darksabre Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Reading this article today, and looking through the photo album, it made me wonder what could have been if the City of Buffalo had planned ahead with the closing of the Aud. It's fate could certainly have been different. I know we've hashed it out before, but it's been about two years and all those threads are Archived. http://www.nytimes.c...r-87-years.html Windsor Arena is among the oldest hockey rinks with spectator seating. (Northeastern University’s Matthews Arena, which opened in 1910, is believed to be the oldest.) When Windsor Arena opened as the Border Cities Arena in November 1925, the Montreal Forum was one year old. The old Madison Square Garden on Eighth Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets was a month away from opening. Maple Leaf Gardens would not be built until six years later. Under a proposal that is expected to be approved by the city council, the arena, known as the Barn, would be converted into a market next fall. The Barn will live on, much as the Montreal Forum lives on as a cineplex and Maple Leaf Gardens does as a supermarket. :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shrader Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Ahhh Matthews. That place is fun. Unfortunately, I hear they finally replaced the old seats that had their own built in ass grooves. And as for the Aud, there was no conversion that was ever going to save that place. The setup of the building would never lend itself to anything like that. Demolition and then building something else was always going to be the cheapest solution. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frissonic Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Wasn't there some issue with leaving the aud up because Bass Sports Pro wanted the land to build, then they backed out? Seems like they could have even kept the exising facade and just gutted the inside for the store ... if they had actually decided to expand to Buffalo. One of my fondest memories and one of my favorite pictures of all time is when Dynamo Riga came in the late 80s. My dad had season tix in the second row reds right behind the net the Sabres shot on 1st and 3rd periods. JUST as the game-winning goal went in the net, I snapped a pic. It was with some crappy little non-35mm camera, but with that crappy little camera, and in the ensuing developed but grainy pic, you can clearly see the puck in the net before the goal light even goes on. It looks like it was shot on ISO 12800, but it's still a great pic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apuszczalowski Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Wasn't there some issue with leaving the aud up because Bass Sports Pro wanted the land to build, then they backed out? Seems like they could have even kept the exising facade and just gutted the inside for the store ... if they had actually decided to expand to Buffalo. One of my fondest memories and one of my favorite pictures of all time is when Dynamo Riga came in the late 80s. My dad had season tix in the second row reds right behind the net the Sabres shot on 1st and 3rd periods. JUST as the game-winning goal went in the net, I snapped a pic. It was with some crappy little non-35mm camera, but with that crappy little camera, and in the ensuing developed but grainy pic, you can clearly see the puck in the net before the goal light even goes on. It looks like it was shot on ISO 12800, but it's still a great pic. bass Pro was gonna convert the arena into its store, but that all changed as things dragged on. There was not maintenance and upkeep done to the arena since the last game played there and everything just fell apart. The cost to renovate the arena got higher and higher as more problems were discovered from its condition that it needed to come down. The least they could have done after the final game was auctioned off the stuff inside to try and make some extra money for the city and team. Toronto had a huge public auction for everything in MLG when it closed. Instead most of it went to waste while whatever wasn't already destroyed or stolen was auctioned off over a decade later Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksabre Posted February 15, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Wasn't there some issue with leaving the aud up because Bass Sports Pro wanted the land to build, then they backed out? Seems like they could have even kept the exising facade and just gutted the inside for the store ... if they had actually decided to expand to Buffalo. One of my fondest memories and one of my favorite pictures of all time is when Dynamo Riga came in the late 80s. My dad had season tix in the second row reds right behind the net the Sabres shot on 1st and 3rd periods. JUST as the game-winning goal went in the net, I snapped a pic. It was with some crappy little non-35mm camera, but with that crappy little camera, and in the ensuing developed but grainy pic, you can clearly see the puck in the net before the goal light even goes on. It looks like it was shot on ISO 12800, but it's still a great pic. Could you please please please find and post that picture! bass Pro was gonna convert the arena into its store, but that all changed as things dragged on. There was not maintenance and upkeep done to the arena since the last game played there and everything just fell apart. The cost to renovate the arena got higher and higher as more problems were discovered from its condition that it needed to come down. The least they could have done after the final game was auctioned off the stuff inside to try and make some extra money for the city and team. Toronto had a huge public auction for everything in MLG when it closed. Instead most of it went to waste while whatever wasn't already destroyed or stolen was auctioned off over a decade later Which is the problem. Saving these old arenas seems to be something that gets planned in other cities. The only thing Buffalo had was some half cocked Bass Pro mess. If they had planned from day 1 to do something with the arena to preserve it for future iterations, it wouldn't just be an empty street corner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frissonic Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Could you please please please find and post that picture! Which is the problem. Saving these old arenas seems to be something that gets planned in other cities. The only thing Buffalo had was some half cocked Bass Pro mess. If they had planned from day 1 to do something with the arena to preserve it for future iterations, it wouldn't just be an empty street corner. I think I know which album it's in (yes--an actual photo album!). Still need to do some software installs since re-installing Windows 7 yesterday, but it shouldn't be hard to at least FIND the pic. Hmmm. Actually, that gives me a good PS clean-up idea. Wonder how much graininess I can reduce in Photoshop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spndnchz Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 I think I know which album it's in (yes--an actual photo album!). Still need to do some software installs since re-installing Windows 7 yesterday, but it shouldn't be hard to at least FIND the pic. Hmmm. Actually, that gives me a good PS clean-up idea. Wonder how much graininess I can reduce in Photoshop. Might be better with the graininess? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Wasn't there some issue with leaving the aud up because Bass Sports Pro wanted the land to build, then they backed out? Seems like they could have even kept the exising facade and just gutted the inside for the store ... if they had actually decided to expand to Buffalo. One of my fondest memories and one of my favorite pictures of all time is when Dynamo Riga came in the late 80s. My dad had season tix in the second row reds right behind the net the Sabres shot on 1st and 3rd periods. JUST as the game-winning goal went in the net, I snapped a pic. It was with some crappy little non-35mm camera, but with that crappy little camera, and in the ensuing developed but grainy pic, you can clearly see the puck in the net before the goal light even goes on. It looks like it was shot on ISO 12800, but it's still a great pic. Ah yes, good ole 110mm cameras. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frissonic Posted February 15, 2012 Report Share Posted February 15, 2012 Might be better with the graininess? Ah yes, good ole 110mm cameras. Well, when I scan, I typically leave the original scanned version for a comparison to the cleaned up version. I could post both ... assuming I ever get around to actually hooking up the scanner. :) And Weave, yes--that is precisely what I had. Crappy camera, but at least there wasn't the lag like you typically get with a digital AF/P&S camera. I got exactly the shot I wanted. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 Could you please please please find and post that picture! Which is the problem. Saving these old arenas seems to be something that gets planned in other cities. The only thing Buffalo had was some half cocked Bass Pro mess. If they had planned from day 1 to do something with the arena to preserve it for future iterations, it wouldn't just be an empty street corner. Whoa, whoa; hold up there, cowboy. Most other cities do NOT save old arenas, because the real estate is worth too much. In our case, well, the real estate isn't worth too much. So the latest plan is to build an outdoor rink there. Not too shabby at all. From November through March, it really could be the centerpiece of a nice waterfront that has started to bud over the last few years (museum, concert venue, now this...). It's pretty cool. In other cases, I'm pretty sure arenas get destroyed, just like the Aud (which of course, I miss). And for the nostalgic: "pea-NUTS crackerjack." That guy's voice never will leave my memory. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksabre Posted February 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 Whoa, whoa; hold up there, cowboy. Most other cities do NOT save old arenas, because the real estate is worth too much. In our case, well, the real estate isn't worth too much. So the latest plan is to build an outdoor rink there. Not too shabby at all. From November through March, it really could be the centerpiece of a nice waterfront that has started to bud over the last few years (museum, concert venue, now this...). It's pretty cool. In other cases, I'm pretty sure arenas get destroyed, just like the Aud (which of course, I miss). And for the nostalgic: "pea-NUTS crackerjack." That guy's voice never will leave my memory. I suppose maybe I worded that wrong. I meant to say that if an arena is going to be allowed to stand for a period of time, usually cities have a plan for them. Buffalo just didn't. Either tear it down, or have a reuse plan and execute it. The way the Aud went out just wasn't fair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 Whoa, whoa; hold up there, cowboy. Most other cities do NOT save old arenas, because the real estate is worth too much. In our case, well, the real estate isn't worth too much. So the latest plan is to build an outdoor rink there. Not too shabby at all. From November through March, it really could be the centerpiece of a nice waterfront that has started to bud over the last few years (museum, concert venue, now this...). It's pretty cool. In other cases, I'm pretty sure arenas get destroyed, just like the Aud (which of course, I miss). And for the nostalgic: "pea-NUTS crackerjack." That guy's voice never will leave my memory. peanuts. crackerjack. WHO. NEEDS. A. BEER? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheChimp Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 It really is an insult to the place's history that the fools ripped it down before they even closed the deal on what was supposed to replace it. Buncha pipe dreams and ###### and now the place is gone for nothing. EDIT: OK, so I read slow. Hmmm, well I say this outdoor rink better be flipping awesome, that's all I gotta say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shrader Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 I suppose maybe I worded that wrong. I meant to say that if an arena is going to be allowed to stand for a period of time, usually cities have a plan for them. Buffalo just didn't. Either tear it down, or have a reuse plan and execute it. The way the Aud went out just wasn't fair. You need to compare the types of buildings you're talking about here. The Aud was a very different animal compared to the rink in the article you posted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksabre Posted February 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 You need to compare the types of buildings you're talking about here. The Aud was a very different animal compared to the rink in the article you posted. True, but it still held a lot of history and was a local celebrity in its own right. Shoot, we named our damn forum after it. It might not have been some barn built in the 20s, but it held a lot of value from a historical and sentimental point of view. It's really not that different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shrader Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 True, but it still held a lot of history and was a local celebrity in its own right. Shoot, we named our damn forum after it. It might not have been some barn built in the 20s, but it held a lot of value from a historical and sentimental point of view. It's really not that different. I mean with the structure. Look at that picture, it essentially looks like a large covered space and nothing else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksabre Posted February 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 I mean with the structure. Look at that picture, it essentially looks like a large covered space and nothing else. Ah. Yes you're right in that regard. It's a very simple structure, smaller, and probably much easier to maintain. But then what about places like the MLG and the Forum? Obviously the same can be done with more modern buildings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
korab rules Posted February 16, 2012 Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 It really is an insult to the place's history that the fools ripped it down before they even closed the deal on what was supposed to replace it. Buncha pipe dreams and ###### and now the place is gone for nothing. EDIT: OK, so I read slow. Hmmm, well I say this outdoor rink better be flipping awesome, that's all I gotta say. every outdoor rink is flipping awsome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksabre Posted February 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2012 every outdoor rink is flipping awsome. It'd better have a cooling system so the next time winter doesn't happen we can still have ice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheChimp Posted February 17, 2012 Report Share Posted February 17, 2012 every outdoor rink is flipping awsome. Hmmm, yeah, hard to argue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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