The New Arena, The MTS Centre

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON THE FIRST EDITION OF "THE BEAU ZONE" ON THE HARD ROCK HEROES WEBSITE FROM APRIL TO JUNE 2004.

The new arena in Winnipeg, the MTS Centre, will be opening up this fall. Let's talk about parking and other issues surrounding it, shall we?

My main concern regarding parking would be in the winter, I guess, when it's -30 out and you park your car outdoors somewhere and you go from the arena event to a nearby bar or lounge and stay there until 2:00 a.m. Then you've left your car outside unplugged for 6 hours, which means you may need a boost. (Well, my car won't, but cars I used to own would.) At least with Winnipeg Arena, you're definitely starting your car after the event is over.

Plus if you do that, you have to be aware of when you can and can't retreive your car from indoor parking garages (year-round). If they're closed by the time you leave the nightclub you're at in the wee hours, then you're out of luck until next morning. That means those garages are off limits to you and your plans. You'll have to do your legwork ahead of time to learn which places aren't an option for you to park in.

Personally, I'm in Osborne Village, so it may be easy for me to take a quick bus home and get in my car there (i.e. free parking) and head off to a club afterward. Or just walk, if a great rock show is at The Zoo. So I'm a bit prejudiced.

I think the Eaton's site is a great site for a new arena - it's right across the street from Winnipeg's rock corner, consisting of O Calcutta and Wild Planet (rock t-shirts) and A & B Sound (the CD's themselves). Maybe those places will stay open late after the MTS Centre concerts so you can buy the band's t-shirts there at reduced prices instead of paying the inflated arena t-shirt prices.

As far as downtown revitalization goes, we do need people living downtown - how about tearing down most buildings bounded by Portage, Garry, Graham, and Smith, plus the empty buildings on the north side of Portage just north of that block (where Records on Wheels and the first Musiplex used to be) and putting up highrises and condos there? It's mostly old junk in that block. And get rid of the St. Regis Hotel and the derilicts that hang out there, too.

That's a perfect block for people to live in - everything's within walking distance. Shopping to the left (Portage Place), the arena to the left, and nightclubs and the Exchange District to the north (and the walk isn't long). Plus financial stuff to the right at Portage & Main. Why doesn't anyone think of that?