Stadium Discussion

[mgarbowski]

The only thing I see them maybe wanting to do outside of date priority would be to take care of any current Pitchside people who did not sign on early. But that also should be a problem that solves itself with pricing.

 

[mgarbowski]

Also, important to note that they are changing their tune regarding how selection will work. I talked to Dan Steeves for more than a half hour just after we he hired Dome, and he was adamant that the number of tickets you’ll be able to select at your initial queue spot will be dictated by how many tickets you currently hold.

I got a single season ticket partway into season 1 in section 226, then a few months later picked up two season tickets in 225. Between S1 and S2 I dropped the 226 ticket and have kept the 225s ever since then.

I presume my place in the SSS queue will be based on my current holding of two 225 tickets and the date I bought them. While my 226 ticket would theoretically bump me earlier in the queue, it would only be for one ticket and as has already been discussed that becomes a problem if I want my current number of tickets.

This issue has so many variables. The easy call, I think, is you can't add on after the stadium announcement and get the new tix grandfathered to the original sign up date. But what about people who had 4 seats for 5 years and drop 2 just before the announcement. Or the opposite: 2 seats in 2013-14 but add on more 5 weeks before the announcement. Plus all sorts of changes in between due to life changes: births, deaths, new relationships, breakups, people who move away or move closer.

Since I have had the same number from my initial deposit, and no desire to add-on, my preference is that the 2k or so people ahead of me should be limited to the number of initial deposits and continually maintained tickets. A one-way ratchet that only goes down. But I can't say I'm clearly entitled to that or it's the objectively best way.

 

[Ulrich]

This issue has so many variables. The easy call, I think, is you can't add on after the stadium announcement and get the new tix grandfathered to the original sign up date. But what about people who had 4 seats for 5 years and drop 2 just before the announcement. Or the opposite: 2 seats in 2013-14 but add on more 5 weeks before the announcement. Plus all sorts of changes in between due to life changes: births, deaths, new relationships, breakups, people who move away or move closer.

Since I have had the same number from my initial deposit, and no desire to add-on, my preference is that the 2k or so people ahead of me should be limited to the number of initial deposits and continually maintained tickets. A one-way ratchet that only goes down. But I can't say I'm clearly entitled to that or it's the objectively best way.

The caveat to your last paragraph is that tickets added during the first season (to the initial deposit seats) are still considered Founding Member tickets. That was part of the sales pitch to adding seats before the end of the season. Hence, I went from my initial 2 to 3 total by adding another during that summer.

 

[Midas Mulligan]

This issue has so many variables. The easy call, I think, is you can't add on after the stadium announcement and get the new tix grandfathered to the original sign up date. But what about people who had 4 seats for 5 years and drop 2 just before the announcement. Or the opposite: 2 seats in 2013-14 but add on more 5 weeks before the announcement. Plus all sorts of changes in between due to life changes: births, deaths, new relationships, breakups, people who move away or move closer.

Since I have had the same number from my initial deposit, and no desire to add-on, my preference is that the 2k or so people ahead of me should be limited to the number of initial deposits and continually maintained tickets. A one-way ratchet that only goes down. But I can't say I'm clearly entitled to that or it's the objectively best way.

The caveat to your last paragraph is that tickets added during the first season (to the initial deposit seats) are still considered Founding Member tickets. That was part of the sales pitch to adding seats before the end of the season. Hence, I went from my initial 2 to 3 total by adding another during that summer.

My thinking is aligned with Ulrich. If you added onto your founding membership during season 1, you get those moved up in priority to equivalent to your initial deposit.

Also, that process is the way it currently works when it comes to seat choosing, and as Seth said about a similar hypo, it can be done without any heavy lifting on their part. I’d imagine it being a total shit show if tons of folks had multiple windows. That just wouldn’t make sense in my mind. Gains in “fair-mindedness” would be far outweighed by the logistical nightmare. And, oh yeah, the rendering of that sales pitch to straight up “fraud”, as you described before.

 

[mgarbowski]

The caveat to your last paragraph is that tickets added during the first season (to the initial deposit seats) are still considered Founding Member tickets. That was part of the sales pitch to adding seats before the end of the season. Hence, I went from my initial 2 to 3 total by adding another during that summer.

My thinking is aligned with Ulrich. If you added onto your founding membership during season 1, you get those moved up in priority to equivalent to your initial deposit.

Also, that process is the way it currently works when it comes to seat choosing, and as Seth said about a similar hypo, it can be done without any heavy lifting on their part. I’d imagine it being a total shit show if tons of folks had multiple windows. That just wouldn’t make sense in my mind. Gains in “fair-mindedness” would be far outweighed by the logistical nightmare. And, oh yeah, the rendering of that sales pitch to straight up “fraud”, as you described before.

I remember this now. I fully expect that any add-ons made during the 2015 season will/should get back-dated to the original deposit or purchase date as long as they have been maintained since.

 

[Seth]

I remember this now. I fully expect that any add-ons made during the 2015 season will/should get back-dated to the original deposit or purchase date as long as they have been maintained since.

That's what mine are. I had one in the supporters section for season 1 and then I moved and added a second for the next season. It still counted as a Founding Member seat (both of them) because I did it before the end of the first season, though, and I've had my two seats in the shady-and-rain-protected part of section 224 ever since.

 

[Keith Putnam]

shady

This reminds me to look at the orientation of the forthcoming SSS and make sure I get seats on the southwestish side. One thing I love about 225 is that I've never been hammered by the sun for any match that starts later than 1:00.

 

[adam]

Midas Mulligan I was told a few times in season 1 that you can add on later to your count. BUT it was dependent on how many season tickets you held going into the new purchase process. As long as you kept your original tickets. Dan Steeves specifically said that’s not the case and we’re all capped at what we had by the end of season 1?

Idk, I think you were correct earlier in the logistical nightmare of multiple buying windows vs the real world lack of affect allowing Founding Members to choose a few extra seats based on their current ST count will have. I mean think about it. How many How many individual STHs are left right now (not how many season tickets are being sold each season). I’m guessing it’s a number around 3,000-4,000 (500-1000 in the SS). How many of those will purchase additional season tickets in a season before SSS seat selection? And how many tickets will they increase to? We’re taking about a few hundred extra seats in a 26,000 seat stadium? We have a few people in this convo saying they aren’t adding anymore. Don’t think it’s worth pissing off those STHs by separating their seats and having multiple purchase windows. But this club do any seem to have a problem so far pissing us off with the ticket process, so who knows?

 

[Ulrich]

I’m just spitballing, but my guess, based on past years’ seat relocation process & how the club refused to let me and my buddy move our combined 5 seats into a 6seat slot, but would allow a move to an open 7+ grouping, that when the soccer specific stadium seat selection (how’s that for alliteration?) takes place, STH’s with an odd number of seats will be able to add a single seat to make it an even number (if they want to).

The club doesn’t like to have open single seats, gotta be 2 or more together (for sale value), and allowing the addition of 1 to existing groups will help squash those situations of unsellable stragglers.

 

[Kjbert]

Timeout - I can downgrade my tickets to whatever is cheapest and still keep my place in line? That's a compromise I think my wife could live with for next season

 

[mgarbowski]

Midas Mulligan I was told a few times in season 1 that you can add on later to your count. BUT it was dependent on how many season tickets you held going into the new purchase process. As long as you kept your original tickets. Dan Steeves specifically said that’s not the case and we’re all capped at what we had by the end of season 1?

Idk, I think you were correct earlier in the logistical nightmare of multiple buying windows vs the real world lack of affect allowing Founding Members to choose a few extra seats based on their current ST count will have. I mean think about it. How many How many individual STHs are left right now (not how many season tickets are being sold each season). I’m guessing it’s a number around 3,000-4,000 (500-1000 in the SS). How many of those will purchase additional season tickets in a season before SSS seat selection? And how many tickets will they increase to? We’re taking about a few hundred extra seats in a 26,000 seat stadium? We have a few people in this convo saying they aren’t adding anymore. Don’t think it’s worth pissing off those STHs by separating their seats and having multiple purchase windows. But this club do any seem to have a problem so far pissing us off with the ticket process, so who knows?

Your desire isn't costless to other fans. It could easily take 300-700 seats out of play for my selection. It could, for example, be the difference between getting first 1-2 rows upper deck in a prime location, or not. Like I said above, I think the team has flexibility on what it can do in this regard, but fans won't line up uniformly on one side no matter what the club does. I sure won't be sympathetic or close to pissed off if people who want to add on ahead of me aren't allowed to do so. And if they do let people add on I won't consider myself poorly treated.

 

[Dnigly13]

I had two tickets the first year. When my wife got prego (feb before year two) i got two more tickets for my future unborn children under the thought i could get 4 together in the new SSS.

 

[FredMertz]

I would guess they'll offer up the club seating to current club seating holders in roughly seniority order, but no current holder will get shut out.

If I had to go on the record with a prediction, based on my experiences as a STH for other teams over the years, I would say that they will not turn down anyone who wants to add seats up to a limit. Nobody with 1 will be prevented from getting 2 and nobody with 2 won't be able to get 4. With a 26k star stadium, there's no chance any current holder would get shut out.

Here's an interesting anecdote. A guy I know (let's call him Med Fertz) had a Jets PSL. 2 good seats, with a $10k per seat PSL. A buddy of Med's had two adjacent seats.

Well, over time, Fred's (uh, I mean Med's) son, Med Jr. fell in love with soccer, not football Americano, and decided he didn't want to go to Jets games.

Med told the Jets that he wasn't going to keep making payments on the PSL and was walking away, which they were surprisingly ok with.

Med's buddy called the Jets and asked if he could add the other 2 tickets to his account. They agreed and he added the 2 tickets WITHOUT PAYING THE PSL.

The point of that long-winded story? Everybody has a plan until theY get punched in the face, and every Director of Ticket Sales has a plan until they realize they can make their lives easier by changing the plan when it's time to sell tickets.

 

[Bane]

Timeout - I can downgrade my tickets to whatever is cheapest and still keep my place in line? That's a compromise I think my wife could live with for next season

Correct, as long as you keep being a STH regardless of the seat you are in. For instance, if I decided next season to downgrade, I would still retain my founding member status.

 

[Dnigly13]

What sucks more than anything is legends will be our food co. I sit in 103. My 2 year old wanted ice cream. The only soft serve ice cream in the 100s is in 125. Directly across the pitch. How, when our stadium is used almost exclusively in warm weather do ou only have 1 soft serve ice cream machine in the 100s.

 

[Tyler Durden]

Thank you Seth

I don't see the big deal with putting the train station underground. That's how it is for MSG/Penn Station. Or most subway stations for that matter. Certainly adds to the cost though

And time. First of all you cant stop service to that line. Second building underground station would take years.

 

[Gotham Gator]

What sucks more than anything is legends will be our food co. I sit in 103. My 2 year old wanted ice cream. The only soft serve ice cream in the 100s is in 125. Directly across the pitch. How, when our stadium is used almost exclusively in warm weather do ou only have 1 soft serve ice cream machine in the 100s.

Example 103(b) of why Legends sucks.

 

[Gotham Gator]

I bought two seats partway through Season 1. I bought an extra going into Season 2 in order to move up a few rows. I have kept all three ever since. So, the first two are Founders and the third is not.

How will I be treated?

I am guessing that I will just get all three treated as Founders seats with the priority of the first two. I certainly won’t be upset if I actually get the priority of the last purchase if I want to buy all three.

Mostly, I doubt I will really know what the rule or my priority will be. I certainly don’t know now when we go through the seat upgrade process.

 

[ferrarinycfc]

Playing in Yankee Stadium is holding this club back.

A new stadium will bring more fans into the fold and it cant end up being a DC United situation.

 

[Fantazma]

Playing in Yankee Stadium is holding this club back.

A new stadium will bring more fans into the fold and it cant end up being a DC United situation.

DC united situation in the the sense of RFK? or their whole supporters issue going on?

EDIT: their new stadium is also already falling apart, one of their reporters got hurt by a steel rail that fell out hit her in shoulder