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UAB may get a stadium

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The Real SamC

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Feb 15, 2007
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http://www.al.com/news/birmingham/index.ssf/2018/03/birmingham_commits_90_million.html

Still some hoops to jump through. 45K seats, with space for 10K more temps. Downtown near Birmingham's civic center. Shooting for 21 or 22. Apparently Birmingham was awarded something called the "world games" which is for sports not in the olympics.

45K seems grossly ambitious for UAB, although the place would also be used for the annual HBCU game between Alabama State and Alabama A&M, which draws very well and the Brimingham bowl game.

IMHO, UAB football is unsustainable if they do not get out of Legion Field.
 
Pretty ambitious plan for the city of Birmingham to undertake. I'm not sure the financing will work but I wish them the best.
 
I went to watch Marshall play UAB a few years back (just prior to them dropping football) and Legion Field is an old and dilapidated stadium in a run down part of town. It has some nice history, but at 71,000 seating capacity (originally 83,000), even with 30,000-35,000 in attendance it looks like a ghost town. They desperately need a new stadium. I hope they get it if not just to p*** of the U of A board of trustees.
 
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I can't imagine having to do what they have to do to progress. The UofA board will not let them do anything to get ahead.
I remember when they had a deal in place, money by donations, to bring in Jimbo Fisher as the HC. It was all good and then the UofA board said no. even though the university wouldn't have to pay the salary.
They will never do anything that will give UAB and chance of gaining on UAT.
 
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Herdmeister said:
I can't imagine having to do what they have to do to progress. The UofA board will not let them do anything to get ahead.
I remember when they had a deal in place, money by donations, to bring in Jimbo Fisher as the HC. It was all good and then the UofA board said no. even though the university wouldn't have to pay the salary.
They will never do anything that will give UAB and chance of gaining on UAT.
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I'm sorry, but that is the most ridiculous post I have read for some time Hilarious! Thanks!
 
In essence, it appears that UAB is essentially a "branch" of the school in Tuscaloosa. Have some kind of semi-autonomy sort of like UT-Martin, UT-Chattanooga, UNC-Asheville, UNC-Greensboro, and the like. Appears that the main UA governing board doesn't want any challenges from any branch component to the school in Tuscaloosa!
 
oldeherd said:
In essence, it appears that UAB is essentially a "branch" of the school in Tuscaloosa. Have some kind of semi-autonomy sort of like UT-Martin, UT-Chattanooga, UNC-Asheville, UNC-Greensboro, and the like. Appears that the main UA governing board doesn't want any challenges from any branch component to the school in Tuscaloosa!
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Absolutely correct
 
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jocktalker said:
Pretty ambitious plan for the city of Birmingham to undertake. I'm not sure the financing will work but I wish them the best.
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Have you ever been to Birmingham, jocktalker? Pretty viable city in Alabama. If Huntington can average 25,000 for football at Marshall...it is not a stretch for UAB to attract 35,000-40,000. Folks, UAB is going to be a CUSA contender since their wake-up call from losing football....not their fault either!

HerdZilla22
 
CarolinaHerdzilla said:

Have you ever been to Birmingham, jocktalker? Pretty viable city in Alabama. If Huntington can average 25,000 for football at Marshall...it is not a stretch for UAB to attract 35,000-40,000. Folks, UAB is going to be a CUSA contender since their wake-up call from losing football....not their fault either!

HerdZilla22
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I too like Birmingham but the big difference, everyone in town is either a Alabama or Auburn fan.
A good friend of mine educated his 2 children at UAB. Both graduated. He went to a Herd/UAB basketball game with me a few years ago. He has lived in Birmingham his entire life and at the time he was about 65. He said that was the first time he had every been on campus except to the registrar's office to register his kids.
He is a huge Bama fan and since both his kids are Auburn fans, they never attended a game there during their years in school there.
 
Yeah, UAB, and Troy and South Alabama too, are never going to be great draws, as they are overshadowed by the two SEC giants, but if they can get even a couple 1000 fans and some students to show up, they can be viable. Legion Field is a dump.

UA(T) which is only 60 miles away, never wanted UAB to have separate athletics nor for its students and alumni to think of UAB as a different and separate thing from it. The ironic part is that UAB has used the med school it was founded around (Alabama had the sense to build its med school where it could actually work) to become a much better research, hard science, and healthcare college that UA(T) or Auburn.
 
CarolinaHerdzilla said:

Have you ever been to Birmingham, jocktalker? Pretty viable city in Alabama. If Huntington can average 25,000 for football at Marshall...it is not a stretch for UAB to attract 35,000-40,000. Folks, UAB is going to be a CUSA contender since their wake-up call from losing football....not their fault either!

HerdZilla22
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I love Birmingham but Birmingham will pay $3 million annually, beginning this year, on the debt service of city-supported bonds for a period of 30 years, according to the funding agreement. The city will pay using proceeds from the occupational tax or another unspecified tax.

Lots can happen in 30 years. I just said it it was a pretty ambitious plan/debt service to undertake.

Besides, the plan disintegrates if the bonds aren't issued by the end of the year.
 
GK4Herd said:
I went to watch Marshall play UAB a few years back (just prior to them dropping football) and Legion Field is an old and dilapidated stadium in a run down part of town. It has some nice history, but at 71,000 seating capacity (originally 83,000), even with 30,000-35,000 in attendance it looks like a ghost town. They desperately need a new stadium. I hope they get it if not just to p*** of the U of A board of trustees.
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I drove over from Atlanta to go to that game. I was surprised how stark and old Legion Field looked and felt. It was clean on the inside, but it reminded me of one of those old NASCAR tracks that only held a race once a year. I used to go to Birmingham on business once or twice a month, it has some really, really good restaurants situated in the 5-points area near UAB, as well as some beautiful well maintained old money neighborhoods close to downtown. But it also had the feel of a city that had seen better days, a city that at one time along with Atlanta were the true power broker cities of the south. It has since been passed up by cities it used to overshadow, like Charlotte, Nashville, Raleigh and Jacksonville. Hopefully this new stadium project further propels the reclamation of downtown Birmingham much like the new arena did for downtown Greenville, SC not too many years ago.
 
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I've been to Huntsville several times (Corps of Engineers has an office there) but have only been through Birmingham. I know 2 civil engineers who work for the Corps in Huntsville. Both are UAB grads and both are huge Auburn fans. One is from Mobile and is Tee Martin's uncle. He says many (if not most) UAB students and alumni care more about Roll Tide or War Eagle, whichever school they grew up rooting for.
 
Birmingham and Huntington have a lot in common. Both wasted opportunities to move forward pining for past glory and were left in tne dust by a near neighbor that embraced reality and the future.
 
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wvkeeper(HN) said:
Birmingham and Huntington have a lot in common. Both wasted opportunities to move forward pining for past glory and were left in tne dust by a near neighbor that embraced reality and the future.
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This was true for a while, but Birmingham is now in the midst of a Renaissance. The city is booming again with a chef owned restaurant scene that is disproportionately more awesome and greater than the city population (I believe 2-3 James Beard winners recently). They have a new downtown minor-league baseball stadium which is a major attraction and a new booming craft brewing scene and coffee roaster. UAB is the anchor to the economy with one of the top 10-15 N I H funding medical facilities in the country .

With that said, UAB football has a tough climb. UAT does the no favors and many people have UAB pride but not necessarily for sports (think science).

However, UAB can not survive at legion. If it has any chance of making it they need a stadium closer to campus.
 
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-CarlHungus- said:
This was true for a while, but Birmingham is now in the midst of a Renaissance. The city is booming again with a chef owned restaurant scene that is disproportionately more awesome and greater than the city population (I believe 2-3 James Beard winners recently). They have a new downtown minor-league baseball stadium which is a major attraction and a new booming craft brewing scene and coffee roaster. UAB is the anchor to the economy with one of the top 10-15 N I H funding medical facilities in the country .

With that said, UAB football has a tough climb. UAT does the no favors and many people have UAB pride but not necessarily for sports (think science).

However, UAB can not survive at legion. If it has any chance of making it they need a stadium closer to campus.
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I have enjoyed the last few trips there. Not so much 5-10 years ago,
The conference tournament there the past couple years and I was down the last 2 times the basketball team played at UAB in the regular season.
Lots to do in the city. I wish the conference tournament would move back there.
 
Isn't a total rebuild of the BCC a part of that whole stadium deal?

When I loved in Mississippi we would drive through Birmingham all the time. Looked like a nice place.
 
wvkeeper(HN) said:
Isn't a total rebuild of the BCC a part of that whole stadium deal?

When I loved in Mississippi we would drive through Birmingham all the time. Looked like a nice place.
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I'm not sure. I don't live there and I haven't kept up a ton with things but I do know like Herdmeister is saying, the last 5 years have been critical in improving the city, especially for visitors (new legalized breweries that can serve, new downtown minor league ball park, new restaurants/coffee shops, the science museum is really amazing for kids, a great zoo as well).

The downtown is not what it should be IMO, but it's getting better. There are scattered little areas (five points, highlands, downtown) that limit consolidation of one area....but things are overall much better.

Make no mistake though, there are still some very rough parts, but as a whole the city is on the upswing IMO.
 
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Herdmeister said:
I have enjoyed the last few trips there. Not so much 5-10 years ago,
The conference tournament there the past couple years and I was down the last 2 times the basketball team played at UAB in the regular season.
Lots to do in the city. I wish the conference tournament would move back there.
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I concur Herdmeister.....although my daughter lives about 30 minutes from The Star (Texas)......no hotel expense for me...I love going to Birmingham. Took the Selma visit the last time and that will get your heart right and be a little pissed off how blacks were treated by racist white folks. I know I can't change history, but my heart was heart sad.

HerdZilla22
 
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