to the suburbs.

If Coble didn't present the proposal because of his own volition or because he buckled to pressure from USC, he shares in the blame.

But as the article states ...."we will perhaps never know the real reasons".

Link to comment
Share on other sites
motonenterprises Burg

motonenterprises

Posted
Posted

Basically, class A baseball is not supported in Columbia, we should have AA or AAA baseball. I didn' go to a Bombers game for years, just like almost everyone else here. Why is everyone acting like it's a big deal that the Bombers moved?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Columbia is a great city, but it is not so great that it couldn't use pro baseball despite the level to bring more people downtown. Greenville had the AA Braves, but are just as happy to have the A Bombers.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Infinite1 Whistle-Stop

Infinite1

Posted
Posted

...the city would have still had to pony up money....Coble (mayor) didn't present the proposal because there was zero support on the city council for spending any money on the stadium...so why present...instead he was trying to get USC and the Bombers to each dig deeper....The bombers basically said they couldn't afford to spend money on a stadium because baseball fans in Columbia were split between USC and the A Bombers....but in Greenville, they would be the only game in town and could afford to build the stadium....

...IMHO, it was a chicken and egg scenario that the Bombers played to their benefit. They would have had their major league affiliation pulled if they didn't upgrade their facilities, but couldn't afford to upgrade without drawing better crowds. They weren't going to draw better crowds until they got a better, more accessible facility with better parking.....so they move to G'Ville.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
thebarb20 Unincorporated Area

thebarb20

Posted
Posted

hate to bust on ya but usc's track record in basketball is marginal at best. unless u got back to 1960's. are they better in baseball im not sure about that either. clemson has been to the CWS many times and neither school has won the title in baseball. Clemson does have a national championship in football, soccer (2), golf, while usc always has women's track to fall back on. just messin w. ya .

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Charleston native Burg

Charleston native

Posted
Posted

Greenville can have them. I always preferred Gamecock baseball. Face it, USC is number one in Columbia.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Actually, this is the main reason why Columbia really can't support any professional baseball team, IMO. Unfortunately in this city, USC has a monopoly on spectator sports with the exception of the Inferno, but that is only because USC does not have a collegiate level hockey team of their own. People here will come to USC baseball games and not pro games because of the tradition and emotion for the college.

Knowing this fact, I don't think it would matter if you brought AA or AAA baseball to the city...it's just not really a successful business venture in this city. More people here will mainly go to the team which instills their passion, and the team to do it is USC's.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Spartan Gigalopolis

Spartan

Posted
Posted

hate to bust on ya but usc's track record in basketball is marginal at best.  unless u got back to 1960's.  are they better in baseball im not sure about that either.  clemson has been to the CWS many times and neither school has won the title in baseball.  Clemson does have a national championship in football, soccer (2), golf, while usc always has women's track to fall back on.  just messin w. ya .

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Actually, I didn't mean better than Clemson, just better compared to our own football team :) Basketball and Baseball have done relatively well the in past few years at USC. I am not a sports enthusiest, so don't accept everything i say about this as fact :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
MAJIKMAN Hamlet

MAJIKMAN

Posted
Posted

And like someone said earlier. The reason why pro teams ( football, baseball, or whatever) won't do well in Columbia is because it is primarily a big Clemson. One big college town. Nothing else will fit. But with Greenville not being that way it is easier for people

to take the chance and bring teams here. Examples Rhinos-football, Groove-basketball, Grrrrrowl-hockey, the list could go on and on. Not to say that we

don't have our college fanatics. Because we do. They are just more evenly distibuted. Example are: Clemsom, Furman, Wofford, and USC Upstate. Yes Wofford and USC Upstate count in the over all scheme of things. But primarily

Clemson and Furman. Which kind of make our area of the state seems more

inter-connected verses the Columbia and even Charleston area. Because of

the more broad fan base. Most sports will thrive, reguardless of professional

level. Collegiate, Semi-pro, Pro, Hell even Little League work.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
RestedTraveler Metropolis

RestedTraveler

Posted
Posted

...But with Greenville not being that way it is easier for people to take the chance and bring teams here. Examples Rhinos-football, Groove-basketball, Grrrrrowl-hockey, the list could go on and on. ...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Unfortunately, financial woes ended these teams (and the Riverhawks-football), in spite of winning championships in their respective leagues. And the Grrrowl-hockey (another championship team) isn't doing that great, financially, either. I don't suspect this will be a problem for the Bombers/Green Sox though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
krazeeboi Gigalopolis

krazeeboi

Posted
  • Author
Posted

And like someone said earlier. The reason why pro teams ( football, baseball, or whatever) won't do well in Columbia is because it is primarily a big Clemson. One big college town.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Obviously you meant USC, but I get your point. Columbia is somewhat like Columbus, OH and Austin, which are sizable metros in their own right, but the big college presence will probably ensure that they won't get any professional basketball, baseball, or football teams.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Charleston native Burg

Charleston native

Posted
Posted

Obviously you meant USC, but I get your point. Columbia is somewhat like Columbus, OH and Austin, which are sizable metros in their own right, but the big college presence will probably ensure that they won't get any professional basketball, baseball, or football teams.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

That's what I said in my earlier post! ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
MAJIKMAN Hamlet

MAJIKMAN

Posted
Posted

Obviously you meant USC, but I get your point. Columbia is somewhat like Columbus, OH and Austin, which are sizable metros in their own right, but the big college presence will probably ensure that they won't get any professional basketball, baseball, or football teams.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Wasn't exactly what I was talking about. But yeah, your right.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.