HomeMy WebLinkAboutSports complex Public Comment from Jay Josephs 3-6-14From:jay josephs
To:Agenda
Subject:Soccer Fields
Date:Thursday, March 06, 2014 6:27:48 AM
Hi:
I am the parent of 14 year old twins who grew up with the Blitzz soccer program, alocal business owner and a resident of Bozeman for over 20 years. I am also a CPAwho has a good grasp of business issues. I have been asked by my kids' teams tooffer my support for a soccer facility in Bozeman. I am not well informed if acurrent proposal has been presented to the City of Bozeman or if this is merely aconcept but I would say it makes sense for two main reasons.
1. We need a place to host soccer events, (including a reliable place for our manyteams to practices) similar to what is offered in every other major city in Bozemanincluding Great Falls, Helena, Missoula, Billings and I believe Kalispell, (haven't madethat trip yet!) because our demand for soccer activities is as great as any other cityin Montana and we now have nothing to offer for most major events. Quite simply -if every one of these other Montana cities found a way to provide such a resource -we should be able to do the same. Presently we have nothing, for example, like anyof the Siebel fields, (in Great Falls and Helena).
2. Having a site to host soccer events would be great for local businesses. Anyonewho has ever seen what happens when a tournament moves into one of these othercommunities sees how restaurants, hotels, gas stations and other local shops allbenefit mightily from the activity generated by bringing of hundreds of families to acity for an event. The reasons why this is good for business are so obvious they arenot worth enumerating.
Of course all of this must be balanced by the cost. But as an ideal - yes, it would bea great goal to shoot for meeting what is to me a glaring hole in the suite ofresources Bozeman otherwise has. Because we do need a legitimate soccer site tomeet our soccer needs.
Sincerely,
Jay Josephs606 Park PlaceBozeman, MT 59715