Post non-Oklahoma media comments about OKC hosting the Big 12 Tourney here...

[jbrown84]

I will be really pissed if we don't get the tournament again because of this.

[HOT ROD]

they dont have to park at Brewer's lot then. There's PLENTY of other options downtown.

Come on!! Grow-up OKC. You wanted to be big time, well all big cities have higher parking as you get closer to the venue - this will NOT have any impact on OKC's future Big 12 status (or if it does, then Big 12 is stiffin' OKC because IM SURE KC and Dallas have way more parking locn's chargeing way more than OKC.

this is a bargain (although I think he should just do it as $20 instead of $10 per session - whose gonna go out and pay for another session when you are already in the arena????_)

What OKC should have done is advertise the low cost parking options - then let people decide for themselves. NO one should complain about paying $20 for parking one block away from the arenas. I mean. come on - this is a 1.3M metro isnt it??

[jbrown84]

I agree with you Hot Rod, but if this is no different and, in fact, cheaper than the situations in Dallas and KC, then why are those surveyed giving us an F in parking costs?

[Decious]

It seems like the Oklahoman was kinda trying to manufacture a story. After all, 12 people gave an "A". The "C, D, and F" combined total was 12. I'd actually consider that a successful report card.

I also think that the 5 people that gave the "F" grade would've given it anywhere. Dallas, OKC, KCMO, Lawton, NYC, or Guthrie...some people just HATE paying >$5 for parking. I seriously doubt the failing grade was given in comparison to other past venues. Again, they just think paying $7-$15 dollars for parking sucks a**.

Remember that a significant amount of our "guests" are from very small towns. This no doubt is to our benefit regarding just how impressed they are with our amenities. Just today a DFW sportscaster cited the Ford Center as being "cheap and sub-par", but then raved about the atmosphere. Several reports from smaller publications have called our facilities "awesome" and "stellar".

Bottom line.....it costs to park in the CBD of a major metro while a major event is going on. Period. Some of our own still complain about a lack of parking and the cost to park. I for one, never have a hard time parking and this is simply how the game is played. I spend a considerable amount of time in L.A. and believe you me, 10-20 quid is nothing.

Sometimes OKC annoys me. Especially the media. They can't make up their minds about what they want to be. That's why we have to endure taurus feces like Mr. Monday's most recent article. The mantra seems to be, "Come on down to OKC, a small town of 1 million plus". What? Yeah, that sounds cute, but it's not realistic. You can't always have it both ways. Ya know...you can't always have your Bass Pro and eat it too. The Big XII B-ball tourney has been a smash hit this week and the Big XII knows it. If they act like Jim Brewer can run them out of town, they weren't coming back anyway.

[jbrown84]

Perhaps you're right.

[BDP]

OK, I posed this on the bricktown thread about the parking survey, but it's too good not to share it here, also.

Here are the parking grades of the Oklahoman's survey according to the post above:

•Parking availability: A: 8, B: 3, C: 1, F:1
•Parking prices: A: 12, C: 3, D:4, F: 5

OK, so the Oklahoma goes with the headline: "Visitors Grade Parking Fee F". However according to their own data, 50% gave it an A and the GPA for the fee is 2.41! That's what, a C+?! The availability was graded a solid 3.07. So we're talking above average ratings here for PARKING. The fact that ANYONE, anywhere, would give parking fees an A, let alone half of those surveyed, is pretty darn amazing, if you ask me.

They are clearly manufacturing some sort of bizarre parking controversy that just doesn't exist. Why? I have no idea. Maybe they're in bed with Frank Sims or hate Brewer. More likely they are probably just trying to endear themselves to the parking complex of so many vocal Oklahoma City residents.

The worst thing they are trying to pull with this is to unfoundedly suggest that we may not get the tournament back because of this one (non)issue. They have no other basis for that other than the failing grade of 5 people, which is actually less than 21% of people who answered the question.

If anything, their little "survey" actually should be serving as the death nail in the so-called parking controversy of downtown. It actually shows that public perception completely supports past official reports that found OKC has more than enough parking for events of this size and that pricing for that parking is perceived as average or great by a majority of people. Instead, they are completely misrepresenting their own data to support a completely bogus (and probably predetermined) conclusion.

[jbrown84]

I agree they could have headlined it with any of the many positive things that are in that data.

[BDP]

What's funny is that the parking responses ARE a positive part of the data.

I mean, would anyone write an artcile about a senior class where 79% passed and 50% got an A and headline it:

"Senior Class Gets F"

Everyone would acknowledge that such a headline would at best be misleading.

[jbrown84]

Exactly. I agree.

[allseeingeye]

Forget the prices for parking for the Big XII, the prices are too high year around.

[BDP]

not according to the oklahoman survey

[Doug Loudenback]

Here's an article from Lawrence, Ka: KUsports.com - K.C. eager for tourney's return

K.C. eager for tourney’s return
By Mark ***an

Sunday, March 11, 2007

Oklahoma City — The Big 12 Conference won’t be bringing its postseason basketball tournaments back to Oklahoma City if Brenda Tinnen has anything to say about it.

Tinnen is general manager of the new Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., and will be overseeing the 18,500-seat arena that will be home for next year’s men’s tournament. The women’s tournament will be played in nearby Municipal Auditorium.

So she spent some time checking out the competition here in Oklahoma City, milling about the Ford Center, taking the much-hyped “58 steps” across the way to the Cox Convention Center for women’s games, and otherwise soaking up the ambiance of nearby hotels, tailgating events and the ever-popular Bricktown food and entertainment area.

She likes what she saw, but is ready to put on an even better show next year.

“They’ve executed a great event. ... They’ve certainly set the bar,” said Tinnen, a senior vice president for AEG facilities, which also manages the Staples Center in Los Angeles. “I’m not going to lie to you and say we’re willing to share it with other cities. We want it in Kansas City, and we’d love to keep it there.”

Like Oklahoma City, Kansas City promises to have plenty of entertainment options available near the arenas. Oklahoma City has Bricktown, home to restaurants, bars, movie theaters and other attractions.

Kansas City has the Power & Light District, a new entertainment area about a “football field and a half” wide that is bookended by Municipal Auditorium and the Sprint Center, Tinnen said. With plenty of hotels, access to the Plaza and a long hoops history, Kansas City shouldn’t have any problem being competitive in landing future tournaments.

“With the opening of Sprint Center (in October), it puts Kansas City back into the game for these events,” she said.

And she’s playing to win.

[Doug Loudenback]

Here's a Topeka article ... a few days old but I've not seen it posted here yet ... if it has, sorry for the dupe: CJOnline Blogs - Caywood: OKC making splash as Big 12 host

Caywood: OKC making splash as Big 12 host
Kurt CaywoodOKLAHOMA CITY — It hurts to say this, but maybe Billy Tubbs was right.

Year after year, Tubbs made trip after trip to Kemper Arena for the Big Eight Tournament. Year after year, the irascible ex-Oklahoma basketball coach tilted Quixote-like at the conference to rotate the event from city to city.

Tubbs was gone before eight became 12 and Kemper fell below modern standards.

Rooted in his retirement job first as coach and now as athletic director at his alma mater, Lamar, he missed the lost years when Dallas swallowed the event whole without so much as a burp.

But somebody ought to drop him a postcard this week, as Oklahoma City does proud his vision of varying the venue.

With a revitalized downtown as a backdrop, the 5-year-old Ford Center as home to the men and refurbished Myriad, now known as the Cox Convention Center, as the site for the women, the Big 12 tournaments really are an event.

The history is pretty straightforward. Kemper got old and went to seed. In 2001, the conference decided to open take it on the road. Two years later, it moved to the new home of the conference.

But Reunion Arena, a warmed-over Kemper in a worse neighborhood, was too shoddy a home for the women's tournament, America Airlines Center was too palatial for the men's, and both were surrounded by so little atmosphere that stepping outside was like taking a spacewalk.

The best thing about last year's tournament, the third in Dallas in the past four years, was it was the last one scheduled there.

The best thing about this year's in OKC is that it might never cross the Red River again.

In two days here, the women drew 20 percent more fans than they drew total last year, and men's attendance was up on Day 1 as well.

No surprise, really. The Big 12 softball and baseball tournaments have been winners here for years. The NCAA Women's College World Series beats its own attendance records annually, and Oklahoma City is one of the first sites to sell out any time it hosts the first and second rounds of the NCAA basketball tournament.

"The main difference is our folks are college fans, and they love college athletics," said Tim Brassfield, executive director of Oklahoma City's All-Sports Association.

It would be one of life's great ironies — at least of Billy Tubbs' life — if OKC ended up as the new regular site of the conference tournaments, but that's not going to happen. Next year, they return to Kansas City as the Sprint Center comes online, and the whole picture changes.

KC's history as home of the Big Six, Seven and Eight, and more Final Fours than any other city is a powerful credential. A shining new arena with the accompanying College Basketball Hall of Fame, a women's venue within walking distance and the Power & Light entertainment district in between give it powerful drawing power.

At the turn of the century, there was a powerful sense that Big 12 basketball was Kansas City's to lose. Now there's an equally strong sense that it's KC's to reclaim.

"It does mean a lot to us," said Kevin Gray, president of the Kansas City Sports Commission. "We treat the Big 12 like it's a franchise. Always have, always will."

Next year completes the current rotation, and the conference soon will begin considering future championship sites. That's true not just for basketball but for other sports, as well.

Don't bet against a movement to plant the football championship at the Dallas Cowboys' new $1 billion stadium and the basketball tournaments in Kansas City.

But don't bet against Billy Tubbs' dream-come-true week in Oklahoma City giving conference decision makers something to think about.

"We think with our success, we'll be in the rotation in the future," Brassfield said. "With the success of our tournaments, we have to be taken seriously."

[Doug Loudenback]

Here's a nice one in today's Dallas Morning News, Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | SportsDay: Columnist Brian Davis

Dallas has a ways to go to match OKC standards
01:29 AM CST on Sunday, March 11, 2007

OKLAHOMA CITY – Big 12 basketball fans in Dallas won't like this, but the league's signature event will be coming back to Oklahoma City. Soon. Very Soon.

City officials and those associated with the All-Sports Association, led by Tim Brassfield, should take a bow. This was their first chance to host the men's and women's tournaments, and they handled both like pros. In one week, they've raised the standards.

Kansas City has a tough act to follow in 2008.

That city is a college basketball hotbed and will have a new arena to boot. The Sprint Center is expected to be your typical state-of-the-art facility. It will be just a few blocks away from Municipal Auditorium, where the women's tournament will be hosted. A new entertainment district is also being built, and everything is supposed to be within walking distance.

Dallas fans, answer me this: Who wants to walk from American Airlines Center to Reunion Arena? That's what people are doing here. There are five major hotels and tons of restaurants within 2-3 blocks of both the Ford Center and Cox Convention Center.

Oh, and have we mentioned the fan turnout for the women's games? More than 10,000 people showed up on three different nights. Granted, they were mostly OU fans, but they were still there spending money.

Dallas, which is and always will be a pro sports town, should not get shut out of the Big 12 rotation. But our city has a long way to go to match the zest that Oklahoma City and Kansas City show for this event.

And here's the sad truth. I wonder if anyone cares.

[Spartan]

The Big XII isn't looking for ONE city to be the permanent host.

It will rotate between two most likely. OKC will probably get odd years and KC even years.

Sounds good to me.

[Dave Cook]

Kind of a funny thread from the texas A&M board....ripping OKC.

Texas A$M

[Karried]

That's just jealousy- we're getting rave reviews on everything from our fan support to the friendliness of people to the cleanliness of the city ... plus, how much brain power does it take to get a confirmation number on a hotel cancellation or the name of the clerk?

[redland]

I am proud of Oklahoma City's handling of this years Big XII Tournament, and the rave reviews will surely impress the conference powers-that-be. If they decide to rotate the basketball tourney, I'm sure OKC will be in the mix. However, I fear they may decide to hold the tournaments (or title games) at permanent sites---football in Dallas, basketball in KC, and baseball in OKC.

[BDP]

They should rotate basketball between OKC and KC and football between Dallas and KC. Although, I'm not sure if KC is a great place for the football game. It's always freaking cold.

But, KC couldn't complain about that and the BIG 12 would be rotating between north and south, as well as using the best centrally located venues. Denver and Houston obviously have the facilities, but they are also at a geographic disadvantage.

Now that OKC has proven to be not only a viable, but a disireable and succseeful venue for the basketball tournmanets, I think it would be foolish for them to not put it here at least every 3 years.

Just my biased opinion.

[adaniel]

That's just jealousy- we're getting rave reviews on everything from our fan support to the friendliness of people to the cleanliness of the city ... plus, how much brain power does it take to get a confirmation number on a hotel cancellation or the name of the clerk?

Probably too much brain power for the average aggie. In any event, OKC is getting rave reviews from regional media and the story cited in that thread reeks of b.s.

[writerranger]

They should rotate basketball between OKC and KC and football between Dallas and KC. Although, I'm not sure if KC is a great place for the football game. It's always freaking cold.

But, KC couldn't complain about that and the BIG 12 would be rotating between north and south, as well as using the best centrally located venues. Denver and Houston obviously have the facilities, but they are also at a geographic disadvantage.

Now that OKC has proven to be not only a viable, but a disireable and succseeful venue for the basketball tournmanets, I think it would be foolish for them to not put it here at least every 3 years.

Just my biased opinion.

You summed up how I feel about it as well. Surely it will be returning on a rotating basis - and soon. The football game is a problem. I would like to see the game in a dome, but that rules out the north ever hosting the event.

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[metro]

How about Norman hosting the football game every now and then. I think they could do well.

[BDP]

That'd be great, but I think they try and avoid de jure home field advantages, even though every city in the Big 12 has some sort of de facto home field advantage to at least one team. My favorite part about last weekend is that it seemed whoever played Texas had a home field advantage.

[BDP]

BTW, if I was that Aggie or Texan, I'd be pissed, too, but I'd be pissed at the hotel, not an entire state!

[scotplum]

You summed up how I feel about it as well. Surely it will be returning on a rotating basis - and soon. The football game is a problem. I would like to see the game in a dome, but that rules out the north ever hosting the event.

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St. Louis? I believe they had an early Big 12 Championship game, not sure why they don't make a push for another. Maybe they don't want it.