B.C. Place Model At Pine Centre Mall

Thursday, March 24, 2011 12:52 PM

Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation, Pat Bell, and P.G. resident Karla Mocilak examine model of B.C. Place

Prince George, B.C.- A 1:400 scale model of the refurbished BC Place Stadium is on display at the Pine Centre Mall as an audio visual display of the project tours the Province.

Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation, Pat Bell, says the $458 million dollar price tag for the refurbishing project includes the cost of the tour. Tour staff are on hand to answer questions and gather feedback about the project.

"I am not concerned about any cost over-runs" says Minister Bell " The project is well within the budget."

B.C. Place is the largest facility of its kind in the Province and Bell says the refurbishing project will create, essentially, a new BC Place at less than half of what it would have cost to build anew facility from the ground up.

What's new at the stadium besides the roof?

-Phase one renovations included:

upgraded 52 washrooms,
50 guest suites newly designed and refurbished,
New Club Section added
New access ramps
7 new grill concessions
upgrades to 40 food and beverage concessions
seismic upgrades

The roof is designed for all weather conditions, including heavy snow. The roof can hold up to 7000 tons of snow. The new roof is expected to provide some $350 thousand dollars in energy cost savings per year, and $100 thousand a year in maintenance cost savings.

Minster Bell says its important for the people outside the lower mainland to see the project "There is a significant perecentage of people who go to events at BC Place who live outside the lower mainland. I know it's a tough bullet to bite ( the cost) but I think it's a good investment that people will support."

BC Place is to reopen September 30th, and will be the host field for the Grey Cup game in November.

The model is on display today through Saturday.

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Posted on Thursday, March 24, 2011 12:52 PM in News by 250 News

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Comments

Posted by: pgmatt on March 24 2011 1:33 PM

I cant wait to go watch a Lions game on a sunny day with the roof open. At least this giant waste of funds gets me something I can use.

Posted by: NMG on March 24 2011 1:40 PM

I tend to agree pgmatt. When one thinks of the things that could be funded with $458 million dollars, it boggles the mind. Half a BILLION dollars for a stadium renovation when everything from hospitals and schools to highways and funding for the mentally ill could desperately utilize the money.

Strange times we live in. One has to wonder who exactly is coming up with the list of spending priorities.

Posted by: astro on March 24 2011 2:07 PM

It is a total waste of money. It is odd that someone who espouses "families first" would allow such a waste to occur when there are so many needy people in the province. But it is for the rich, not the poor.

Posted by: PrinceGeorge on March 24 2011 2:29 PM

BC Place Corp has sold valuable real estate next to the old stadium and that it is borrowing the rest of the money. It will bring in enough money every year to pay off the loan and make a profit. It is a very profitable venue. It always made money and provided employment for hundreds of people.

It is not a waste any more than a toll bridge or a toll highway. Users pay and eventually it will be paid for.

Think positive. The old stadium needed to be either refurbished or trashed.

Now there will be a first class modern stadium.

The "families first" premier was not even in politics when the decision was made to refurbish and to rebuild the stadium.

Posted by: seamutt on March 24 2011 4:21 PM

Butt-ugly. As for watching a game with the roof open, see that little patch of green in the centre of the roof, I believe that is all that opens. Opening and closing cannot not be done in wind or rain. Fiberals crown.

Posted by: gus on March 24 2011 6:28 PM

"will create, essentially, a new BC Place at less than half of what it would have cost to build anew facility"

There is an obvious question there somewhere .....

Wait, I think I have it .....

Why, in heaven's name does one have to rebuild these stadiums so frequently? The Roman stadiums lasted a few hundred years. They probably maintained them well ... and they used very little plastic on top of that. A few even had "retractable" roofs to provide shade from the sun.

BC Place stadium? 1983 - 2010 = 27 years. That is not even as long as our library has been in place. Time to refurbish it as well .... it has an occasional leaking roof. Could use a nice new curved roof like some of the UNBC buildings to protect the real roof from water .... :-)

Places to worship the overpaid galdiators of the day who happen to have more muscles than most. And now paid in part by those others who build up a different kind of muscle trying to beat the one armed bandit.

As they say, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Human nature at work.

Posted by: gus on March 24 2011 6:33 PM

Our CN Centre holds 6,000 spectators. That is exactly 1/10th of the seats bc place has. So, time to get ready to put $46 million into that building to refurbish it when it is 27 years old. We could get a second casino into the city at that time, locate it next to the CN Centre, and pay for the refurbishing.

I like the model. Prospera Place in Kelowna is in a much better situation. The casino is just across the street.

Posted by: PrinceGeorge on March 24 2011 9:04 PM

The Montreal Olympic stadium's condition suffered considerably in the early 21st century. During the Expos' final years in Montreal, it was coated with grime. Much of the concrete was chipped, stained, and soiled. In 2009, the stadium received approval to remain open in the winter, provided weather conditions are favourable. However, the Olympic Installations Board issued a report stating that the roof was unsafe during heavy rainfall or more than 8 centimetres of snow, and that it rips 50 to 60 times a year. The city fire department warned in August 2009 that without corrective measures, including a new roof, it may order the stadium closed. A contract for a new permanent steel roof was awarded in 2004, with an estimated $300 million price tag. In June 2010, the Olympic Installations Board sought approval from the provincial government for the contract.
Though some Montrealers have called for the stadium to be demolished, it would be an extremely long and expensive project. Due to its unique structural design and the metro line directly underneath, it is not possible to implode the stadium. Instead, it would have to be dismantled piece by piece, which would take years and cost an estimated $700 million.

Looks like our problems are small compared to that.

Posted by: metalman on March 24 2011 11:54 PM

So Pat Bell expells some hot air, saying that we, as the taxpayers, are actually getting a bargain here, only 458,000,000.00
dollars. So a new stadium would cost over a Billion dollars? I don't believe it. I think you could build a pretty nice stadium for 458 million dollars, but that is not the point of course. Like Gus says, BC Place is only 27 years old, I guess we got a raw deal in '83. They went with the fancy fabric roof, obviously not an appropriate material for the long term.
I fear that this reno will be due for refurbishing in 25 years or so, they are still using fabric (oh but the fabrics are so much better now ;) What a price there is to be paid for architectural pride.
metalman.

Posted by: gus on March 25 2011 2:39 AM

The Metrodome in Mineapolis is a virtual twin of BC Place stadium. It opened a yeart earlier. It cost $68 million. Its roof collapsed or ripped on several occasions in the early years due to snow. It collapsed again last year with about a 17 inch snow accumulation.

A new roof is estimated to cost $18 million. That is $440 million less than the roof and renos at BC Place. I do not know how much of that is the roof and how much the renos.

The real reason the roof is retractable of course is that the Soccer team will also be using it. The need to be able to play in the rain. So, it saves building a second stadium. I think one could build a fantastic soccer stadium for $400 million or so if one were to use the tyes of simnple designs the newer European stadiums as well as the world cup stadiums in South Africa used.

Here is a proposed stadium for 24,000 spectators in Maryland for about $200 million.
http://www.gazette.net/stories/02162009/prinnew74820_32489.shtml

Posted by: PrinceGeorge on March 25 2011 8:12 AM

Good link. I do not see any picture. It is a small (by soccer stadium standards) soccer stadium and I am surprised that it is estimated to cost 200 million dollars without any associated infrastructure.

Every metropolis (Vancouver is a metropolis too) has at least one large or mega sports stadium. Many have more than one.

If BC Place brings in sufficient profits to employ hundreds of people and pay off the loan it is taking on so be it, in my opinion.

One day I hope to visit it and attend a game there!

It will be awesome, for sure!

Posted by: BCRacer on March 25 2011 3:32 PM

I don't see the big fuss...
I don't find it all that pleasing to the eye...
looks like the roof was starting to collapse so they strung cables around to keep it from falling down....
But otehrs won't agree, you too are entitled to your opinion....
I can't see the value for the cost....