By Natasha Mekhail
If, in 2,000 years, archeologists study the ruins of our coliseums like those of ancient Greece, what will they say? That peasants sat high up, so their body paint (and nosebleeds) wouldn’t distract the barbaric stick-and-ice players below? That the upper classes reclined in private suites, sipping an elixir of spirits and tomato-clam? That, to reach the coliseum, spectators journeyed for up to an hour by private automobile?
The last part is no joke. It was the subject of a recent mini-conference in Edmonton on the feasibility of a downtown arena for the city. American urban affairs prof Mark Rosentraub, an expert witness, said successful cities (i.e., places where downtown isn’t deserted at 6 p.m.) are putting their stadiums smack in the core. This encourages public transport and pedestrian traffic. It allows an entertainment district of shops, restaurants, bars and arts venues to flourish. Rosentraub, a short-timeline archeologist of sorts, called the old-school arena on the outskirts of town “a spaceship that landed in a sea of parking.” Without big changes, Alberta will go down in history as home to some real motherships.
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Pengrowth Saddledome, Calgary Spaceship rating: Millennium Falcon
Opened: 1983
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Enmax Centrium, Red Deer Spaceship rating: Starship Enterprise
Opened: 1991
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Rexall Place, Edmonton Spaceship rating: Death Star
Opened: 1974 |
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One of the world’s largest inverted hyperbolic paraboloid concrete shells, the Saddledome holds a distinct place in the Calgary skyline. But there’s no avoiding the hyperbolic traffic bottleneck after a game.
The home of the Western Hockey League’s Red Deer Rebels plays up its central location for the two million people living within 150 klicks. But the connected RV park only eliminates the drive for those packing a chemical toilet. 
Category: Life
