A Letter To The Sports Editor
Mike,
I have enjoyed most of your pieces in the First Capitol News concerning the sports coverage. What is amazing is how much
Rage coverage you have been able to do this season, even with the “former” owner of that team now being editor of the other
tabloid.
I have a slight tip for you and I’m not sure if you could bring an article about this. Over the last few weeks, I talked to a number of Missouri River Otter season ticket holders, some who have bought season tickets since the team started in 1999. A number of them aren’t renewing because of the possible fear that Mike Shanahan, Jr. could get an ownership group together to buy the St. Louis Blues and if that happens, the Otters fold or get relocated someplace else. There aren’t any guarantees, even with the UHL All-Star Game scheduled here. By the way, that All-Star Game didn’t get announced around here until three weeks after it was awarded. I got my tip from someone who read the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette and they are =always= on the ball with the UHL and NIFL in that city. Also, a number of patrons who attend Family Arena are upset about the parking situation that is there. It is the main reason why you only see small numbers attend sporting events there. There are more parking places than there are seats at the facility. Yet, there are parking attendants there who charge $5 or $6 for parking and force cars to park as far away from the facility as they could. That is one of the reasons why season ticket sales for the Otters continue to decline. And although the team announced they are “committed” to the 2005-06 season, because of the Blues situation, fans are very unsure that the management/ownership of the teamwill be dedicated to the River Otters this season. There have been some good player signings and the schedule has been announced (www.theuhl.com).
But fans are still not sure if the River Otters are determined to play in St. Charles the entire
season. I think some fans are upset from last season when the playoff games were moved to Savvis Center because of
“schedule conflicts.” Something isn’t right and I don’t think that some who live here and feel that Family Arena has been a great place really feel that the operators of Family Arena itself (not the sports teams) really don’t have the hospitality that they should have to keep the teams from bolting over to St. Louis for playoff games. There’s something quite suspicious when we have two of our mainstream teams play regular season home games at Family Arena and then when the playoffs take place, the games are moved to Savvis Center. I think Rory Riddler had some points he made in an article he wrote earlier this year about Family Arena. But he failed to point out that people don’t like paying for parking at all and they don’t like when the parking attendants tell the patrons where to park.
I think what confuses St. Charles County residents is that they will attend baseball games at T. R. Hughes Ballpark in
O’Fallon and the parking is free and no one tells them where to park. But at Family Arena, people pay to park in a
parking lot that is never completely full and patrons are ordered to park as far away from the facility as possible.
Finally, I have seen the conditions of both parking lots at T. R. Hughes and at Family Arena. T. R. Hughes does have a very
good parking lot and is well maintained. The Family Arena parking lot looks like it has never been maintained or even
repaired after its initial layer of asphalt was poured. The neglect that has been given to Family Arena since the “controversy” that took place in 2000 (New Year’s Eve, 1999) has really affected the conditions of what could be a great building. I wish every sports reporter and mainstream reporter would write about this.
Also, I have been told that no one who attends Family Arena understands why Arena Parkway can’t be lit better at night from the Arena to Route 364 and from the Arena to Fifth Street. In the winter, it can be very dark, even with the little snow we
have received in the last several winters.
My wife and I plan on attending more Rascals games because of their friendliness. But we’re not sure if we plan on attending hockey games in the fall and winter. Hockey is my more favorite sport compared to baseball. But since I have a stepdaughter in high school this fall, it looks like I’ll be watching Mid-States Club Hockey again more than I will be watching the minors. At least I don’t have to be told where to park at either the St. Peters Rec Plex or at the Wentzville Ice Arena.
Keep up the good work.
Louis Laune
