Part 4: True North Sports & Entertainment's efforts to acquire an NHL team (Winnipeg)

[htpwn]

Sooo... ummm .. in which way did Eaton's contribute to the new MTS centre? beyond the "Brass Timothy" in the lobby.

What Dado said.

Plus, wasn't the MTS Centre built inside the facades of the former Eaton's store? Or am I mistaken?

 

[Melrose Munch]

Ah, Walmart, that community and small business killer. I've been to small towns in Texas where all the small shops have been closed down and boarded up on main street. You have to drive to the edge of town to do your shopping at the Walmart Supercenter, surrounded by an ocean of parking lots and SUVs. The only thing good about Walmart is its cheap prices. I suppose it is also good for distributing the products of China Inc. and contributing to the deindustrialization of North America. And besides, I don't appreciate their tactic of hiring retirees as "greeters" that make you feel like a criminal by checking your bags and receipts, always with a smile, as you exit.

GHOST

This is 100 percent true. But the price we pay for NAFTA. Bill Clinton said years ago to get your education the first time... not many listened. Now Oshawa, once a proud industrial city is one of the poorer suburbs of Toronto. Less than a quarter of Oshawa used to work in Downtown Toronto Ghost. Now over 55% work in the city because the car plant closed down.

 

[roccerfeller]

What Dado said.

Plus, wasn't the MTS Centre built inside the facades of the former Eaton's store? Or am I mistaken?

AIUI many of the Eaton's buildings bricks were used with the MTSC or something like that

there is a physical connection as well regarding structural pieces.

But it would have been better to keep Eatons and build MTSC on one of the gigantic parking lots downtown instead...alas that is another story.

Being on Portage Ave, one of Canada's most well known streets, has its perks too I suppose.

 

[AllByDesign]

What Dado said.

Plus, wasn't the MTS Centre built inside the facades of the former Eaton's store? Or am I mistaken?

Winnipeg is full of people afraid of forward progression. In order to placate the group trying to stonewall TNSE, they changed the exterior design of the building to look similar to the old Eaton's building. Eaton's had sold the building to Thomson, along with the majority of their prime real estate prior to bankruptcy. Quite a spell before there was a plan for an Arena on that piece of land.

This is 100 percent true. But the price we pay for NAFTA. Bill Clinton said years ago to get your education the first time... not many listened. Now Oshawa, once a proud industrial city is one of the poorer suburbs of Toronto. Less than a quarter of Oshawa used to work in Downtown Toronto Ghost. Now over 55% work in the city because the car plant closed down.

Funny... Oshawa doesn't appear to be any worse for wear. Oshawa born and raised I am... My mother and sister still reside there. GM has had a declining presence over the years like deth by papercut. Everyone in my family was once in the employ of old GM. The town is much wealthier than when I lived there 10 years ago. Funny thing with NAFTA is that when the Canadian dollar is low GM shifts more production to Canada, when it is high it shifts production to Mexico. Hola!

 

[kdb209]

Geez, a number of the stores I frequent check. Including Costco.

Costco is the only store where you have to let the Receipt Nazis check your purchases - you consented when you became a member and they will revoke your membership if you don't. At other stores they cannot legally check your bags unless they have probable cause and are accusing you of shoplifting. However most sheeple consent - hey they say it's for your protection, right?

At Fry's, Best Buy, and other stores I just glare at the guy and walk right past him.

 

[Killion]

Ya'll seem unaware of Eatons' dark history in Winnipeg. First major distribution center in Canada for its Catalogue Mail Order business. Your forefathers deliberately shipped Leaf instead of the bleu-blanc-rouge' of the Habs' to the tykes in Quebec, inspiring Roch Carriers' "The Sweater". Many a dreadful beating administered to the recipients in places like Trois Riviere' & Pointe Claire as a result of your sick humor. And of course against company policy, refused to honor Timothy's "Goods Satisfactory; Exchange or Refund Gladly Provided" policy, claiming you didnt understand because it was written in french, so simply returned the packages, collect & un-opened. And now all this stuff with the Coyotes & Thrashers. Whats with you people?. Somthin in the waters of the Red River or your DNA?.

 

[peter sullivan]

AIUI many of the Eaton's buildings bricks were used with the MTSC or something like that

there is a physical connection as well regarding structural pieces.

no bricks from eatons were used in the MTS centre.....no structural components either...eatons was made of wood....they did put a couple of the old windows on the second floor as a commemorative display, but that is it.



eatons did play a very real role in the return of NHL hockey to winnipeg however....had the MTS centre not been built on that exact site we would not be talking about the NHL.

osmington, david thomson's real estate company, owned a number of the eatons properties when they went bankrupt...including the iconic portage avenue store.

when the decision was made to construct the new arena on the eatons site, instead of paying osmington for the land, true north gave them shares in the building and the new IHL franchise that would play out of it...at first this was a small share and they were only one of a number of investors that made up true north.

over the years, thomson and chipman have bought out all the other partners and now are the two sole owners of true north.

so....had the MTS centre not been built on the eatons site, thomson would have no connection to winnipeg, he would not own the arena or the AHL team and he would not be looking to use that investment as a larger real estate play in the city.....since his money and influence is probably the biggest reason that the NHL is returning, you could say that the old eatons building gave her life to bring NHL hockey back to the city.

in a twist of fate, a building that was such a key part of winnipeg's past, by her demolition, became a great part of winnipeg's future.

 

[Dado]

...the NHL is returning to winnipeg...

I love your confidence.

Could easily see adopting them as my alternate Canadian team.

 

[htpwn]

Winnipeg is full of people afraid of forward progression. In order to placate the group trying to stonewall TNSE, they changed the exterior design of the building to look similar to the old Eaton's building. Eaton's had sold the building to Thomson, along with the majority of their prime real estate prior to bankruptcy. Quite a spell before there was a plan for an Arena on that piece of land.

Ah, so your share something in common with Toronto then!

 

[roccerfeller]

no bricks from eatons were used in the MTS centre.....no structural components either...eatons was made of wood....they did put a couple of the old windows on the second floor as a commemorative display, but that is it.



eatons did play a very real role in the return of NHL hockey to winnipeg however....had the MTS centre not been built on that exact site we would not be talking about the NHL.

osmington, david thomson's real estate company, owned a number of the eatons properties when they went bankrupt...including the iconic portage avenue store.

when the decision was made to construct the new arena on the eatons site, instead of paying osmington for the land, true north gave them shares in the building and the new IHL franchise that would play out of it...at first this was a small share and they were only one of a number of investors that made up true north.

over the years, thomson and chipman have bought out all the other partners and now are the two sole owners of true north.

so....had the MTS centre not been built on the eatons site, thomson would have no connection to winnipeg, he would not own the arena or the AHL team and he would not be looking to use that investment as a larger real estate play in the city.....since his money and influence is probably the biggest reason that the NHL is returning, you could say that the old eatons building gave her life to bring NHL hockey back to the city.

in a twist of fate, a building that was such a key part of winnipeg's past, by her demolition, became a great part of winnipeg's future.

well there ya go, I stand corrected

I thought they used the bricks or something


I'm still very happy with the final result

 

[pucka lucka]

Ah, Walmart, that community and small business killer. I've been to small towns in Texas where all the small shops have been closed down and boarded up on main street. You have to drive to the edge of town to do your shopping at the Walmart Supercenter, surrounded by an ocean of parking lots and SUVs. The only thing good about Walmart is its cheap prices. I suppose it is also good for distributing the products of China Inc. and contributing to the deindustrialization of North America. And besides, I don't appreciate their tactic of hiring retirees as "greeters" that make you feel like a criminal by checking your bags and receipts, always with a smile, as you exit.

GHOST

So true. I've been down to New Braunfels a few times for a golf vacation. The town is empty. Everyone is at the super stores next to the freeways. It's ugly.

I will not goto a Walmart.

 

[Melrose Munch]

Winnipeg is full of people afraid of forward progression. In order to placate the group trying to stonewall TNSE, they changed the exterior design of the building to look similar to the old Eaton's building. Eaton's had sold the building to Thomson, along with the majority of their prime real estate prior to bankruptcy. Quite a spell before there was a plan for an Arena on that piece of land.



Funny... Oshawa doesn't appear to be any worse for wear. Oshawa born and raised I am... My mother and sister still reside there. GM has had a declining presence over the years like deth by papercut. Everyone in my family was once in the employ of old GM. The town is much wealthier than when I lived there 10 years ago. Funny thing with NAFTA is that when the Canadian dollar is low GM shifts more production to Canada, when it is high it shifts production to Mexico. Hola!

True. Low dollar = No Hockey team, but more of everything else.

Oh and I am born in Etobicoke and raised in Oakville!

 

[MAROONSRoad]

Bettman's comments on Coyotes situation and Winnipeg:

Even though NHL commissioner Gary Bettman acknowledges time is running short on the Phoenix Coyotes sale, he doesn't want fans in Winnipeg to start getting excited just yet.

The league has had the right to start exploring relocation options since Dec. 31, but Bettman says he's still hopeful the proposed sale to Matthew Hulsizer will go through soon. Winnipeg is a possible destination if that deal falls apart.

"We'll hang in there as long as it makes sense and as long as we can," Bettman said Saturday before the NHL's skills competition. "But time is getting short. Make no mistake about that. This is not something that is of infinite duration. I have tried to be as careful as I could be not to raise expectations in Winnipeg.

"Everybody knows my view on that -- if we have to move a club, it would be good to go back to a place that we were once in that has a different situation, vis-a-vis building and ownership and the like, but it's one of the reasons we get concerned.

"We think it's unfair when baseless stories come out suggesting things that aren't true to get people in Winnipeg all excited. If there's something to announce, I promise we'll announce it."

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=351617

GHOST

 

[Jesus Christ Horburn]

"If there's something to announce, I promise we'll announce it."

This quote by Bettman makes me think that the Coyotes have, at best, a 50/50 chance of staying in Phoenix.

 

[AllByDesign]

Ah, so your share something in common with Toronto then!

Yeah... both cities are also quite desperate for an NHL team. Take that Killion.

 

[bodybreak]

I also thought bricks from Eaton's were used in the MTS Centre... digging through the old press archives, I found a story about Eaton's bricks being donated to Habitat for Humanity, who in turned sold them as a fundraiser. http://mtscentre.ca/press_releases/030206/

EDIT: also Peter, Ossmington would have inherited shares in the AHL Moose... the team jumped leagues when the IHL folded in 2001, three years before the MTS Centre opened.

 

[Hawker14]

Buying the Eaton's Building was probably the best $10 Thomson ever spent. It was a beautiful building before it had to come down.

 

[peter sullivan]

EDIT: also Peter, Ossmington would have inherited shares in the AHL Moose... the team jumped leagues when the IHL folded in 2001, three years before the MTS Centre opened.

Noted. Thank you.

 

[Jeffrey93]

So....this started with Press Box renovations being done in Winnipeg.

Items discussed:
Press Box Renovations (a page or two or three ago)
Ikea
Eaton's
NAFTA
The 'shwa
Building bricks
Wal-Mart Greeters
Wal-Mart Supply Chain vs. Local Shops
Bettman Phoenix Comments saying 'Don't get excited'

I'm trying to put it all in a pile and figure out how it proves the TNSE hockey operations dood wrong when he said the Press Box needed updating from the start??

I'm not sure if I saw a single on-topic comment in the last 25. Not even much talk about hockey or Winnipeg lately. I don't get it....

 

[Whileee]

So....this started with Press Box renovations being done in Winnipeg.

Items discussed:
Press Box Renovations (a page or two or three ago)
Ikea
Eaton's
NAFTA
The 'shwa
Building bricks
Wal-Mart Greeters
Wal-Mart Supply Chain vs. Local Shops
Bettman Phoenix Comments saying 'Don't get excited'

I'm trying to put it all in a pile and figure out how it proves the TNSE hockey operations dood wrong when he said the Press Box needed updating from the start??

I'm not sure if I saw a single on-topic comment in the last 25. Not even much talk about hockey or Winnipeg lately. I don't get it....

Relax, J93. You won't be charged for the HFB disk space or band-width, and you have an option of ignoring all threads related to Winnipeg and the potential relocation of an NHL franchise there.

Whatever the interpretation, previous statements have indicated that most everyone agrees that one area that would need to be upgraded in the MTS Centre to make it suitable for the NHL is the press boxes and media facilities. It now appears that the owners are investing considerable money to upgrade those facilities. Some have speculated that this might be related to the frequent references by the NHL and many media outlets about the possibility of the NHL returning to Winnipeg. I think that is fair enough. As you have pointed out, there's really not much more to discuss on the topic, so you can hardly blame folks for riffing on tangents of historical and sentimental interest. No harm, no foul, I say.

 

[Brodie]

I think we should all call Thomson "Lord Thomson of Fleet"... it just sounds awesome.

 

[Fidel Astro]

Buying the Eaton's Building was probably the best $10 Thomson ever spent. It was a beautiful building before it had to come down.

Yeah, it was pretty awesome. I think the MTS Centre is a great facility, and I love that it's located downtown, but I do kind of miss the Eaton's building. I never really spent a lot of time there, I just liked the look of the place and how it totally dominated that section of downtown along with the Bay.

I remember seeing a bunch of old ladies handing out "save the Eaton's building" pamphlets well after the paperwork had been signed to tear the joint down. Kind of sad. Actually, I remember the last time I walked through the skywalk there before they took the building down. Eaton's was all gutted and there were construction guys hanging around.

Damn you, HFBoards. Now I'm all nostalgic for a ****ing department store.

Anyway, the MTS Centre is awesome and I'm glad it's there.

 

[Jesus Christ Horburn]

I think we should all call Thomson "Lord Thomson of Fleet"... it just sounds awesome.

You looked him up on Wikipedia too, eh?

Edit: Upon looking him up again, apparently his full title is:

The Lord David Thomson, 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet

Having both "Lord" and "Baron" in your title is epic.

 

[Whileee]

You looked him up on Wikipedia too, eh?

Edit: Upon looking him up again, apparently his full title is:

The Lord David Thomson, 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet

Having both "Lord" and "Baron" in your title is epic.

Has a nicer ring that "Boots" Del Biaggio III, don't you think?

 

[Moe Mantha]

You looked him up on Wikipedia too, eh?

Edit: Upon looking him up again, apparently his full title is:

The Lord David Thomson, 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet

Having both "Lord" and "Baron" in your title is epic.

I wonder if I can get that put on the back of a jersey....