Potential Atlanta NHL Expansion Team Thread

[AintLifeGrand]

If I recall, the area around Truist is built up, and it wouldn't be very feasible to do something like that now, but I'm not certain if it'd have been feasible around the time of the first sale (2004) or the second one (2011).

That said, Cobb would be fine for a team. The area around Truist is close to the city, while also being closer to the northwest suburbs/exurbs of Atlanta (Marietta, Kennesaw, Canton) where a large number of hockey fans do live. There's also infrastructure in the area, as Truist is near both I-285 (the ring road around Atlanta) and I-75.. The downside to that area is the distance from the majority of metro Atlanta's hockey fans, which are closer to the arena locations proposed by Krause and Carter alike.

While I don't think a team would fail in Alpharetta (be it the Fulton side of Forsyth side of the county line), one simply can't look at a map and tell me there aren't infrastructure challenges there that don't exist in the area around Truist.

The area around Truist is ideal as it sits on the Perimeter of Atlanta making it equally convenient for people living outside and inside the Perimeter to access it.

The Cobb Galleria and Cumberland Mall- both declining properties could be redeveloped into a Battery Type situation that an Arena anchors.

The team is going to fail in Forysthe county, as that location is going to make it burdensome for a huge % of the fanbase (City of Atlanta, ITP Sandy Springs, Vinings, Smyrna, Midtown, Decatur, CDC/Emory Area, Tucker, East Gwinnett Co) to attend weeknight games. The population of the Ga 400 corridor does not have the population base to sell out 16,000 seats 41 nights a year.

Additionally, a good portion of ITP Thrasher fans have already chosen to "Boycott" the team by pledging to not support a team located in Forsythe county.

Within a decade Quebec will have their team because nobody wants to travel 90 minutes outside the city to watch hockey around a bunch of strip malls and chain restaurants

 

[dj4aces]

Within a decade Quebec will have their team because nobody wants to travel 90 minutes outside the city to watch hockey around a bunch of strip malls and chain restaurants

This ignores the reason the Thrashers moved in the first place, as attendance wasn't at all a reason, despite Atlanta Spirit's most valiant attempts to make the market look as horrible as possible.

As I said before, the league will conduct its own due diligence, if it hasn't already. If the league is satisfied with the proposed locations either Krause or Carter has selected, then that's where the team will be. But if you know someone who'd buy up Cumberland or the Galleria and redevelop it, you should reach out to them and have them throw their hat in the ring. Better late than never, right?

But you're not going to convince Krause (who has already done a ton of legwork and has a proposal ready for the league's perusal) or Carter (who has the current owner of NPM on standby ready to pay out-of-pocket to build an arena) to change course. The ITP folks boycotting -- assuming that's actually a thing -- will get over it the moment the new team makes the playoffs.

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

The area around Truist is ideal as it sits on the Perimeter of Atlanta making it equally convenient for people living outside and inside the Perimeter to access it.

The Cobb Galleria and Cumberland Mall- both declining properties could be redeveloped into a Battery Type situation that an Arena anchors.

The team is going to fail in Forysthe county, as that location is going to make it burdensome for a huge % of the fanbase (City of Atlanta, ITP Sandy Springs, Vinings, Smyrna, Midtown, Decatur, CDC/Emory Area, Tucker, East Gwinnett Co) to attend weeknight games. The population of the Ga 400 corridor does not have the population base to sell out 16,000 seats 41 nights a year.

Additionally, a good portion of ITP Thrasher fans have already chosen to "Boycott" the team by pledging to not support a team located in Forsythe county.

Within a decade Quebec will have their team because nobody wants to travel 90 minutes outside the city to watch hockey around a bunch of strip malls and chain restaurants

No it’s not… Forsyth and Gwinnett are a couple of the fastest growing counties in the country. That’s where the incomes are at too.

Those intown locations you mentioned already had a downtown team.

 

[AintLifeGrand]

No it’s not… Forsyth and Gwinnett are a couple of the fastest growing counties in the country. That’s where the incomes are at too.

Those intown locations you mentioned already had a downtown team.

Gwinnett is growing quickly but not with demographics that have a natural inclination to hockey. Outside of the far Western reaches of Gwinnett where there is some money with the St Marlo CC, the county as a whole is witnessing a precipitous decline...Lawrenceville, Lilburn, Snellville , Duluth are all unrecognizable. I would be shocked if English is still the predominant language spoken at home amongst the populous there.

Growing up, my trips to Gwinnett- mainly to play hockey were enjoyable because so much infastructure was new- new shopping centers, wide, nicely manicured boulevards, Discover Mills, the Mall of GA etc.

Currently, Gwinnett doesnt even seem like its part of Atlanta, let alone Georiga.

Forsythe County might as well be Winnipeg

 

[dj4aces]

Gwinnett is growing quickly but not with demographics that have a natural inclination to hockey. Outside of the far Western reaches of Gwinnett where there is some money with the St Marlo CC, the county as a whole is witnessing a precipitous decline...Lawrenceville, Lilburn, Snellville , Duluth are all unrecognizable. I would be shocked if English is still the predominant language spoken at home amongst the populous there.

As someone who lives in Duluth, you should start practicing your shocked face.

While I know exactly what the coded message is behind mentioning "demographics", you also seem unaware that one of the largest selling points for a team in metro Atlanta is the varied demographics in and around metro Atlanta, not just in north Fulton, Gwinnett, and south Forsyth counties.

Some teams (I believe the Stars, Golden Knights, and Panthers) have broadcasts in Spanish as well as in English. Omni TV in Canada broadcasts Hockey Night In Canada: Punjabi Edition every Saturday night. The point is, interest is growing for the sport in non-white segments of the population across North America. To say the league is interested in attracting other demographics to the sport would be an incredible understatement.

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

Gwinnett is growing quickly but not with demographics that have a natural inclination to hockey. Outside of the far Western reaches of Gwinnett where there is some money with the St Marlo CC, the county as a whole is witnessing a precipitous decline...Lawrenceville, Lilburn, Snellville , Duluth are all unrecognizable. I would be shocked if English is still the predominant language spoken at home amongst the populous there.

Growing up, my trips to Gwinnett- mainly to play hockey were enjoyable because so much infastructure was new- new shopping centers, wide, nicely manicured boulevards, Discover Mills, the Mall of GA etc.

Currently, Gwinnett doesnt even seem like its part of Atlanta, let alone Georiga.

Forsythe County might as well be Winnipeg

You can tell you ITP friends that they already boycotted a team years ago and it didn’t turn out well.

All the money and population have moved around the northern arc. Just ask Mark Toro who built Avalon (a couple miles from the new team) and is building another one in Gwinnett/Forsyth.

 

[AintLifeGrand]

You can tell you ITP friends that they already boycotted a team years ago and it didn’t turn out well.

All the money and population have moved around the northern arc. Just ask Mark Toro who built Avalon (a couple miles from the new team) and is building another one in Gwinnett/Forsyth.

The institutional money and influence is in Buckhead, Ansley Park, Virginia Highlands, Brookhaven, ITP Sandy springs and Vinings .

I’ve found majority of people living OTP are transplants with very little tangible connection to Atlanta and it’s culture and history.

If the team doesn’t engage or capture the attention of folks in this area + the majority African American parts of the City of Atlanta the team has no right to have any part of Atlanta in its name.

Would be stolen valor .

As I said, Forsythe County might as well be Winnipeg .

Forsythe County is to Atlanta as Anaheim is to LA

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

The institutional money and influence is in Buckhead, Ansley Park, Virginia Highlands, Brookhaven, ITP Sandy springs and Vinings .

I’ve found majority of people living OTP are transplants with very little tangible connection to Atlanta and it’s culture and history.

If the team doesn’t engage or capture the attention of folks in this area + the majority African American parts of the City of Atlanta the team has no right to have any part of Atlanta in its name.

Would be stolen valor .

As I said, Forsythe County might as well be Winnipeg .

Forsythe County is to Atlanta as Anaheim is to LA

And as I said, there was already a team in Midtown. Forsyth will be awesome.

 

[GreenHornet]

And as I said, there was already a team in Midtown. Forsyth will be awesome.

Hate to be THAT guy, but the team was more downtown than midtown. That said, your point still stands.

 

[dj4aces]

I’ve found majority of people living OTP are transplants with very little tangible connection to Atlanta and it’s culture and history.

If the team doesn’t engage or capture the attention of folks in this area + the majority African American parts of the City of Atlanta the team has no right to have any part of Atlanta in its name.

The Thrashers STHers I knew, including the one who often gave me his +1 ticket, were or are all from Georgia/Atlanta, born here, grew up here, had roots and their own businesses here. What's more is, they all lived outside the perimeter. Some of them way outside the perimeter, such as Canton, Dawsonville or Dahlonega. The friend I referenced above lived north of Canton, after I-575 becomes GA-515.

And therein lies the problem with this desire to have the team ITP. The majority of former season ticket holders. As has been stated before in this thread... while a downtown/midtown location for the franchise works swimmingly in some cities, Atlanta isn't one of them where it would.

Other than Peachtree City, there's currently nothing that would draw fans from the southside of town unless they're transplants... and Henry and Fayette counties both attract folks, albeit at a lower rate than northside suburbs. The ITP locations might have money, but they're not gonna fill a building (they never did before).

That leaves the northside. Cobb, Cheroke, Gwinnett, Forsyth, north Fulton, and Hall counties. Alpharetta is a decent location, as was illustrated before, because of its proximity to money and former season ticket holders. From what I've been told by folks older than I am, the majority of Flames season ticket holders lived north of town then, too.

So... could a team do well near Truist/The Battery? Or at Lenox, where I've seen more than a few people propose such an idea? Perhaps. The problem would be traffic, as Atlanta isa very car-centric region. The disdain for mass transit options is legendary in this region. It would take that desire for mass transit *and* a drive to implement it for a team ITP -- be it near The Battery or at Lenox -- to have a snowball's chance of working.

Atlanta is a city of ~502k people in a metro area of ~6.4 million, where the majority of them live north of town. It's smart business sense to put your business where your clientele are, not where you want them to be, and not where you think they'll want to be in five or ten years.

 

[sneakytitz]

The area around Truist is ideal as it sits on the Perimeter of Atlanta making it equally convenient for people living outside and inside the Perimeter to access it.

The Cobb Galleria and Cumberland Mall- both declining properties could be redeveloped into a Battery Type situation that an Arena anchors.

Anchor across a highway and across a street that you posited would be the "ideal" location? Give it a rest.

Cobb Galleria and Galleria/Piedmont REIT are not hurting. Neither is Interstate North. Cumberland Mall is currently 98% occupied and Tallulah is full. Stop these tropes that the area around Truist is hurting, it isn't.

 

[sneakytitz]

Apropos to none, 14 years ago today the Thrashers played their last game.