In case you’ve been hiding under a rock for the past months, it may surprise you to know that there is a move afoot to replace the Bradley Center lest the Bucks move out of Milwaukee.
Since I love arenas and stadiums and have since I was a little kid, I’d like to weigh in on this issue.
Last Tuesday, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel brought up the subject of replacing the Bradley Center on its main editorial page. They offered two points of view. The first was that now is the time to think about replacing the 24-year-old arena (their own); another was that a cost-benefit analysis needs to be done before deciding on a new arena, or not (William Holahan and Charles Kroncke).
Unfortunately, neither editorial offered a rationale as to why it has become so necessary to replace perfectly good sports venues, and specifically why the Bradley Center has reached the end. The Journal Sentinel editorial said, “…today’s NBA facilities need to generate money all year round through team shops, restaurants and luring top-notch concerts”, implying that the Bradley Center didn’t do that.
But why does the idea of generating more revenue demand that a new, multi-million dollar facility be built? Aren’t there less expensive alternatives?
Instead of tearing down a perfectly good sports arena, in actuality an excellent sports arena, why not renovate it?
The Bradley Center is a darn good place to watch a game. It has comfortably wide concourses, plenty of concession stands, easy access to both seating levels, and terrific sightlines. Of course it does; Lloyd Pettit built it for hockey.
So we need better parking. And shops. And restaurants. Yes, I agree. But folks, there’s plenty of room to do that.
Has anyone looked at the area north of the Bradley Center? Heck, there is enough space for a full shopping mall or two in the empty lots where the Park East freeway used to roam. So why not create a destination around the Bradley Center, specifically to the north? Plenty of room for shops, restaurants and parking lots. It would sure cost a lot less than tearing the BC down and building a new one.
Actual cost estimates for refurbishing the BC were somewhere around $23 million. For sake of comparison, the Sacramento Kings of the NBA are facing a similar situation. Their owners are threatening to move the team to Anaheim (that would be brilliant since there are already two NBA teams in the LA area) if they don’t get a new arena, and plans for that arena are in the $387 million range.
$387 million? Or $23 million. Someone should do some math here.
A really good way to present the absurdity of this whole thing is to compare the Bradley Center and Miller Park.
Miller Park celebrated its 10th anniversary last year. So its now 11.
The Bradley Center will celebrate its 24th anniversary this October.
Miller Park was paid for with a combination of private and public funds, and as you know if you live in one of the immediate five counties around Milwaukee, you are still paying for this incredible stadium, to the tune of about $9 per resident per year, and you will until 2017, when Miller Park is 16 years old. What a bargain. I don’t think anyone will quibble now about the economic contribution Miller Park has made to Milwaukee, Southeastern Wisconsin and the state as a whole.
The Bradley Center is debt-free. Its construction, $90 million, was paid for 100% by Lloyd and Jane Bradley Pettit, for whom the arena is named.
Can you imagine in 13 years, people calling for Miller Park to be replaced? Not only will it have been paid for only a few years, it is sure to remain one of the best stadiums in sports.
So why don’t we change our strategy here and stop building new mega-million dollar sports venues at the drop of a hat? There are a ton of major league stadiums and arenas that were built between 1993 and 2002, so that means there will be many heading towards their 25th birthdays within the next 15 years. Are we going to replace them all? At what is sure to be billions of dollars by then? Can you imagine what each of the cities in question could do with that kind of money, to improve their infrastructures and help their people?
I have an idea. The Bradley Center will be 25 years old next year. Let’s have a Silver Anniversary celebration. On October 1, 2013 (the arena opened on October 1, 1988, and the first event was, ironically, an NHL hockey game), we have a big party. At the event, the powers that be unveil plans to renovate the arena and add retail, parking and public spaces to the north of the building. Creating a downtown destination.
Somebody smarter than me figures out the funding. We celebrate all season long. And we enjoy the beautiful Bradley Center, and yes, the Milwaukee Bucks, for years to come.
