So, the Philadelphia 76ers have announced plans to hire a "ticket guru" to help boost attendance, according to the blog "Crossing Broad." Apparently, slipping two places in the NBA attendance rankings was more of a wake-up call than the fact that the Sixers, well, sucked last season, as indicated by the 27-55 record. So, instead of thinking about signing even a servicable free agent with some talent, the Sixers instead hire one Joseph Ondrejko as "vice president of ticket sales."
Let's just say that Mr. Ondrejko's job will be slightly more lonely than the Maytag repairman. Or the presiding district judge at Chesterbrook District Court (the slowest district court in Chester County).
The Sixers had the 25th best attendance out of 30 teams in the 2009-2010 NBA season (14,224 fans per game), which was a decline from the mediocre 2008-2009 season, when the team ranked 23rd (15,802 fans per game). Guess the Allen Iverson experiment of putting butts in the seats didn't work as well as putting butts in the seats did in the late 1990's for the World Wrestling Federation (now WWE) after Mick Foley won the WWF(E) title during a taped episode of WWF Raw in 1999 (click on the link to understand the "butts in the seats reference").
Well, as if the Sixers, who lucked their way into the second overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, didn't need any more advice, allow me to offer some. For free, no less:
How about putting five guys on the basketball court who can actually play at a professional level? No matter how much you hate the Celtics (personally, I can tolerate the Celtics; the Lakers, not so much - maybe it was the 10 years I spent living in New England before returning home to Philly), at least they have more than a bunch of big-time superstar players (Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen), including the most underrated superstar in the NBA, one Rajon Rondo. (Okay, they also have Rasheed Wallace, but at least during the Flyers-Bruins series, he knew how to represent Philly.)
Wow, five talented players on the court at the same time? What a concept.
Of course, if that fails, you can always put a Five Guys burger stand in the food court at The Center. After all, if it's good enough for Exton Square Mall, it's gotta be good enough for The Center. (Oh, and if you have to ask "which Center", you're not a true Philly sports fan.)
Not for nothing, but would you believe that the Chicago Bulls - who don't exactly jump out as an elite franchise than that Jordan dude retired - had the best attendance in the NBA last season? And "Duh Bulls" - at 41-41 - barely made the playoffs. Seriously. Cleveland, Portland, Dallas, and the Knicks (seriously? The Knicks?) round out the top five.
(Worst attendance, not so shockingly: The East Rutherford/Exit 16W/Soon to be Brooklyn by way of Newark Nyets, who drew 13,103 fans per game at the dump off the Jersey Turnpike.)
Of course, Comcast Spectacor shouldn't have to look too far for tips on how to improve attendance at Sixers games - other than putting out a good product. The Flyers, who the last time I checked were co-tenants at The Center, had the fourth best attendance in the NHL (19,535 per game). Of course, having a team that knows how to win helps. (The top five NHL teams in attendance this season - Chicago, Montreal, Detroit, Flyers, Calgary; Toronto came a close 6th despite having the 2nd worst record in the NHL.)
By the way, Ed Stefanski, my idea is such a great one, you should hire me as a "guru." If President Obama can hire 400+ "czars" to run the government, you can certainly spring for a couple more "gurus" to make the Sixers look better.
Moving on...
Phillies played like crap last night and now there's talk that Chase Utley might miss a few games with an injured thumb. And where was Kyle Kendrick last night? I don't really want to talk about it, other than the fact that Kendrick wasn't himself last night. Then again, who the hell knows who he was last night? For that matter, who outside of Ohio actually thought that the Reds were actually a decent team?
Oh, well, we'll get them tomorrow...
Random sports transaction of the day: Providence College names Kevin Gamble "coordinator of player development and video operations for men's basketball." Yeah, like that's going to help the Friars get out of the cellar of the Big East. That wouldn't happen to be one of those "we're just going to create a long job title so it makes our new hire seem more important" hirings, would it?
Okay, I'm done ranting for now. Maybe later I'll post some non-sports related stuff...
29 June 2010
28 June 2010
DOWNINGTOWN TO GET NEW DISTRICT COURT (Reposted from West Chester Unplugged)
WEST CHESTER - The Chester County Commissioners approved a lease agreement for a new location of Downingtown's District Court, ending a nearly six month relocation to West Chester.
At its meeting last Wednesday, the Commissioners approved a 10 year lease with River Station Land LP, to cost $5,135/month, or $615,200 over the life of the lease to house District Court 15-2-06 at one of the buildings at River Station, located at the corner of Boot Road and South Brandywine Avenue (U.S. 322).
District Judge Rita Arnold and her staff had been using the former hunting/fishing licenses office on the first floor of the north wing, with court cases being conducted in the former Courtroom #11, also on the first floor. It remains to be seen whether the court, which has been housed at the Historic Courthouse in West Chester will be moved into it's new location before the first of the year.
The developers had gone in front of the Downingtown Borough Planning Commission on June 15 to submit new plans for the site. An original plan, which would've involved one of two buildings becoming a maintenance facility for Krapf's Coaches school bus operations, had fallen through.
The mixed use development complex on the former Sonoco facility will also be home to a new building that will house the Downingtown Area Senior Center and the Downingtown Library. That project was the recipient of a $500,000 grant procured by State Sen. Andy Dinniman (D-19th) last year.
DOWNINGTOWN DISTRCT COURT HISTORY
The proposed location at River Station East will mark the 5th permanent site for 15-2-06 since the court was created in 1970 under the Constitutional amendments that created Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System and phased out the Justice of the Peace system, where each borough and township had two elected Justices of the Peace, while the City of Coatesville had elected one Alderman for each of the city's five wards. Even with the new district courts, those Justices of the Peace whose terms expired in 1972 and 1974 were permitted to complete their terms.
District Court 15-2-06 had been previously located at 441 Boot Road until late February, when the court was forced to move to West Chester due to odor issues from a nearby plant which had worsened in the months prior to the move. The court had been located on Boot Road since 2001, when it relocated from the former Jefferson Bank Center (now Mill Town Square) at Pennsylvania and Wallace Avenues, Downingtown.
The court had moved to the Jefferson Bank Center in the mid-1990's from the previous location, the Black Hawk Convenience Center, 703 East Lancaster Avenue, near the Downingtown/East Caln border. The move to the Wallace Avenue occured when 15-2-06 was split with what is now Thorndale District Court (15-4-02) in 1994.
Judge Arnold was elected in 1993 to the newly created seat as her predecessor, Harry Martini, an East Brandywine resident and former school teacher, took over the Thorndale court (which included Caln Township, that had been previously assigned to Coatesville District Court). Martini was appointed by then Gov. Robert Casey to replace C. Burtis Coxe, who had served 18 years as District Judge before his death.
Downingtown District Court was originally designated at 15-3-03 when the magesterial districts were created in 1970, and was originally housed at the Downingtown Borough Hall at 4-10 West Lancaster Avenue before moving to Black Hawk in the mid-1970's during Coxe's first term. The court was redesignated 15-2-06 as part of the 1980 district court restructuring that led to the creation of new courts in West Chester, Frazer, and Honey Brook.
Coxe, who had previously been a Justice of the Peace in East Bradford was originally appointed to the seat in 1970 following the death of Morris P. Seeds, who was a Justice of the Peace in West Whiteland. Seeds defeated Coxe in the both the Democratic and Republican primaries in 1969 and was elected unopposed in the following November. Seeds passed away in September 1970, less than nine months into his term.
The 15-3-03 court originally included Downingtown, East Bradford, East Brandywine, East Caln, Uwchlan, West Bradford, and West Whiteland. In 1980, West Whiteland and Uwchlan were separated into the new District Court 15-2-07, which was originally located in Frazer and now sits in Lionville (West Whiteland would be spun off into what is now District Court 15-4-03 in Exton as part of the 1993 reorganization). Birmingham was added to the court in 2003, having been separated from District Court 15-2-03 in West Goshen.
At its meeting last Wednesday, the Commissioners approved a 10 year lease with River Station Land LP, to cost $5,135/month, or $615,200 over the life of the lease to house District Court 15-2-06 at one of the buildings at River Station, located at the corner of Boot Road and South Brandywine Avenue (U.S. 322).
District Judge Rita Arnold and her staff had been using the former hunting/fishing licenses office on the first floor of the north wing, with court cases being conducted in the former Courtroom #11, also on the first floor. It remains to be seen whether the court, which has been housed at the Historic Courthouse in West Chester will be moved into it's new location before the first of the year.
The developers had gone in front of the Downingtown Borough Planning Commission on June 15 to submit new plans for the site. An original plan, which would've involved one of two buildings becoming a maintenance facility for Krapf's Coaches school bus operations, had fallen through.
The mixed use development complex on the former Sonoco facility will also be home to a new building that will house the Downingtown Area Senior Center and the Downingtown Library. That project was the recipient of a $500,000 grant procured by State Sen. Andy Dinniman (D-19th) last year.
DOWNINGTOWN DISTRCT COURT HISTORY
The proposed location at River Station East will mark the 5th permanent site for 15-2-06 since the court was created in 1970 under the Constitutional amendments that created Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System and phased out the Justice of the Peace system, where each borough and township had two elected Justices of the Peace, while the City of Coatesville had elected one Alderman for each of the city's five wards. Even with the new district courts, those Justices of the Peace whose terms expired in 1972 and 1974 were permitted to complete their terms.
District Court 15-2-06 had been previously located at 441 Boot Road until late February, when the court was forced to move to West Chester due to odor issues from a nearby plant which had worsened in the months prior to the move. The court had been located on Boot Road since 2001, when it relocated from the former Jefferson Bank Center (now Mill Town Square) at Pennsylvania and Wallace Avenues, Downingtown.
The court had moved to the Jefferson Bank Center in the mid-1990's from the previous location, the Black Hawk Convenience Center, 703 East Lancaster Avenue, near the Downingtown/East Caln border. The move to the Wallace Avenue occured when 15-2-06 was split with what is now Thorndale District Court (15-4-02) in 1994.
Judge Arnold was elected in 1993 to the newly created seat as her predecessor, Harry Martini, an East Brandywine resident and former school teacher, took over the Thorndale court (which included Caln Township, that had been previously assigned to Coatesville District Court). Martini was appointed by then Gov. Robert Casey to replace C. Burtis Coxe, who had served 18 years as District Judge before his death.
Downingtown District Court was originally designated at 15-3-03 when the magesterial districts were created in 1970, and was originally housed at the Downingtown Borough Hall at 4-10 West Lancaster Avenue before moving to Black Hawk in the mid-1970's during Coxe's first term. The court was redesignated 15-2-06 as part of the 1980 district court restructuring that led to the creation of new courts in West Chester, Frazer, and Honey Brook.
Coxe, who had previously been a Justice of the Peace in East Bradford was originally appointed to the seat in 1970 following the death of Morris P. Seeds, who was a Justice of the Peace in West Whiteland. Seeds defeated Coxe in the both the Democratic and Republican primaries in 1969 and was elected unopposed in the following November. Seeds passed away in September 1970, less than nine months into his term.
The 15-3-03 court originally included Downingtown, East Bradford, East Brandywine, East Caln, Uwchlan, West Bradford, and West Whiteland. In 1980, West Whiteland and Uwchlan were separated into the new District Court 15-2-07, which was originally located in Frazer and now sits in Lionville (West Whiteland would be spun off into what is now District Court 15-4-03 in Exton as part of the 1993 reorganization). Birmingham was added to the court in 2003, having been separated from District Court 15-2-03 in West Goshen.
WELCOME TO MY NEW BLOG...
After nearly a decade of blogging on SEPTA and nearly three years of commenting on the less than favorable side of West Chester - which is showing it's ugly head more and more with each passing month - I have decided to essentially merge my previous two blogs - Frankford Terminal, which had been active from 1998 through 2008 or so, though not so much in the past few years, and West Chester Unplugged, which had been active from 2007 through this year - into a new blog that will focus on ... well, whatever I feel like commenting about.
Okay, I know the name isn't exactly something that will roll off the tongue too easily, but the original name of the blog - "Random Musings Because I Feel Like It" - will be subject to change to something that is easier to remember. Simply put, this blog will simply take the best of Frankford Terminal, the best of Unplugged (or at least what's left of the two), and throw in random thoughts on other areas that I've been wanting to write about (namely sports) and the occasional night out when time permits.
So, sit back, enjoy, and if you don't particularly care for what I have to say, just remember, it's my opinion, and you're entitled to it.
Come to think of it, that's not a bad title. Consider it changed...
Okay, I know the name isn't exactly something that will roll off the tongue too easily, but the original name of the blog - "Random Musings Because I Feel Like It" - will be subject to change to something that is easier to remember. Simply put, this blog will simply take the best of Frankford Terminal, the best of Unplugged (or at least what's left of the two), and throw in random thoughts on other areas that I've been wanting to write about (namely sports) and the occasional night out when time permits.
So, sit back, enjoy, and if you don't particularly care for what I have to say, just remember, it's my opinion, and you're entitled to it.
Come to think of it, that's not a bad title. Consider it changed...
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