Who the hell would drive to McCormick Place to watch bad basketball?

DePaul University has ruled out the United Center as a possible home for Blue Demons basketball, turning its attention to a site near McCormick Place, according to a source close to the United Center negotiations.

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

The team is irrelevant and they shouldn't be allowed to build a new arena.

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To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Like the city of Rosemont I would like to make DePaul a counter offer to play at McCracken Place. I will give them 25 square feet in my apartment.

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If DePaul wants to build an arena to call their own, I'm all for it. However, DePaul should play their home games adjacent to their most famous location and that's in Lincoln Park, not McCormick Place. Based on what I've read, the United Center seemed to have a really good offer for DePaul basketball. I would've taken the deal if I were DePaul...

Weren't they offered free rent with the thought being that having them in the UC would keep concerts from going to the new DePaul stadium?

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To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Yeah, there was a report, I think in Crain's Chicago Business, in which the United Center offered free rent for as many as 10 years for DePaul Basketball. I think there's also strong opposition to build a new DePaul arena around McCormick Place, too.

Isn't DePaul out of the Big East this next year?

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To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

How does something no one sees disappear?

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Yes & no. The current Big East is no more, but DePaul, Georgetown, St. John's, Seton Hall, Villanova, Providence College & Marquette will create a new basketball-themed conference complete with the Big East name and will continue to host its postseason basketball tournament at New York's Madison Square Garden starting next season.

There are rumblings that Butler University & Xavier University, both in the Atlantic 10, and MVC member Creighton are rumored to join the above schools to create a new look Big East. An official announcement is expected in the next week to 10 days.

In other words they will continue to get smoked by every team in the conference.

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To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

It looks like it. DePaul's record in the Big East was dreadful over the last 5 years.

And who do you think is in opposition? Hmmmmm....?

City of Chicago? Rahm? Takes the Arie Crown maintenance $$$ off the books, probably not

Attaching a 14K seat arena to McCormick would be a great for this city.
-First & second round NCAA games
-Concerts
-Hyatt Hotel attachable,,,,get a second hotle on site with this new facility
-Plenty of additional space to populate with REAL eating and drinking establishments
-Parking for 6,000+ cars....TRAIN right to the Doorstep! Walk to Michigan Ave
Overall would be great for this city to have.

Only one place I can think of in the City that loses on this deal.

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"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”

When the Cubs move to Rosemont, the Blue Demons should play ball @ Wrigley. A little breeze off the lake never hurt anybody.

Ok its been a long time since I have been there but isn't it fiscally impossible to by up the buildings etc. around DePaul to make an arena and parking? At least profitably?

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Elections have consequences.

But wouldn't the city be subsidizing the construction of a 14,000-seat arena?


The United Center could have these


Chicago has no paucity of concert venues, and better ones than basketball arenas


Chicago has no paucity of hotels


Wirtz/Reinsdorf have been talking about building up the United Center parking lots into some sort of shopping district.


But that's Metra Electric, not the L. Rapid transit to fixed timetable (or one line's timetable to another) kind of requires coordination (or at least tedious waiting), and for people coming in from the burbs, the walk from the West Loop terminals to Millennium Station is a bitch in the winter, when college basketball tends to stage its games.

But by all means, put an arena we don't need for a team we don't like in an area we don't like driving to.

Curious you are incorrect on almost every level of your thoughts here, thus don't have the time to address each of them. But, creating an entertainment/sports facility attached to the 2M SF expo center creates a facility in the CBD area with cabs and access to downtown. I guess you have never left the UC looking for a cab...did you get one of the 20? or if you want to take a walk to one of the bars in the West loop, you will probably make it alive, probably.

Fact is the area is not built up and maybe Reinsdorf can build it up like he did around the cell. Remember that?

So, having the auto show in town for a week and then strategically having a concert on the weekend it is over, with the people here for the show staying at the hotel, attached to the expo and arena, creates convenience that people appreciate.

You might not like DePaul, but there still is a market for a winning college basketball team in this town and they need to improve. They need to become a real NCAA tourney team again to make it all really work again.

The fact is they have shown the demand exists, they just fucked up by assuming it would always be there.

Yes, the city will pay for some of the infrastructure like they do on almost every project that provides a positive economic input to the city.

If done right, it creates an asset for the city.

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What a horrible location. Worse than Rosemont.

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Reality is your friend, not your enemy. -- Seacrest

And the idea of DePaul basketball, of all things, turning fucking McCormick Place into some bustling ball of commerce and nightlife. It's a convention center, and our convention industry has been decimated by onerous hotel taxes and unions being shitheads. But a college basketball program that threw its towel halfway across Lake Michigan is going to justify slapping up another arena--in addition to the United Center, Rosemont Horizon, UIC Pavilion, Sears Centre, place where Loyola plays, and whatever else we have--and accompanying Hyatt, restaurants, boutique shopping, and more, all in the lovely party waiting to happen that is Cermak/MLK?

[hawk].........awright![/hawk]

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As always you are a voice of reason. I don't know why you are about to lose to jimmypasta in the first round but the world is a crazy mixed up place sometimes

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I heard The SCORE's Joe Ostrowski & 670TheScore.com Webmaster Adam Hoge discuss this after the St. Mary's win over Middle Tennessee State in the NCAA First Four in Dayton late last night. The guys wondered about the former Children's Memorial Hospital site not far from DePaul's Lincoln Park campus.

It's currently unoccupied & nobody seems to know what to do with it. One would think that would be an ideal site for the university to convert that unused space into a new basketball arena for the once proud program...

the arie crown theater? I was thinking that the united center would be the big "loser" in this deal since there would now be another venue in the city for the sporting events and concerts (as the Horizon is the only other place that can accomodate that level of stuff right now AFAIK) and therefore Jerry would play some hardball to prevent another ~15k primary-sports-arena from being built within a few miles of his place.

The Arie Crown theatre seats something like 5000, right? Methinks it'd continue on just fine as it's a theatre first, but yeah, being that this is Chicago all of the incumbent people would do their damndest to keep new competition out of the market.... kind of like getting a liquor license.

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I agree with everything you said except the bolded portion. The West Loop is fine now. I walk around there all the time, even late at night, and have no fear of anything happening to me. This is not the same area as it was in the 90's or even 10 years ago.

That's what really puzzles me about the lack of development around the UC. With the emergence of the Hawks, and the area being completely gentrified, there's no reason to not build some bars/restaurants around the stadium. Is this just Jerry not wanting to give up the parking revenue?

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You are just tired from having to deal with the Beer Bistro and the fact they don't want the boards business.

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I'd just like to be able to get a drink somewhere that isn't 5 or 6 blocks from the damn stadium. It's ridiculous. Even the Billy Goat, which is absolutely terrible, I would consider that to be too far away for the average UC visitor.

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Yeah the Billy Goat blows. Did they ever do anything with that property where the Taco Bell was or is that just abandoned still?

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Nope, still abandoned.

You would think someone would at least buy up the lot and have parking there.

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The good thing about the All-State arena is that it's right by the airport. DePaul doesn't sell out the All-State Arena does it? If they don't why do they need a new stadium? A new stadium isn't going to be make them better at basketball.

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To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Wait a minute, I'm lost. That quote is attributed to me, but it's not something I said (arguing with myself), and it's not anywhere in the thread to have been quoted. I'm lost. Help me here.

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There's a bunch of stuff within your post, and it's not quoted material. It seemed strange while I was reading it too. Not sure where it came from.

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Haha, I see it now. bigfan meant to hit "reply" and he hit "edit." I've done that on boards where I've been an admin.

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