CGA Stadium AND/OR Coaster News

[GADVwow]

It's two, two, two stories in one:

http://www.mercurynews.com/columns/ci_9445045

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....

Quid pro coaster? Consider this scenario and see if you can tell whom IA is talking about:

1) Longtime Santa Clara tenant approaches city with a construction project. 2) Neighbor of longtime tenant raises objections to project, saying it will cause undue harm. 3) City encourages longtime tenant and tenant's neighbor to work it out. 4) Talks start - and an alternative site for the project is proposed - but they eventually hit a snag.

Sound familiar? If you guessed one of those parties is Cedar Fair, Great America's Ohio-based owner, kudos. But you probably didn't guess the other (hint: It ain't the San Francisco 49ers).

No, in this case, Cedar Fair is the tenant looking to push through a project - a 111-foot tall wooden roller coaster that needed a zoning variance - and Prudential Real Estate is the neighbor crying foul.

Tim Tosta, one of the lawyers working for Prudential, noticed the eerie similarities to Cedar Fair's ongoing contretemps with the 49ers, who want to build a stadium next to the theme park.

"I find a peculiar irony in their adamance about this project and their reluctance about the 49ers," he said.

But there may be a more direct link between the two debates. Last week, Santa Clara's planning commission voted 5-1 for the height exemption (35 feet is usually the maximum). They said Prudential's concerns about noise were unfounded. Adding a new attraction boosts the overall value of the park, and that's been something of a hot topic in recent months. Cedar Fair and the 49ers have been discussing a sale of the park as one way to move the $916 million stadium project forward.

And given the looming stadium issues, some have questioned the city's decision to green-light the exemption for the coaster. Is this a chit the city might have used to nudge Cedar Fair along on the stadium deal?...

And in answer to that question last quoted...if the city had used that chit, a lawsuit might have been the result...do the words arbitrary and capricious come to mind?

[darkridedan]

Wooden coasters are beautiful! Who wouldn't want to look at one while daydreaming at work. Ok, some steel coasters aren't too shabby either.

[GADVwow]

Looking at some wooden coasters is a far better alternative than actually riding the things.  Raging Wolf Bobs (which looked like the ACE logo) and Son of Beast (a true thing of beauty) come immediately to mind....

[GADVwow]

Fall vote on 49ers stadium hits snag (financing deal)

http://www.mercurynews.com/southbayfootball/ci_9585495

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Of more interest to many here, from the same article:

"...The negotiations between the theme-park owner and the team appear to be much more troubled than talks between the city and the team.

A meeting Tuesday in Cleveland between 49ers officials and Cedar Fair executives did not lead to an agreement. Stacy Frole, a Cedar Fair spokeswoman, declined to provide any details of that meeting, nor say when the next meeting will take place.

Cedar Fair says having NFL games next door to Great America would damage its business, and the Sandusky, Ohio, company has demanded a cut of the stadium parking revenue. City officials acknowledge that is a problem, because parking revenue is one source of financing for construction of the stadium...."

[GADVwow]

And the City Council continues to delay a height variance as to the proposed coaster (surely this has nothing to do with any proposed stadium. . . nah...):

http://www.santaclaraweekly.com/1030.html  (fourth item)

[GADVwow]

Santa Clara Seeks Input On Proposed 49ers Stadium:

http://www.mercurynews.com/valley/ci_10352164

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[GADVwow]

More details, about halfway through this article, starting at the subhead:  "Meanwhile:"

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/09/07/BAT312P1M9.DTL

[GADVwow]

Economy slows 49ers' stadium plans; could it lead to talks with Raiders?:

Given the disruption of the bond markets and the 49ers' continuing impasse with the Ohio company {Cedar Fair} that controls the land where the 68,000-seat stadium would be built, the team's plan to begin construction next year for a 2012 opening is almost certainly defunct, sources said. Santa Clara Mayor Patricia Mahan said the recession could force Santa Clara to pare back its financial investment of up to $136 million in redevelopment money in the project....

Also looming is a stalemate between the 49ers and Cedar Fair Entertainment, the Ohio amusement park company that owns Great America. Over the past six months, "there's been no progress in that area," Lang said.

A Cedar Fair spokeswoman, Stacy Frole, said the company is still willing to sell its interest in Great America to the 49ers, clearing a path to build the stadium on Great America's main parking lot, but she agreed there has been no significant progress.

"It's the same situation," she said....

http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_11419367

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[GADVwow]

49ers deny Raiders will share their stadium:

"....The 49ers still have to persuade Cedar Fair, the company that owns Great America, to support the project. The company has said it wants financial concessions in exchange for its support, including unilateral control over stadium scheduling during Great America's season and parking revenue from the stadium.

"We have not made much progress with Cedar Fair," Lang said Saturday. "We will continue to have discussions with them ... but it remains a hurdle."...

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/01/10/BACL1579LS.DTL

[GADVwow]

49's, Santa Clara Deal Finally On The Horizon:

...Politically, waiting until 2010 might also be more advantageous for the 49ers, allowing time for an economic recovery to take hold.

It also would allow time for a deal between the 49ers and Cedar Fair to jell — perhaps the team would buy the theme park. Sandusky, Ohio-based Cedar Fair recently announced that it is eager to sell properties across North America to cut its corporate debt. A Cedar Fair spokeswoman did not return telephone calls Wednesday....

http://www.mercurynews.com/49ersheadlines/ci_12050212

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[GADVwow]

More on this:

http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2009/03/30/daily78.html

[GADVwow]

Supposedly, the park will continue to operate even if Cedar Fair sells it due to the stadium:

...In a separate issue, Sparacino said whether the 49ers will purchase Great America from Cedar Fair Entertainment Co. (NYSE:FUN) is still under consideration, but not an issue the city is tackling. The city, which owns the land on which both the theme park and the proposed stadium exist, only must ensure that the amusement park remains in operation whether it's owned by Cedar Fair or the 49ers.

http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2009/05/25/daily64.html

[GADVwow]

Lawsuit May Halt Santa Clara Stadium Plans:

http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=51726

[GADVwow]

And an attempt to detour around Cedar Fair's lawsuit:

...Santa Clarans for Economic Progress, the Astroturf group funded by the 49ers that was behind last month's pro-stadium mailing, announced that it would start gathering petition signatures to get its own initative on the June ballot. A petition-backed initiative would have the advantage of not being subject to environmental review rules — meaning it could give the 49ers an end run around the Cedar Fair lawsuit. No word just yet on what happens if both measures make the ballot, and one wins and one loses....

http://www.fieldofschemes.com/news/archives/2009/12/3950_santa_clara_49e_3.html

[GADVwow]

How the collapsed Apollo deal for Cedar Fair may affect the proposed stadium in Santa Clara:

http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_14829405

Very interesting read...

[GADVwow]

GREAT AMERICA SUES OVER STADIUM DEAL:

The corporate owners of Great America theme park today sued the city of Santa Clara and the San Francisco 49ers, saying the environmental impact report on the planned 49ers stadium project is inadequate and "pays mere lip service" to California environmental regulations.

In a lawsuit filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court, Cedar Fair Entertainment maintains the environmental review process failed to solve a host of potential problems related to the stadium, which would be built on a parking lot adjacent to Great America. The lawsuit alleges that the report violated California environmental laws "in a rush to woo the 49ers to Santa Clara."

The lawsuit revives some of the ongoing tension between Great America's owners and the team and city, dating back to last summer when Cedar Fair sent a series of letters to city officials expressing concern about a failure to address the company's worries about how an NFL stadium would impact park business.

In fact, the lawsuit may be another tactic to jump start negotiations with city and 49ers officials....

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_14869568

[GADVwow]

One of Cedar Fair's Stadium Lawsuits Dismissed:

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_15026179

http://sanjose.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2010/05/03/daily83.html

[GADVwow]

Poll: Stadium Plan Approval Likely:

http://cbs5.com/business/49ers.stadium.poll.2.1714239.html

[GADVwow]

49ers Stadium Plan Again Under Review

...On Wednesday, the city's planning commission is scheduled to consider zoning changes for the city's entertainment district that would be needed for the 49ers' proposed $937 million stadium adjacent to Great America theme park, as well as approval of the architectural design of the 68,500-seat facility....

...As the city and 49ers continue to haggle through the approval process, one court fight over the stadium deal remains active -- albeit in the background. Cedar Fair Entertainment, the corporate owners of Great America, sued this spring, maintaining the environmental impact review on the project failed to comply with state laws and take into the account the impact on the park and its business.

The lawsuit remains in limbo in Santa Clara Superior Court, with no hearings scheduled at this point.

http://www.mercurynews.com/top-stories/ci_15995014?nclick_check=1

[B-mac]

Like the 49ers could get 60,000 people in the stadium for one game rather than a whole season...

[nitrorox1414]

kinda off topic but they are sapposed to win their division....

[GADVwow]

Cedar Fair is probably silently hoping for to win their division, too...with a buyout, no less.