Op-Ed
Marquette/Aurora Partnership Shows Leadership
New $120 million athletics research center may have more economic impact than Bucks arena.
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New $120 million athletics research center may have more economic impact than Bucks arena. Back to the full article.
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“New $120 million athletics research center may have more economic impact than Bucks arena.”
I’d say it’s almost certain that the new research center will have a greater economic impact than the Bucks arena, especially from a net perspective to the region. Very little of the money associated with the Bucks arena will be new money – it will come largely from the existing fan base which is exceptionally local. Further, spending on professional athletics is typically a rearrangement of discretionary spending. The are resident who spends $80 for two Bucks tickets would otherwise spend it on four movie tickets and concessions (hopefully it’s not $80 meant for weekly groceries).
In contrast, the research center will likely attract athletes, medical staff and others from around the country who will likely be on an expense account. One could easily envision sports medicine professionals from Chicago taking the train (the station is just a couple blocks away) and staying at the Hilton for a weeks-worth of training and seminars at the center. They hopefully will find they like the community enough to consider staying longer or returning for tourism – not uncommon among business travelers. One could even see some professional athletes visiting the center regularly enough to want to purchase a condo in the area. At the income levels they command, a condo would be perfectly reasonable if they visit four or five times a year.
While one should never look a gift horse in the mouth, that kind of money combined with the right kind of leadership could be used to help reinvent the Milwaukee Public School system.
Now would be an opportune moment for the City and County of Milwaukee, along with Marquette University, to again consider closing off W. Wisconsin Avenue from N. 12th St. to N. 17th St. as well as other streets that now intersect the Marquette University campus. City street car traffic would be rerouted from W. Wisconsin Avenue onto W. Wells Street and W. Michigan Street. The Marquette University campus would become one idyllic, open, serene, safer enclave of continuing education covered by trees and surrounded by grass, not interrupted by the noise and sight and smell and danger of cars and buses.
Not a fan of the low rise design but that arm pit needed something there. I really hope this is the beginning of something even larger.
@George – This development is on the other side of the interchange from 12th Street, don’t really see how that idea corresponds to the development. However….I think it wouldn’t be a bad idea to turn that section of Wisconsin into a car-free section. Still allow transit and service vehicles through but closed to private vehicles. Maybe start with only doing it during the weekends and gradually make it permanent.