Long story short, FSU went through a $265m renovation of Doak last year to gut one sideline to install a series of lower suites. The updates have now been finalized and come with a reduction of seating capacity that takes the stadium from around 80k capacity to 67k, slightly more than Lane.
It does beg the question, if and when Lane goes through its next round of updates, and if we ever hope to keep up with the Jones', especially in terms of providing equitable fan amenities to our peers, we will need further updates, what direction are we going to go?
Doak reducing capacity makes a bit of sense. FSU stopped packing in the stadium regularly in recent years, so this probably brings them down to where capacity should be. We don't necessarily have that problem right now, but what could we do to Lane without doing something similar to dig in suites where seats are currently?
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as long as we are selling out then probably not, i dont see suite revenue beating filled seats, but I could be wrong
At the end of the day it's just a math equation
Place was a dump a few years back... literally a nascar/carnival bleachers underneath that brick facade. Terrible concessions, etc. Badly needed a re-do and there are alot of terrible seats anyway- deep wide bowl.
Man when I was up for the Metallica concert a couple months back, I had the exact same thoughts about some aspects of Lane. Terrible concourse, lines for everything overlapped each other, it was very difficult to move around once everyone was in there. Made it so we actively delayed running to concessions because we didn't want to miss anything.
Oh man I went to the restroom during Pantera. Grabbed two beers on my way back (field tickets). Mistake. I had to pee the entire Metallica show. Not bad enough that I didn't enjoy the show still but enough where in between songs I had to think a minute. No way was I going to battle those lines again during Metallica.
Funny you say that. I got up twice for beers during Metallica and twice to use the bathroom and maybe spent no more than 3 minutes away each trip. I thought the lines for beer and bathrooms were flowing much better than a VT game.
Just to be clear using the bathroom != peeing behind a pillar in the concourse
You also probably weren't coming from the field. The seats and bathrooms are designed for a decent trip. From the field not so much.
I've been lucky enough to see the Stones a few times live. And i hate to admit it, but when they have Keith sing a few songs in the middle of the set, that's what I've decided is the opportune time to pee. Luckily, I've never had terrible lines so I can make it back without missing a whole song.
One of the things I always hated as a fan seeing it in say the Rose Bowl. Much prefer to be higher and closer distance horizontally to field like Lane than lower and farther away like the Battle of Bristol.
I think this is the path all live events are going... they're catering to the select few who spend heavily; not the masses. That means more expensive tickets, but a better (or at least more... luxury? instagramable?) experience.
I haven't been to Lane since 2017. I didn't have any complaints about the facilities beyond poor cell service.
My biggest frustration about going to games has nothing to do with Lane, and everything to do with getting to Blacksburg. There's just not enough lodging within a short distance of campus, which drives up demand/costs... a 2 day trip for a family can easily be a couple grand, and 75% of that is lodging. I understand that's a tough problem to solve due to a variety of competing stakeholders.
Anyways, the days of live events being accessible to all/most are long gone. I'm fortunate enough that I can afford to go to these things. But it really doesn't sit well with me that if I was born two decades later, some of the fun stuff I did in high school/college would be cost prohibitive to me now.
Anyways... rambles
All very good points. A lot of things I easily forget and take for granted because I live in the area. Unfortunately, I-81 will probably never catch up to traffic (especially truck) volume to make it a pleasant drive...Virginia missed that boat by at least a decade.
It'd be great to see local government enact some legislation to keep sports/university event lodging costs within a certain percentage of the average rates for the rest of the year. Is that something that would even be legal?
The I-81 drive is what it is. I can deal with that. What sucks is when you get here that you have to spend a small fortune to find a place within 30min of Lane.
Hotels in and around blacksburg have been an absolute shit show since around 1998. Same time most people started wearing maroon and orange to the games instead of green coats was when you had to start staying in Salem or Roanoke to go to a game due to cost, 2 night minimums, etc. Absolute shit show to this day
This. An updated Lane is not going to attract me to more games. A modernized Blacksburg that has capacity to handle 65k on a football weekend without quadrupling hotel fares and mandatory 2 night stays will.
I just dont know how a town like bburg realistically builds the surge capacity required for 6 football weekends a year without them being empty the rest of the year and having to charge accordingly
Sturgis SD props an economy up 2 weeks a year. The fine folks in blacksburg can figure it out. One idea is do what they did in Tysons.. build several "hotels" that also double as apartments- so you can surge rent/book.
They actually try to fill for other events, graduations, conferences, etc.
This is a good point - bring in other reasons for people to come
Thing is, Virginia Tech has events year round (albeit not as dynamic as football games) but also the surrounding area.
Tech could take on some of the responsibility, for one. Expand the Inn at VT.
any single hotel is just a tiny impact. The Inn has 147 rooms now, so even if you pack 4 people per room that is only 588 people that can stay there. They could 10x the Inn and it would still be less than 10% of Lane capacity
I agree that a single hotel is small impact. But if we're hoping to maintain the charm of Blacksburg I think we need a lot of small impact upgrades. And, in that vein the Inn strikes me as being near the top of potential hotels that could actually see a return on expansion investment. Plus there is room adjacent to the Inn that could actually be built on. Other nearby hotels don't have that advantage.
I could see an argument that VT would prefer to stay out of that responsibility by letting the town, city of Christiansburg, & NRV as a whole shoulder that burden but also reap the benefits of business. In other words, avoid VT being an all-inclusive resort for major sporting events.
But also, and much more probable, is that there would be so much debt incurred on the construction with very little immediate ROI when you factor in all of the dead periods for the Inn. Given the awkward financial state the/all universities are in right now, building/expanding something that is not a home run profit driver would be reckless. Just look at the abandonment of the plans to build the Student Life Village.
That has been the solution that Tech has been doing for years. Let private business provide the rooms. That being said, the motels are generally full enough that they keep operating year round. They just charge extra for football games. My boss makes a killing renting her house via Airbnb for the games as well.
This is both the solution and the problem. A modernized Blacksburg lacks the (for lack of a better term) 'this is home' feel that the alumni love. But in order to get more engagement from alumni, Blacksburg needs to expand/modernize. It's a catch 22.
That's some catch, that Catch 22.
I'm no urban planner (believe there are or at least were a couple on here back in the day) but I have to imagine there are ways to develop / expand without removing the vibe that you're describing.
The new townhome community at the old Blacksburg HS is a good start, more of that please.
But it's not as simple as just adding 30k hotel rooms to the Blacksburg/Christiansburg area. You do that, you need infrastructure (ie roadways) to support that. You need more resturants/bars. Those places need parking lots, plumbing, etc
It's a lot of planning, but then you need more buy in from more stakeholders. And often times, money talks, so do you think a small business is going to come in, or some chain? Do you want that? Do you incentivize small business owners? Then your talking about getting tax laws and zoning laws updated/passed
It quickly become complex.
I didn't say we should add 30k hotel rooms. I said planners could figure out this conundrum.
It is complex but not impossible.
So here's the BIG question...we are discussing adding hotel rooms for 6 games a year...but aren't those 6 already sold out? So, the room ARE full and nobody is NOT going (see sell-out) to the games, so it's found it's balance already. The price and night minimums are products of other issues, but not inventory.
I think it's a question of proximity. Staying a 30 min drive away fucking sucks (especially after a 7 hour drive, and when you're still paying $500/night with a two night minimum). The experience is significantly better when you can stay in Blacksburg/christiansburg, and easily get places.
There's enough people that are filling those rooms, no matter proximity. They've decided that their experience is worth it...
Basically, there's not a true demand. It's a want of closer and cheaper. The cheaper is not happening with a brand new hotel, no matter where it is. So if there are more rooms available, there will be more rooms vacant in all locations on the other 359 (or 353) nights of the year. There's not another NEW draw to bring people to Blacksburg at the moment.
I used to live just a hair over an hour from Blacksburg so didn't need a hotel, but it got to where the traffic alone on 81 going down for a game and absolute shit show trying to leave just became not fun anymore. Then compounding that has been more often than not we haven't been good much of the last 13 years, so made matters worse. Just being in the huge crowds for a sub par product was the final straw for me personally.
Yes I am aware I sound like a grumpy old man and I'm proud.
I'm not an hour away, but I can relate with the rest. It's more expensive than it should reasonably be, the traffic is a disaster, and it's all to watch a sub par product. It's why I haven't attended a game since probably '09
Still going to all the home games and some away. 3 hours away in Richmond. We just take our time exiting after the game; walk slowly to the lot; leave the back way from lot 18;and drive home(if I have to stay in Roanoke I might as well keep going as I'm 1/3 the way home by then. either that crash in the car for a bit and leave a few hours later).
Ideal? Maybe not - but keeps my costs way down!
I hate this for college football. I want concrete stadiums with large trough toilets. The only amenity I really want is good cell conversge/wifi so I can look at other scores and text people to find out injuries or aother information about the game they dont tell you over the loud speaker. Or where we are meeting up to go celebrate afterwards.
I dont need or want college football to be like a pro sports expirence. Which i do like the nicer seats/bathrooms at those venues, i just dont like it for college football it takes away from the atmosphere
Agreed but I would add - easier /quicker gate experience(not having thousands of people in line and 45 minutes at times to get in-and we are usually at the gates 45-60 minutes prior to kickoff not 'last minute'); went to the Belk Bowl and we got through security in 10 minute
Yes, quick and easy should be the priority over comfort and glamour. Make it quick and easy for me to get a beverage, get through the gate, and get to the bathroom and back to my seat. Make the experience exciting with solid matchups, lighting, fireworks, traditions, etc. Nail those two things and leave the fancy stuff for the tailgate lot and a few expensive suites.
For at least water and soda, bring back the 'vendors' walking up and down the stands; I'm much more likely to purchase that way than to take 20 minutes or more to leave my seat, walk to the concourse, and take time to wait in an interminable line. I've seen a VERY few in the last year or two but not as much as in years past. With "squares" etc easily available, this should be quite feasible but ONLPYP if they also update and improve the wireless network sufficiently(which is one of the other "must haves" we've mentioned)
Its worth noting in this example that Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte where this bowl is played is now considered so woefully out of date that the team was floating on a stadium replacement before settling on a $800m renovation that will bring it up to modern standards, including the complete overhaul of the concourse and entrance experience
When we're saying Lane can't compete with that, we're saying Lane can't compete with a stadium that had fallen significantly behind modern standards.
Stadiums are disposable now, throw aways. 20 years max, then you demand a new one with tax money or move the team to a second rate city. Ga dome was fine- fuck that we need a new one. Nashville was fine- nope throw it away. They purposely built an actual disposable one in Santa Clara - it was specifically designed to be torn down quickly or renovated. I don't want to hear about "money"- there's way too much of it out there.
The university, athletics department, & Hokie Club only have one thing they need to do: improve the damn product on the field. Without that, it's all just putting lipstick on a pig, and spending a lot of money to do that to boot.
VT is not in a lucrative position in terms of cash, space, or even location, so they basically have to put on a master class of space utilization and bang-for-your-buck/wow factor. But they can't put the horse before cart. Get the program back to it's 10+ win seasons and vying annually for the ACCCG. A nice, luxury, plush seat with all the creature comforts isn't going to make me enjoy watching the Hokies in person nor is it going to make me sacrifice vacations, home improvement projects, etc. to donate more to the program.
Has anyone ever tried camping around Blacksburg for a game? I know there are several campgrounds within 30-45 min of Lane.
Finding my way back to campsite/tent after a day of drinking and tailgating sounds like an absolute nightmare.
But man I think I would sleep so good with a solid buzz and that crisp Blacksburg fall air. The sunrise wake up would suck.
I've done it a few times at both New River Junction (only open thru September last I checked) and Claytor Lake State park (bit further away).
The experience varys with the weather of course but it's certainly doable if you like camping.
Have you ever checked with the VT golf course? They allow RV camping on the driving range, so I'm not sure if they'd allow you to set up a car/tent. Of course it wouldn't be an optimal experience if you're looking for the serene/quiet/nature experience, but proximity to the game & downtown would be optimal!
Just a suggestion for the people having trouble with hotels for games. I've only been down to VT something like 3 times during games, and I only physically went to 1 of the games, was just in the area for the other 2 times. But I've found it was very easy to get a hotel and no increase (as far as I know) in price by staying out at the Troutville/Daleville exit off I81. You can take the back route into town up Blacksburg Road and there was never any real traffic. I also parked way up on Washington Street and just walked to the stadium or downtown if I was going there. Enjoyed the exercise and no trouble getting out. Just a suggestion people could try.
While a valid tip and tactic, I want to stay close, walking distance to the game. Some of my favorite games have been in Atlanta because you can stay right ontop of the stadium (Georgia dome not GT).
For all the bowl and pre-season games in Atlanta, I stay at the Fairfield in Buckhead. Reasonable price and 1/4 to 1/3 mile to Marta station so don't have to worry about parking downtown, nor the higher average cost of downtown hotels....