Stadium Flooded

[TBURGESS]

 

Then don't complain about negative articles because they are a byproduct of the way the Bombers treat the media.  You can't have it both ways.

 

 

You've got it backwards. Friesen has always been the way he is, that's not a result of the way the team has treated the media just the way Friesen tries to stay relevant in a world that needs newspapers and self entitled columnists less and less. I complain because Friesen is **** at his job, if he doesn't want to do the job well then I am all in favour of the team not giving him anything. He's got to earn it. 

 

Nope, you've got it backwards.  When Taman was around it was a 'Love In' with the media because he fed them info and bent over backwards to help them out in every way he could.  Since Kelly, The Bombers have treated the press with disdain.  The result should be obvious to everyone.  Try to put the media in their place and the articles they write will have a negative slant.  It's the way the media has always worked and the way it will continue to work whether you like it or not.  If they like you, they will show more respect and write more positive articles.

 

You, and others, gripe about every article Friesen writes.  You don't like the guy so you treat him with disdain and spew negative comments.  It's funny because you're actually upset with him for doing the same thing that you do.  Is it because he has a bigger audience or that he gets paid?

[17to85]

 

 

Then don't complain about negative articles because they are a byproduct of the way the Bombers treat the media.  You can't have it both ways.

 

 

You've got it backwards. Friesen has always been the way he is, that's not a result of the way the team has treated the media just the way Friesen tries to stay relevant in a world that needs newspapers and self entitled columnists less and less. I complain because Friesen is **** at his job, if he doesn't want to do the job well then I am all in favour of the team not giving him anything. He's got to earn it. 

 

Nope, you've got it backwards.  When Taman was around it was a 'Love In' with the media because he fed them info and bent over backwards to help them out in every way he could.  Since Kelly, The Bombers have treated the press with disdain.  The result should be obvious to everyone.  Try to put the media in their place and the articles they write will have a negative slant.  It's the way the media has always worked and the way it will continue to work whether you like it or not.  If they like you, they will show more respect and write more positive articles.

 

You, and others, gripe about every article Friesen writes.  You don't like the guy so you treat him with disdain and spew negative comments.  It's funny because you're actually upset with him for doing the same thing that you do.  Is it because he has a bigger audience or that he gets paid?

 

Friesen has always been the same so don't pretend he changed when Kelly came in. The rest of them sure we can debate that, but Friesen has been doing his hypernegativity thing since day one

[road griller]

I am just glad it is the stadium and not my parent's basement. I like watching Naked and Afraid, I don't want to live it.

[Jacquie]

How have the Bombers shown disdain to the media since Miller, Walters et al have been in charge. They've held more press conferences since December than I think Mack had in his entire tenure as GM. They have been more accessible than previous regimes.

[blueandgoldguy]

Two things I don't like:

 

This town's media.

 

And the "WE HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW!!!!!!!!" group.

 

Contrary to popular belief, buying a ticket or being a taxpayer does not mean you are a key decision maker on Blue Bomber events.  They are required to give us some information, but that is it.  

 

If Miller keeps this up, I will be very impressed.  It's about time someone let the media know they either need to write fairly or learn to deal with the consequences.

Why would the Sun write fairly or deal with the consequences.  This is the same chain that gives a voice to the likes of Tom Brodbeck, Michael Coren and Ezra Levant.

[iso_55]

Two things I don't like:

 

This town's media.

 

And the "WE HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW!!!!!!!!" group.

 

Contrary to popular belief, buying a ticket or being a taxpayer does not mean you are a key decision maker on Blue Bomber events.  They are required to give us some information, but that is it.  

 

If Miller keeps this up, I will be very impressed.  It's about time someone let the media know they either need to write fairly or learn to deal with the consequences.

Mike Kelly tried that. He tried to control the message. How did that work out for him?

[iso_55]

 

Two things I don't like:

 

This town's media.

 

And the "WE HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW!!!!!!!!" group.

 

Contrary to popular belief, buying a ticket or being a taxpayer does not mean you are a key decision maker on Blue Bomber events.  They are required to give us some information, but that is it.  

 

If Miller keeps this up, I will be very impressed.  It's about time someone let the media know they either need to write fairly or learn to deal with the consequences.

Why would the Sun write fairly or deal with the consequences.  This is the same chain that gives a voice to the likes of Tom Brodbeck, Michael Coren and Ezra Levant.

 

You know Pierre Peladeau owns the Sun Media chain. Time to cancel your subscriptions or quit buying the paper at a vendor so that separatist stops lining his pockets. BTW he hates Canada but loves the colour of our money. But I digress. carry on. 

[SPuDS]

IT'S THE SAME THING YOU GUYZ

Hahahahahah so much lulz

[SPuDS]

Two things I don't like:

This town's media.

And the "WE HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW!!!!!!!!" group.

Contrary to popular belief, buying a ticket or being a taxpayer does not mean you are a key decision maker on Blue Bomber events. They are required to give us some information, but that is it.

If Miller keeps this up, I will be very impressed. It's about time someone let the media know they either need to write fairly or learn to deal with the consequences.

So much this... Totally agree. miller isnt absentee but doesn't preen to the media either.. I also agree that the sense of entitlement is off the wall with some people because of the "community owned team"

[17to85]

 

Two things I don't like:

 

This town's media.

 

And the "WE HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW!!!!!!!!" group.

 

Contrary to popular belief, buying a ticket or being a taxpayer does not mean you are a key decision maker on Blue Bomber events.  They are required to give us some information, but that is it.  

 

If Miller keeps this up, I will be very impressed.  It's about time someone let the media know they either need to write fairly or learn to deal with the consequences.

Mike Kelly tried that. He tried to control the message. How did that work out for him?

 

The problem for Kelly was that the message was "I'm ******* insane" 

[TBURGESS]

How have the Bombers shown disdain to the media since Miller, Walters et al have been in charge. They've held more press conferences since December than I think Mack had in his entire tenure as GM. They have been more accessible than previous regimes.

They did things right until this story.  They also got good press until this story.

[The Unknown Poster]

To an extent we *do* have a right to know.  It's our money and our team.  But the team cant be hamstrung by answering to a fanbase that is generally uninformed and incapable of grasping high level corporate or political decisions.

 

I would hope everyone from the NDP to Miller would be smart enough to know that ANYTHING remotely negative in regards to the Stadium is going to be a bad news story.  They should have held a presser, acknowleged the issues and reminded the media and fans that even if another $10 million in repairs/upgrades, this Stadium is a deal.  instead, it gets spun like we paid too much for a third rate building, which isnt true.

[The Unknown Poster]

Passing blame for the stadium
Players involved in construction point fingers at each other
By: Gary Lawless and Bartley Kives
Posted: 2:03 AM

The CFL season doesn't start for another two months, but the blame game for design flaws at Investors Group Field is well underway.
After sitting on the sidelines for the past few months, two major players in the stadium saga -- former BBB Stadium chairman Phil Sheegl and stadium-project founder David Asper -- are back in the trenches, trading blows about the Winnipeg Blue Bombers' new home.
Sheegl, the City of Winnipeg's former chief administrator, claims Asper and his Creswin Properties handed over flawed and incomplete designs for the 33,500-seat facility that opened one year late in 2013. Sheegl also claims the Selinger government ignored deficiencies in the stadium design when it chose to forge ahead with construction in the months before the 2011 provincial election.
 

"We had two choices: We could stop with the hole half dug and re-evaluate what we were doing, or we could keep going. And the message was 'keep going,' " Sheegl said in an interview.
 

Asper, who started the stadium project under the aegis of Creswin Properties, called Sheegl's recollection of the events "very convenient and selective" and suggested the former CAO is "in denial" about his own role in the stadium's construction. "He's just avoiding the reality of having been in the middle of it," Asper said in an interview.
 

Mayor Sam Katz, Premier Greg Selinger and Sport Minister Ron Lemieux have also entered a fray that began on Tuesday with the discovery of leaky luxury suites at Investors Group Field -- the latest in a series of design problems at the $208.5-million facility.
 

First, Katz complained stadium design issues were overlooked and claimed the city had nothing to do with them. That prompted Lemieux to note former CAO Sheegl helped oversee stadium construction in his former role as BBB Stadium chairman.
 

That in turn prompted Sheegl to assert Selinger ordered the project to proceed, even though the four stadium stakeholders -- the city, province, football club and the University of Manitoba -- were told construction should be halted until the plans were completed.
"We knew the plans had problems that needed to be fixed and addressed," said Sheegl, adding provincial appointee Angela Mathieson was BBB's chairwoman in 2010, when the premier gave the order to go ahead.
 

"I certainly didn't have the money to pay for it. The Bombers didn't have the money to pay for it," he said. "The decision came from one place. Keep going. The decision didn't come from me. There was an election coming in 16 months. A provincial election."

Both Asper and Selinger say all four stakeholders were well aware stadium designs -- created by Winnipeg architect Ray Wan with input from global stadium-planning firm HOK -- were incomplete when BBB Stadium took over the project from Creswin in 2010.
 

"More work needed to be done, more work was done, and that allowed us to get a high-quality facility," Selinger said in an interview. He also praised Asper for the "tremendous amount of spadework" involved in getting the stadium off the ground.
 

Asper said city officials were "intimately involved" with the stadium design from the beginning and substantive changes were made after Sheegl took over the role of BBB chairman.
 

Sheegl was BBB chairman during the period when the winter bubble was jettisoned and other design changes were made on the fly through a process called "value engineering," during which construction managers try to shave costs to meet a budget target.
 

Asper suggested members of city council were responsible for fan amenities disappearing from the project. Asper said when he proposed removing an overhead canopy from the stadium design to combat rising costs, Katz demanded the canopy remain.
 

Bomber fans would have preferred more legroom, more washrooms, wider concessions areas and a better game-day experience, he said.
Asper also commended Selinger for moving forward with the project before the cost of steel continued to rise and chided Sheegl for suggesting the premier was in a hurry.

"To try to point an accusatory finger at the province? Mine is a congratulatory view," Asper said. "It took a lot of guts to move things forward, and we should be thankful for it."
Construction had to proceed because of safety concerns with Canad Inns Stadium, Selinger added.
 

"We were all working together. We had serious reports about the safety of the old stadium," the premier said. "Everybody wanted to move forward on this."
Asper developed the initial stadium plans as part of an effort to purchase the Winnipeg Football Club and finance the project through a retail development at the Canad Inns Stadium site in Polo Park. When that died on the vine, the province stepped in and loaned the football club $160 million to build the stadium, with BBB Stadium taking over the construction.
 

As part of the transition, Asper was paid $4 million in compensation for his expenditures on the stadium plans. The Bombers, meanwhile, hired chief transition officer Jeff Thompson and construction expert Ossama AbouZeid to oversee the stadium project. They in turn hired Global Spectrum Canada, a firm specializing in public venues, to review the stadium plans.

"Global Spectrum comes and says, 'OK, there are things that aren't quite right that we think need to be addressed, (like) getting vehicles in to hold concerts on the main floor, the press box, operational shortfalls," Sheegl said. "That was presented to the Bombers board and the message was to keep going."
Before the stadium opened, all the handrails had to be replaced, while crews were forced to cut squares out of the lower-bowl concrete to allow fans access to the playing surface during concerts. Problems identified later included leaky luxury suites, uninsulated plumbing, crawl spaces unprotected from fire and a press box open to the elements

[Jacquie]

 

How have the Bombers shown disdain to the media since Miller, Walters et al have been in charge. They've held more press conferences since December than I think Mack had in his entire tenure as GM. They have been more accessible than previous regimes.

They did things right until this story.  They also got good press until this story.

 

Which shows that Friesen will crap on the Bombers no matter how much goodwill they build with the media.

[Jpan85]

Got to love a election year. Let the finger pointing begin.

[17to85]

They should keep the finger pointing out of the public spotlight. Just get it fixed and worry about who pays for it behind closed doors. 

[TrueBlue]

They should keep the finger pointing out of the public spotlight. Just get it fixed and worry about who pays for it behind closed doors. 

 

The problem will be solved one way or the other, and the less information that is made public about what happens during the process, the better.  It's no longer newsworthy in my opinion. Fix it, and let's move on.

[JuranBoldenRules]

It's absolutely newsworthy.  A major public project that was built despite a flawed or incomplete design, one of the results of which is now flooded "weather-protected" areas.  Flaws or important pieces not considered in the design were well known by the architect, builder and everyone overseeing the project.  You can bet this will end up litigated like crazy from all sides.  The builder lost money on this project all ready, they won't be eager to pay for fixes and damage caused by a flawed design that was rubber stamped by BBB stadium and the provincial government, they will be battling in court to recoup losses.  Where are the people responsible for the design now?  This stadium will keep lawyers busy on the civil docket for many years.  In other places less willing to allow fraud, criminal lawyers would be busy too.    

 

A project that was touted as having a guaranteed final cost that just keeps escalating, literally every time there is a news story on the stadium the quoted cost is higher, now $212 million.  It's news and rightfully so.

[TBURGESS]

 

 

How have the Bombers shown disdain to the media since Miller, Walters et al have been in charge. They've held more press conferences since December than I think Mack had in his entire tenure as GM. They have been more accessible than previous regimes.

They did things right until this story.  They also got good press until this story.

 

Which shows that Friesen will crap on the Bombers no matter how much goodwill they build with the media.

 

It actually shows that the media will give good press when the Bombers do the right thing and bad press when they don't, which is the way it's always been and always will be. 

 

Folks around here want to blame Friesen every time he prints a negative story about the Bombers.  It's far easier to blame him than it is to discuss the valid problems he brings up.  

 

Our stadium is leaking... blame Friesen.  Nope, blame the architects / builders instead.  

 

Our management won't let the media in to report the damage?  Blame Friesen.  Nope, blame our management/media folks instead. 

[Mike]

I'm not blaming Friesen for the story.

 

I'm blaming Friesen for his whiny entitled attitude that goes along with his version of this story.

[Mr Dee]

Linking good press and bad press is being poorly compared on here.

There are ways to get the story out there without alienating the very people you deal with.

 

For example, read the same story put forward by Barley Kives.

He gives the same information without the digs at the Bomber mgmt.

 

The story is valid.

The approach by Friesen in telling the story actually defects from the story and tries to shift blame to Miller in how he handled the queries.

Make no mistake, those are two different issues.

Kives addressed the issue, not the messenger, and got the story out in a much more informed manner.

No mention of Miller, and there didn't have to be…he isn't the story.

 

People who are trying to tag Miller and the Bombers with Friesen's approach got pulled in by Friesen and that's just what he wanted.

They are only part of the group overseeing this.

Deal with the story..not the messengers.

 

 

 

 

 

[17to85]

I'm not blaming Friesen for the story.

 

I'm blaming Friesen for his whiny entitled attitude that goes along with his version of this story.

As this post actually explains the topic of coversation and doesn't fit with the idea that tburgess has in his head expect it to be completely ignored. Never have I seen someone so consistently miss the entire point of why people say what they say. 

[Atomic]

Linking good press and bad press is being poorly compared on here.

There are ways to get the story out there without alienating the very people you deal with.

 

For example, read the same story put forward by Barley Kives.

He gives the same information without the digs at the Bomber mgmt.

 

The story is valid.

The approach by Friesen in telling the story actually defects from the story and tries to shift blame to Miller in how he handled the queries.

Make no mistake, those are two different issues.

Kives addressed the issue, not the messenger, and got the story out in a much more informed manner.

No mention of Miller, and there didn't have to be…he isn't the story.

 

People who are trying to tag Miller and the Bombers with Friesen's approach got pulled in by Friesen and that's just what he wanted.

They are only part of the group overseeing this.

Deal with the story..not the messengers.

 

Oh come on.  Kives does the exact same thing Friesen does, but because he is not a sports reporter his target is the City of Winnipeg... not the Bombers.

[Mr Dee]

Oh come on.  Kives does the exact same thing Friesen does, but because he is not a sports reporter his target is the City of Winnipeg... not the Bombers.

 

 

No, you come on. This time, he relates just the story.

That shows me you didn't read the article I'm talking about.

 

Here:

.http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/football/bombers/Melting-snow-damages-new-stadium-254417861.html

 

Far different take than Friesen.

[Armchair GM]

 

How have the Bombers shown disdain to the media since Miller, Walters et al have been in charge. They've held more press conferences since December than I think Mack had in his entire tenure as GM. They have been more accessible than previous regimes.

They did things right until this story.  They also got good press until this story.

 

 

You don't have to get good press, to be doing things right.  It's very possible to do beneficial things for the organization that aren't received well by the populist media.  Such as keeping closed lips on a screw-up, until your team has decided and started deploying its communication strategy on the topic.  Just because someone leaked that there might be a story and Friesen jumped on it like a dog on a steak, doesn't mean the Bombers were ready to deal with media requests.