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Baseball's New Commissioner: "A return to Montreal is possible."

rumpleforeskiin

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First you need a team owner or ownership group with the financial means, business acumen and desire to bring back major league baseball. Montreal might have such a group, i.e. the group of potential investors led by Stephen Bronfman. Bronfman has the famous name but he doesn't have as much of a track record as the more famous members of his Montreal family. Still the Bronfman group is the one seemingly serious group of investors who are committed to the cause of bringing back the Expos. So they probably deserve our support.
Pas de problème. Bronfman, Mitch Garber, Larry Rossy, Bell Media and even, yes, Pedro Martinez wants a piece of the action.

Second, you need money, lots of it. Bringing back the Expos would require two huge investments: 1) the cost of acquiring a franchise (either by buying an existing one such as Oakland or Tampa Bay or by paying an expansion fee); and 2) the cost of building a stadium. Either cost by itself is very significant. Combine them and you are talking about a US $1-2B investment. How much money can the potential Bronfman group put together? I have no idea but they give the impression that the money is or will be there. On verra.

These peeps are loaded. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitch_Garber Larry Rossy is worth over a billion. He founded Dollarama and cashed it out to Bain Capital. And Bell is dealing with the fact that their arch rival, Rogers, has the national NHL contract and also owns the Blue Jays. Bell, of course, has their own RSN and very badly needs the programming that the Expos would give them.

Third, you need the support of both fans and businesses. I think the fan support is there though no one knows how deep it is. Is it deep enough to pay the very high ticket prices typically charged by major league teams these days? Is it deep enough to make the fans show up to support a losing team over the course of a long season? Is it deep enough to make some fans show up when the weather sucks for baseball, the way it often does until June rolls around? The modern economics of baseball also demand that businesses support a team by buying season tickets and renting luxury boxes. Would Montreal businesses do their part to support the team? Peut-être, je ne sais pas.
They had it before when Bronfman Sr. owned the team. However, simply owning a MLB team is a profit-making proposition. The value of franchises is exploding. Teams are profitable before even putting an ass in the seats. Take a look at how many teams are no longer even trying to win. (Rays, Marlins, Tigers, Orioles, others.) They don't even need to sell tickets. They make money from revenue sharing (which the big market teams are starting to resent seeing the small markets pocket the dough), local and national broadcasting, and licensing. The Rays just signed an $83 million annual TV deal.

Fourth, you need political support. The city government, led by the mayor, and probably the provincial and federal governments must be on board too. I don't mean they must provide direct financial support for purchasing a team and/or building a stadium. Direct financial support is out of the question. However government officials, starting with the mayor, need to be willing to commit to paying some infrastructure costs (roads, land, utilities) associated with acquiring a site for and building a stadium. Government officials also need to be willing to battle NIMBY (Not in my back yard) opponents of stadium construction. It's inevitable that such NIMBY opposition will arise as soon an actual site is chosen.
Seems that Ms. Plante has realized that it is politically beneficial to be a supporter of the Expos and was photographed this week wearing an Expo hat. She's totally on board with helping with land acquisition and tax abatement, but not with ballpark funding, which should come from the province anyway since they'll be the primary beneficiary of the income tax paid by the players. (Provincial income tax in Canada is higher than federal.)

Fifth, you need an appropriate site for a new stadium. The much discussed "Peel Basin" site is not perfect, but as Voltaire said "Le mieux est l'enemmi du bien." When I look at maps of the city and Google street views and review proposed plans, I agree that the Peel Basin is sill a possibility for a new stadium. Here are some interesting drawings of how a stadium could fit into this location: https://urbantoronto.ca/forum/threads/montreal-new-baseball-stadium.20117/page-2
Everyone seems to be on board with the Peel Basin. Ms. Mayor has been hipped to the fact that the area is close enough to downtown to be walked and also is ripe for much other development. The new light rail line to the south shore also has a planned stop at the ballpark site. I believe you linked to an article on this just above.
 

CaptRenault

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Pas de problème. Bronfman, Mitch Garber, Larry Rossy, Bell Media...These peeps are loaded... Bell is dealing with the fact that their arch rival, Rogers, has the national NHL contract and also owns the Blue Jays. Bell, of course, has their own RSN and very badly needs the programming that the Expos would give them.
.

That group of potential owners became known in fall 2014. They do have money but they are also good businessmen who would need to be convinced that buying a team like the Rays for US$900m (the current value) and building a stadium for $500M is a good business proposition.

Of course all talk of the costs of acquiring a team and building a stadium is theoretical since there is no team available to acquire either through a purchase or expansion. The most frequently mentioned teams that need new stadiums and might be for sale and that could be moved to Montreal are the Rays and the A's. It's still very possible that both those teams will solve their stadium problems and stay where they are (Oakland might move to Portland).

As for expansion, the commissioner is on record as favoring it but there is no timetable. It's a very complicated issue because expansion would probably require a major rearrangement of divisions and/or leagues. There are currently 30 teams with two leagues of 3 divisions each with five teams. If you expand to 32 teams then you can have either 4 divisions of 4 teams in each league or 2 divisions of 8 teams. You could also do away with the leagues and completely rearrange MLB into 4 divisions of 8 teams each. All of those are interesting possibilities but good luck getting all the owners to agree on a major realignment of the divisions and/or leagues. It was hard enough to move one team, Houston, from one league to another.


...The value of franchises is exploding. Teams are profitable before even putting an ass in the seats. Take a look at how many teams are no longer even trying to win. (Rays, Marlins, Tigers, Orioles, others.) They don't even need to sell tickets. They make money from revenue sharing (which the big market teams are starting to resent seeing the small markets pocket the dough), local and national broadcasting, and licensing. The Rays just signed an $83 million annual TV deal.
.

That's a good argument for the Rays to stay right where they are.


...ballpark funding...should come from the province anyway since they'll be the primary beneficiary of the income tax paid by the players. (Provincial income tax in Canada is higher than federal.)...

I've have heard you make the argument that the province would get back money spent on a stadium through income tax receipts. I don't think the Quebec government and people will buy that argument.

...Everyone seems to be on board with the Peel Basin. Ms. Mayor has been hipped to the fact that the area is close enough to downtown to be walked and also is ripe for much other development. The new light rail line to the south shore also has a planned stop at the ballpark site. I believe you linked to an article on this just above.

That site seems to be the best possible one for a location close to downtown. I like the site and I do think a stadium could help spur development in an area close to downtown that is currently somewhat unattractive and underdeveloped. The article in French linked to by Tiga compared this location to the area around the new Giants stadium in SF. I think it's a valid comparison.

But we can't wait forever for a stadium project to get started there. The more time that goes by, the more possible it is that something else will happen in that area. I'm glad that the mayor was willing to meet with the potential owners and listen to their pitch. However until a team actually becomes available nothing can happen. A stadium will never get built before Montreal actually acquires a team by purchase or expansion.

Also, even if Montreal acquires a team and begins planning to develop a stadium in the Peel Basin area, the NIMBY forces will almost automatically oppose it. Guy Laliberté once proposed a good plan to build a new Cirque du Soleil venue and casino somewhere southwest of downtown. It seemed like a good plan that would create some decent jobs and enhance the tourism industry. NIMBY forces were so vehemently opposed to the plan that he quickly dropped it.
 

CaptRenault

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The baseball commissioner once again mentioned Montreal as a favored candidate for an expansion franchise. But, as the article states:

"Whatever Manfred wants to happen, any actual expansion is still likely far down the road. Selecting expansion cities, finding an ownership group for the team, setting up an expansion draft, figuring out Minor League affiliates, building stadiums and everything else would take years, so don’t expect to be rooting for (or against) a new MLB team in the near future."


Commissioner Rob Manfred says Major League Baseball 'would like to be a 32-team league'
sports.yahoo.com
May 4, 2018

[FONT=&amp]Since adding the Tampa Bay Rays and Arizona Diamondbacks in 1998, Major League Baseball has held steady at 30 teams. It appears league commissioner Rob Manfred is very interested in changing that.[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Manfred was in Monterrey, Mexico on Friday for the Dodgers-Padres series and took time to visit the broadcast booths of both teams during the game. A common topic of conversation for both interviews? Making Major League Baseball a 32-team league.
[/FONT]

[FONT=&amp]Talk of expanding MLB to 32 teams has been around for a while now. Several cities have been thought to make sense for expansion, like Montreal, Charlotte, New Orleans, Las Vegas or Portland. It’s also likely not a coincidence that Manfred chose to discuss this topic during the Mexico Series, as Mexico City has been mentioned as one of Manfred’s favorite possibilities for a new MLB team.[/FONT]
[FONT=&amp]Adding two more teams to MLB would make some mathematical sense, namely that an even number of teams in both the American and National League would do away with constant interleague play during the season. Manfred also hinted at 32 teams making scheduling easier and change the playoff format, likely thanks to a divisional realignment.
[/FONT]

[FONT=&amp]MLB currently sits with the NBA at 30 teams. The NFL has been at 32 teams since adding the Texans in 2002 and the NHL is nearing 32 thanks to the addition of the Las Vegas Golden Knights and a Seattle team expected close behind it. MLB is doing just fine in the revenue department, but adding the benefits of another two teams and matching the reach of other leagues is clearly on the commissioner’s radar.
[/FONT]

[FONT=&amp]Whatever Manfred wants to happen, any actual expansion is still likely far down the road. Selecting expansion cities, finding an ownership group for the team, setting up an expansion draft, figuring out Minor League affiliates, building stadiums and everything else would take years, so don’t expect to be rooting for (or against) a new MLB team in the near future.[/FONT]
 

rumpleforeskiin

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I'm thinking 2021-2022.

What you posted is really nothing new. The only thing that has changed in the last year is the huge TV deal in Tampa, making it quite unrealistic for them to move anywhere. Manfred has been steady throughout that expansion will not happen until the As and Rays have their stadium situations resolved. (Of course, that could take almost forever. C'est la vie.)
 

CaptRenault

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I'm thinking 2021-2022.

What you posted is really nothing new...

I know and that’s the problem. We have been reading the same kind of hopeful stories for the last few years and yet we are really no closer to actually getting a team in Montreal.

I think expansion seems like a better possibility than a move by the Rays. But as noted before, though expansion makes sense for a lot of reasons, it will be very difficult to get the owners to agree on a major realignment of divisions and maybe leagues. In the meantime the best location for a (sorta) downtown stadium could be put to other uses.

While Montreal waits and hopes for a team, the baseball season just got started for Les Capitales de Québec.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/quebec-capitales-20th-anniversary-season-1.4668745
 

EagerBeaver

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Manfred has been steady throughout that expansion will not happen until the As and Rays have their stadium situations resolved. (Of course, that could take almost forever. C'est la vie.)

I saw the Yankees play out in Oakland a few years back and Oakland has badly needed a new stadium for a long time. It’s probably the least memorable baseball stadium I have ever visited. It’s got an old feeling to it but not “old school” or throwback, just plain old, as in decrepit and shot.
 

CaptRenault

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The Stephen Bronfman group seems serious about bringing major league baseball back to Montreal and they are saying and doing all the right things to make it happen. But I think it has to happen sooner rather than later. An appropriate (sorta) downtown location is available now but will not be available forever.

'This is absolutely happening': Expos fans weigh in on pro baseball's return to Montreal


CTVNews.ca
Published Wednesday, May 23, 2018

The investment group behind the bid to bring a major-league baseball team back to Montreal is reaching out to fans to find out what will bring them out to games.

Focus groups, being held in Montreal for the second day Wednesday, are asking fans what they want in a future stadium, how much they are willing to pay for tickets, and what food should be offered. More than 1,400 people registered to take part.
Baseball fans have been hopeful for years about a return of a big-league team, but Major League Baseball has given no indication when or if it will approve a team in Montreal. Instead, Commissioner Rob Manfred has said he is concentrating on turning around the fate of struggling franchises in Tampa Bay and Oakland before looking at expansion...


The Montreal investment group is led by multi-millionaire businessmen Stephen Bronfman and Mitch Garber, who have assured city officials that they will not be looking for public money to build a new stadium or land a team.
CTV News heard from fans taking part in the focus groups who said the stadium needs to be downtown and offer an experience affordable for families. Many said they expect a team within five to 10 years.
The investment group says it plans to present the results of its fan outreach to the league.

Matthew Ross of TSN 990 and founder of Expos Nation, says the investors are targeting everyone from the diehard fan who would buy seasons tickets to the casual fan who would take in a few games here and there.
The investment group has been very clear they will not build a stadium and then hope to get MLB’s approval. They will only build a stadium once a franchise is awarded. That could mean a new team might have to play at Olympic Stadium for a year, says Ross.
He says the provincial taxes generated on a team’s payroll – the league median is about USD$130 million – could be a yearly payment on a stadium...






 

rumpleforeskiin

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http://www.tampabay.com/tampa/for-tampa-bay-rays-is-it-st-pete-or-the-highway-20181214/

There's more, but...

"Meanwhile, a growing chorus of skeptics say the Rays' real goal is to canoodle with other cities. The list of possible suitors includes Montreal, Portland, Ore., Las Vegas, Charlotte, San Antonio and Nashville.

That's former St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster's take. Tampa City Council member Charlie Miranda agrees.

"They never had intentions of coming here," Miranda said at a City Hall meeting Thursday. "It was a ploy to go somewhere else, like Portland, Oregon."

Foster believes the flirtation with Hillsborough County was meant to fail, that it was just a box that needed to be checked so the team could justify looking to other markets.

"So enjoy them while you got them," Foster said to St. Pete residents. "But the clock is ticking and eventually they're going to be gone.""
 

rumpleforeskiin

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Could baseball return to Montreal in 2020?

By Danny Gallagher
Canadian Baseball Network

Are you ready for Major League Baseball to return to Montreal in 2020? It could happen.

That old expression "The end is nigh'' might finally suit the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Rays struck out this week in their latest attempt to have a new stadium constructed in Ybor City, meaning Montreal is standing by, at the waiting, to see what will transpire next.

By Dec. 31, the Rays are likely to give up hope of any ballpark plans and they may announce, in conjunction with Major League Baseball, that the 2019 season will be their last in Tampa at creaky old Tropicana Field, thus paving the way for a sale of the franchise to Montreal interests in time for the 2020 season.

Prospective Montreal owner Stephen Bronfman went on the CBC show Daybreak today to say good news was in the air. It sure is.

"We hope to secure a site for a new stadium in the next two months,'' Bronfman told the CBC.

Bronfman and his ownership group are getting the ball moving in the right direction with Olympic Stadium being used as a temporary facility for several seasons.

On Thursday afternoon in an interview with TSN 690 talk-show host Mitch Melnick, Bronfman said, "things are starting to fall into place. We're doing our best to make sure baseball comes back.''

Earlier in the day, Bronfman and his group released a market study that concluded a return of MLB to Montreal would be viable and would generate a high level of interest among fans and the business community in the city.

"Montreal has the market characteristics to support an MLB team effectively over the long term,'' the group said in a statement.

In a Canadian Press story by Frederic Daigle, Bronfman's group said the study places Montreal as the strongest among cities considered potential expansion sites with the largest population, TV market and corporate base and the second-largest median household income.

"We don't really know what is happening in Tampa but it clearly leads us to believe that things could move faster than we thought,'' Bronfman told Daigle. "That's good. But we are also ready for an expansion project.''

Isn't it about time MLB did something about the Rays? Commissioner Rob Manfred has been way too patient with this saga. He has let this situation drag on far too long but finally it appears Montreal may be on the verge of getting a team.

"This tells me that this is the end of the line for the Rays unless a miracle pops up. I don't see them starting all over again,'' Montreal sports reporter Jeremy Filosa told me in an interview. "It took the Rays three years to put this plan together and it failed. In terms of Montreal, you are going to start seeing some real information come out.''

Filosa, who works for 98.5 FM Radio, has been following Montreal's baseball portfolio for close to 20 years and is an investigative reporter, who wrote recently that the Olympic Installations Board was approached by MLB to get the Big O up to "regular-season games ready'' for next March in time for the Blue Jays exhibition games against the Milwaukee Brewers.

When Filosa approached the OIB for comment, the body declined to say anything. The no-comment saga was a surprise to Filosa because the OIB had usually been cooperative in giving him information. Filosa pointed out the OIB has been improving the Big O bit by bit each year since the Jays started playing Spring Training games in Montreal in 2013.

"Montreal is a real gold mine for baseball,'' Filosa said. "A few weeks ago, Portland (Oregon) unveiled their project the day after Oakland unveiled their project. Portland has a zero chance of welcoming the Rays. Portland doesn't have a stadium ready tomorrow morning but Montreal does.''

Filosa said the issue of something very subtle as where a certain train stop near the Peel Basin will be located is also an important part of the equation involving a new stadium that would be built in downtown Montreal.

Filosa's investigative work revealed that the City of Montreal not long ago set aside a lot of land for "quote-unquote a special project,'' meaning a parcel of land big enough to build a baseball park.

"With my contacts at the City of Montreal, I could get a certain confirmation that something would be built there,'' Filosa said.

While Rays managing general partner and principal owner Stuart Sternberg was bemoaning his franchise's "strike two'' failure for a new park at a news conference in Las Vegas at the Winter Meetings, Manfred fired off a letter, blasting Tampa officials for the lack of cooperation on a project. There was no mention of Montreal at Sternberg's presser but optimists like Filosa were enthused about Montreal's chances coming to fruition soon.

Filosa said he wouldn't be surprised if Sternberg, a Wall St. investor, and Bronfman have already chatted about a relocation of the Rays to Montreal. Both are Jewish gentlemen so it would propel the theory that they have talked infrequently, if not frequently, about a transfer of the team. Who knows, maybe they talked about Sternberg retaining a small percentage of ownership in the Montreal franchise.

"They really have a good relationship. They've met before,'' Filosa said about Sternberg and Bronfman. "Let's be clear here: there is no way Manfred wants to do this over again the next couple of years with the Rays' situation. He's saying,''

The Rays' franchise is highly regarded for seemingly fielding a competitive team despite a small payroll and owns a highly touted scouting and player-development system but plays in a terrible stadium where fan interest is almost non-existent.

"If you think crowds were small for Rays games the past five years, now that the death watch is officially on in Tampa for real, the crowds will now fit in a phone booth or a transit shelter,'' joked Montrealer Joel Kirstein, who has lived and worked in Dallas for a number of years.

If indeed the Rays were moved to Montreal, they would be competitive from the get-go, as compared to an expansion team starting from scratch. If the Rays were transferred to Montreal, it's very likely their esteemed manager Kevin Cash would be the Montreal manager because he is under contract until 2024.

A new team would play at Olympic Stadium for a few years but Filosa made this interesting point: the Big O will be shut down in 2023 to make way for a new roof to be installed.

"They would need to make sure the new stadium would be ready by 2023,'' Filosa said.

Filosa said he has been led to believe that the Rays could ultimately play 10 games of a 162-game schedule away from Tropicana Field in 2019 but he doesn't know whether any of those 10 games would be played in Montreal.

Whether Montreal gets a relocated team or an expansion team, the future indeed looks rosy. It's been 14 seasons and counting without a team. Far too long.

At least one Expos fan was tempering his enthusiasm in check about the Tampa-Montreal scenario.

"Really? MLB has never held a city hostage before in order to apply pressure elsewhere?'' asked E.J. Hansen of Montreal in a Twitter post. "When I see Rob Manfred attend the 50th anniversary of Expos in March and announce that MLB is returning, I’ll get excited.''

Danny Gallagher's recently released book about the 1981 Expos is called Blue Monday. It's available in stores across Canada and at amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com. It can also be purchased at 13 Barnes and Noble stores in the Greater Los Angeles Area.
 

EagerBeaver

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It’s not happening unless there is a viable plan for a downtown stadium.

The writer of that article lost all credibility with me by arguing that the fact that Sternberg and Bronfman are both Jewish means they must be talking. That’s a whole lot of nonsense. The fact that the two are both Jewish means they are talking is about a valid a statement as saying that because both Rod Carew and Dave Winfield are black they must take meals together when both are in the same town. The dude is a piece of trash as a journalist. The Canadian Baseball Network obviously doesn’t have a whole lot of journalistic integrity to publish such trash unedited.
 

rumpleforeskiin

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It’s not happening unless there is a viable plan for a downtown stadium.

The writer of that article lost all credibility with me by arguing that the fact that Sternberg and Bronfman are both Jewish means they must be talking. That’s a whole lot of nonsense. The fact that the two are both Jewish means they are talking is about a valid a statement as saying that because both Rod Carew and Dave Winfield are black they must take meals together when both are in the same town. The dude is a piece of trash as a journalist. The Canadian Baseball Network obviously doesn’t have a whole lot of journalistic integrity to publish such trash unedited.
First off, Danny Gallagher is quite well respected. Second, there is a viable plan for a downtown stadium and, as Gallagher has pointed out, the land has already been set aside by the city. Next, you are clearly not MOT, if you were, you would know that the fact that Bronfman and Sternberg are both Jewish is quite significant.

I was going to post another article, but decided instead to just give the link. It was published this morning in The Athletic, and is very encouraging. I was going to copy the whole article, but my sense is that you should pony up and subscribe. The Athletic is a relatively new venture and they've hired some of the best writers on the continent, including Peter Gammons and Jayson Stark. Their coverage of the Red Sox is second only to the Globe. Their coverage of the Canadiens is the best anywhere in English. This piece was written by Arpon Basu. (Arpon Basu is Editor-in-Chief of The Athletic Montréal and Athlétique Montréal. Previously, he worked for the NHL for six years as Managing Editor of LNH.com and a contributing writer on NHL.com. Follow Arpon on Twitter @ArponBasu."

https://theathletic.com/714800/2018...-seems-a-little-more-real/?source=weeklyemail
 

hungry101

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I sure would like another potential reason to visit the city. I really hope it happens. Both Florida teams seem to be ignored by Floridians. I have a friend from Florida who is a huge baseball fan. He said that there is just too much to do in Florida. Will Montreal support baseball? I have a co-worker form Portland Maine who used to take organized bus trips up to Montreal to see the Expos once or twice a year. He said it was a great beer drinking weekend and it didn't matter if you were an Expo fan or not. The trip was about 33% baseball, 33% Molson, and 33% strippers. There was something for everyone there.
 

GaryH

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Rumple - Thanks for the update. Keepin' the dream alive!

I saw a follow up article in the Gazette from Jack Todd who added a sober thought - "Is Montreal being played here? Used to extort a new stadium in Florida, the way Washington was once used in the attempt to get taxpayers to build a park for either Claude Brochu or Jeffrey Loria?
The answer is probably affirmative — but then Washington did eventually haul in the Expos, to our everlasting sorrow. The possibility exists that, with other uses already marked for the Tropicana Field site, the Rays could escape their lease and head north sooner than 2028."

I remember one year living in Hartford CT where they not only lost the Whalers, but had the fantasy hope that the NFL Patriots were going to move to Hartford in a new stadium. Kraft had signed an agreement in principal to move the team and even started accepting season ticket applications. But of course it was just a ploy to get a new stadium built in Foxboro. City was devastated. By the time I left Hartford, the entire city was a ghost town on weekend nights.
 

EagerBeaver

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For a long time now the only show playing in Hartford has been the UConn basketball teams, men and women. Although they now have a minor league baseball team called the Hartford Yard Goats. I have some friends who have gone to Yard Goats games who have really enjoyed themselves. There are also now some very good microbreweries in the Hartford area, and one of them is the only one in the State of CT that is serving spirits as well as craft beer. I mentioned to a friend of mine who is a craft beer aficionado that it would be cool if these places served shot liquors like Fireball and other spirits which can be “washed down” with craft beers. My buddy mentioned the law in CT which prevents having a distillery and a brewery on the same premises. Somehow one of the Hartford microbreweries found a way around that law. I think the place is called Hog’s Breath or something like that. Particularly in CT microbreweries have exploded all over the State in the last 10 years. I visited one called Bad Sons in Derby and they had their own brewed hard cider which is the best I ever tasted.

Of the CT cities the only one that has a palpable nightlife is New Haven. I know all the CT cities fairly well. New Haven has the best dining scene and the best cultural offerings by far.
 

GaryH

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Of the CT cities the only one that has a palpable nightlife is New Haven. I know all the CT cities fairly well. New Haven has the best dining scene and the best cultural offerings by far.

And the best pizza!
 

rumpleforeskiin

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I saw a follow up article in the Gazette from Jack Todd who added a sober thought - "Is Montreal being played here? Used to extort a new stadium in Florida, the way Washington was once used in the attempt to get taxpayers to build a park for either Claude Brochu or Jeffrey Loria?
The answer is probably affirmative — but then Washington did eventually haul in the Expos, to our everlasting sorrow. The possibility exists that, with other uses already marked for the Tropicana Field site, the Rays could escape their lease and head north sooner than 2028."
Todd has been Mr. Buzzkill whenever the possibility of the Expos' return comes up.
 
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