Concept Sketch for an Arena Downtown on the "walking mall"

This concept is of a building with a dimension of 180' x 287' with the "U" shape design.

There are (3) types of telescopic seating used in this diagram: portable bleachers (611), platform chairs (1308) and stadium chairs (801) for a total of 2720.  This does not include any loose seating in front of the bleachers or at the top of the second floor which would add a couple of hundred to that count.  So realistically with this design, we could be in the ballpark of 3,000 seats.

This is just one example.

WHY build an Arena on the Downtown Walking mall?

How many people could be drawn downtown on the walking mall area IF an Arena was constructed on the Loudoun Street "walking mall"?

If the Arena is constructed to accommodate in the ballpark of 3500-5000 seats then the following breakdown could be very realistic.

An average of 3,000 individuals x (3) events per week x (4) weeks per month x (12) months = 432,000 on a average per year would be "walking" on the downtown Loudoun Street walking mall.

An average of 2,500 individuals x (3) events per week x (4) weeks per month x (12) months = 360,000 on a average per year would be "walking" on the downtown Loudoun Street walking mall.

Let's use an average per individual spending $10-$20 per visit on the walking mall just alone that would equate to a ballpark figure of $3.6-$8.64 million dollars being spent within our local downtown area and that is NOT even including the hotel stays.

When factoring in a economic multiplier of 1.5, the local economy financial impact could range from $5.4-$12.96 million dollars annually.

OK, some might say (3) events per week is not realistic, fair enough, lets shoot for an average of (2) events per week.

An average of 3,000 individuals x (2) events per week x (4) weeks per month x (12) months = 288,000 on a average per year would be "walking" on the downtown Loudoun Street walking mall.

An average of 2,500 individuals x (2) events per week x (4) weeks per month x (12) months = 240,000 on a average per year would be "walking" on the downtown Loudoun Street walking mall.

$10-$20 per visit per individual spent on the walking mall would equate to a ballpark figure of $2.4-$5.76 million dollars being spent within our local downtown area.  Hotel stays are NOT calculated in this figure.

When factoring in the economic multiplier of 1.5, the local economy financial impact would be a range of $3.6-$8.64 million annually.

What IF these donors only knew of WMC's profitability?

The Winchester Star just featured a story about the WMC Foundation honoring the major donors at the fourth annual Heart Ball Saturday night.

About 350 donors who contributed $1,000 or more attended the black-tie event at the Shenandoah Valley Golf Club. Some of them gave as much as $25,000 in the past year.

In the past year, 1,000 donors have raised $1.2 million. Since its beginning in 2004, the foundation has raised more than $8.6 million and funded nearly $4 million in grants to improve health care.

For more details on the article, visit http://winchesterstar.com/pages/view/donors.html

Nobody can dispute these donors generosity as it's their choice to donate to whomever they desire but what if they knew how profitable the Winchester Medical Center has been since 2001?

Folks, its just amazing of these (in excess of revenue) profit figures that just the Winchester Medical Center (not-for-profit) alone is producing since 2001 according to Quad State Business Journal was $11.8 million.

So ... here you go ...

• 2001 - $11.8 million

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• 2005 - $54,346,679 (per IRS990)
• 2006 - $57,422,678 (per IRS990)
• 2007 = $66,617,961 (per IRS990)

Everyone has read where The Pub documented that from 2001-2005, that was a 383% increase, well my goodness, from 2001-2007 that has risen even more so up to 460%.

You tell us what in the world in going on?  These numbers are getting too big for The Pub to even comprehend for this "not-for-profit" organization.  Please keep in mind, this is just Winchester Medical Center alone, there are many other revenue generating services that have not been factored in yet.

To close, nobody can dispute the thoughtfulness of these donors BUT what if they only knew of the profits that the WMC just itself turned from 2001-2007?

No doubt about it, that leaves many local charities wondering if these donors would have given to their respective charities that are very much in need during these very difficult economic times.

It’s only fair that the public be more informed but Valley Health System does NOT do a very good job of be very transparent with their financial information in fear of opening up Pandora’s Box!

Finally, our local media outlets do an outstanding job of telling one side of the VHS’s greatness BUT search this blog for keywords of “Valley Health System” and “Winchester Medical Center” so that you as a concerned citizen are more informed to learn about another side of Valley Health System.

New Winchester Arena location added to be considered for the future

A new location, on the Gold's Gym property out on Berryville Avenue as been added to the list that was featured in the Winchester Star.

Big Idea ... give, turnover "ownership" of Bode Grim field to SU

Here is an an idea to consider that would eliminate a lot of scheduling issues plus give Shenandoah University an opportunity to get their own field so-to-speak. 

Big Idea ... Give, turnover "ownership" of Bodie Grim to SU with the understanding (MOU) that the 13yr-18yr old groups in Babe Ruth would be allowed to use it in the summer.  SU baseball basically runs from mid-January to mid-May if the advance to regional playoffs and September thru 2nd week of October.

- This would give SU an opportunity to have their own facility w/o scheduling conflicts and working around Handley HS's baseball team who has #1 priority of Bridgeforth as their is a MOU that was produced several years ago.  The MOU was in place when Bridgeforth Field was constructed in 1978 when both Handley and James Wood played with Handley 1st, James Wood 2nd and then SU started baseball back in mid-80's which made them 3rd on the list.

- SU can invest and make necessary upgrades to Bodie Grim (such as ... A-Turf infield or complete A-Turf baseball field, install press-box and bathrooms, concession stand, remodeling dugouts and provide a fence around the facility similar to Bridgeforth field)  This would give WPRD two premier full-size baseball diamonds that would allow SU to host major tournaments and even a possible USA-South Conference Tournament, the Mid-Atlantic Regional tournament as well as major HS tournaments including American Legion Baseball and The Winchester Royals.  The opportunities would be endless do to the fact that so many organizations would benefit from such a major upgrade to Bodie Grim field.

- This would be a huge step forward IF SU would be willing to make such an investment into WPRD's baseball facilities

- Bodie Grim is in need of some major upgrades since it's been constructed back in 1998-1999 timeframe.  A lot has to do with SU getting on there when there is snow on the ground, freeze/thawing affect as well as a lot of mud as a result of very soft ground during January and February as well as not proper detailed maintenance throughout the summers.

- SU would indeed have a baseball facility to truly call their own since it's an evident perception that there is no land available to build their own baseball/softball complex as there is no mention of such facility in the local media stories since Mr. Edwards was chosen as the new Athletic Director.

To close, it'll be a WIN/WIN for all and SU will be making a major contribution to our community as well as our Park and Rec department.

Cast your VOTE today at the following ... http://poll.fm/1lau7

[This post was originally posted on February 9, 2010 @ 8:26am]