Chukars Fans Need Shade at Melaleuca Field
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Many folks have visited the new Melaleuca Field to watch the Idaho Falls Chukars baseball team play. Most folks have agreed the newly constructed facilities far exceed the conditions of the old McDermott Field. Seeing a Chukars baseball game is still a great value for the family, with tickets only six bucks, and “free” tickets found around town everywhere. Concessions are pricey as to be expected in such a facility, but are not outrageously overpriced.
The only problem with the new Melaleuca Field is the same problem with the old McDermott Field: lack of shade for fans. Who needs roasted peanuts when the fans are roasting in their seats?
The Chukars reportedly got some nice locker rooms and office spaces. The wealthy got some nice box office seats. Sponsors got ample opportunities for advertisements. (To the point of a State Farm Insurance Customer Service Desk inside the SignPro Gift Shop inside the Melaleuca Field. Where are we again?) Fans got … well fans got some more seating availability and some more leg room.
All of the general admission and seats behind the backstop are in full sun and people cook in that full sun. The evening games start shading the 3rd base side almost immediately, but it takes an hour and a half for that shade to creep along to the far 1st base side. During an afternoon game, forget it, everyone is in full baking sun the entire three hour game.
The general admission seats are aluminum benches, so they do not get as hot as the more expensive individual seating available behind the backstop. Those reserved seats are comfortable, but their plastic covers become ovens for the fans to sit in. It takes several minutes of sitting on the seat for it to cool off, and the only way to do it is immerse yourself in that oven. Parents get double cooked because they often have to sit in their kids’ seats and cool them down also. Does anyone think this experience will motivate parents to take their kids to more Chukars’ games?
The first week after the new stadium opened, the house was reportedly packed each night. Since then, however, the empty seats each night have been growing, and it is probably because folks are realizing we fans have the same heat problem we did with the last field.
Rather than just complain, I suggest an easy solution: canvas awnings. We have enough engineering firms in Idaho Falls that could plan a way to attach poles to the existing structure, and a method to raise and lower the canvas awnings to the point that most fans are shaded.
I do not think permanent awnings would be appropriate, due to our local high winds. However, a few field employees could probably deploy retractable awnings in 20 minutes a few hours before each game.
Doing this would provide a much more comfortable baseball experience in Idaho Falls. Games would be sold out more often. The Chukars organization could even sell sponsorship ads on the canvas awnings to help pay for itself.
What do you think?
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Comments
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0 0 Joe, You have a lot of ideas (some good, others not so good) on how others should spend their money.
I have a suggestion: Why not set up a PayPal account and ask for donations for different causes from the users on this message board. That way you could truly make a difference instead of just complaining. That could turn this site into a good service to the community.
Ideas are a dime a dozen, step up and make a difference - and this is how you could do it.
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0 0 Oh yes, I should run a donation solicitation campaign for other people so they can make money.
A lot of my ideas are suggestions for the folks to make more money on their own. A shaded Chukars stadium with sponsor logos on the awnings? Pays for itself, and would increase their game attendance. Melaleuca golf course, you don’t think that would make them money? A diner suggestion in the midst of almost a thousand workers? A mashup -themed rock concert? I see these ideas all as suggestions for other people to make their own fortunes.
If you do not care for the ideas I throw out or the articles I write, you do realize you can write and publish your own here? My publishing rate reflects how many other people submit articles. We have not had many submitted lately, so my number has increased.
“That way you could truly make a difference instead of just complaining.” Golly your advice works for you, too!
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0 0 Wow Regan, who peed in your Cheerios? Don’t accuse Joe of complaining when that’s all you’re doing. I’ll bet that if you take the time to read more of Joe’s comments, the positive ones far outweigh the negative ones.
Are you saying that some shade treatment wouldn’t be a great improvement at the ball park? It shouldn’t be that expensive. I and many others here appreciate Joe giving ideas and getting discussions going. If you want to criticize any of his ideas you can do that without criticizing him personally. I don’t know how he puts up with comments like yours. Personally, my skin isn’t that thick.
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0 0 Joe and Baseball Fan - I think y’all missed the point of Reagan’s post. What’s wrong with doing a little fundraising if you want shade at the games? It’s a solution to the problem Joe points out.
I’ll ask this as well, and if you re-read Reagan’s post, it’s what he/she is asking: What’s the point of starting discussions if no action comes out of them? They had to cut shade-making features at the ballpark because they didn’t have the money. Anybody here contribute to the fund-raiser, or did you just sit back and complain because Frank Vandersloot got another feather in Melaleuca’s cap for what he did to help the ballpark? Time and again on this site I see discussions come up, but there’s little to no action out of them. Now you’ll ask what I’ve done to bring any action to these discussions, or start discussions, aside from peeing in somebody’s Cheerios. That’s not what Reagan is saying. I’m not saying I’ve done anything, either. But Reagan does have a good point: Put up or shut up.
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0 0 I did re-read Regan’s post and I thought the tone was overly critical. He accused Joe of “just complaining.” And telling him to step up and make a difference. Getting people talking about things does make a difference. If something is important enough to a person participating in the discussion, there is nothing to stop them from taking action.
Sure, there’s nothing wrong with doing a fundraiser for shade. Or finding a corporate sponsor. But they aren’t even done with the first fundraiser yet.
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0 0 There is one other problem that exists at the new ball park………if you go to get a cold drink or a hot dog, you can easily miss almost 2 innings when the larger crowds attend the game. They vendors can’t seem to make more than one item at a time and once you order food…you wait “in line” until your order comes up. This process holds up everyone behind you. It seems they could make more profit if they re-think how to move the crowds through the food lines faster. If you have a line of people waiting to hand you money, your not making as much as you could. I know systems like Wendy’s uses work much faster.
Now for the good stuff…..The new park is awsome!……and those Chukars really have a fine team this year. I’ve been to most of the games…..sadly I eat before I get there.
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0 0 I’ll admit I am a poor motivator, fund-raiser, and I guess not much of a go-getter. I have lots of ideas, but follow up on very few.
But I’ll keep trying. I don’t think I meant to motivate anyone here, I see this all as just talking, just joshing around, shooting the breeze. That’s all.
I really think if they sold sponsor ads on the awnings that the awnings would be paid for. You could see them easily from outside the park also.
The Chukars already pay people to sell the sponsorships. I’ll let them do the job they are already good at.
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0 0 By the way it’s spelled Chukars. No c.
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0 0 I’m also an ignoramus. 8^) Will correct.
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0 0 How bad is the sun for evening games? Isn’t the sun low enough in the west sky at that time of night that it’s not much of an issue?
I haven’t been to a game yet this year so I’m not sure how that’s working out.
And, as far as concession stand lines go, well, that’s pretty much par for the course at any professional sporting even that you go to. You can’t expect to get out of your seat to get food and not miss a significant amount of action. Unless you go at halftime. That’s why it sucks to get out of your seat at a baseball game. No halftime.
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0 0 Well the sun does go down, but it takes awhile. I sat up behind first base, the game started I think at 7:30 and it took until about the fifth or sixth inning until we were in shade, so that’s about 9-9:30.
My kid wanted to leave in the third inning because it was too hot. I saw the shade creeping and delayed him. After the shad crept across he wanted to stay until nearly the end.
But on an afternoon game, forget it, you’re bathing in your own sweat the entire time with no shade for three hours. It is not exactly a pleasurable experience.
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0 0 The consession stands blow at Melaleuca Field! Both times I went their, the lines were terrible, and uncorridinated. The burgers were cold, they had no popcorn, the ice crem I tried to get was so rock solid, it literally took the girl 15 minutes to scoop it out of the tub into a bowl for me. She was a little high school girl, so I can understand. but there were a couple of bigger guys working there and they woulndn’t help her. It’s just not very organized and I believe it’s because its run by all teenagers with no supervision.
It does get hot there, but so does every other stadium in the country. Try going to a professional football or baseball game. None of their stadiums have awnings for shade. You put some sunblock on and wear a hat like everyone else. Or grab an umbrella like the old folks do. I can’t believe we’re even discussing shade for a outdoor stadium! Obviously nobody here has been to a professional game. Tough it out or go too a night game.
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0 0 I was disgusted that this city chose to waste so much money that could do so much for the infrastructure needs here in the first place. In a Sims game, sure. Put up the ridiculously priced ballpark and see if the people come or not. In reality it is proving itself a waste quickly.
While there is nothing remarkable about it to add to the value of our city, It definitely is only a small improvement logistically.
And the main thing: Maybe it appeared for a few months of frenzy and buildup that Idaho Falls had a lot of hardcore baseball fans or that spending all of this money would make new fans but there weren’t and it won’t.
Spending even more on a solution that was proposed in the first place (bait and switch?) only lines the pockets of those who benefit from it - builders, advertizers,design?ers, sellers, etc.- more. Let’s not throw more money there.
Regarding the suggestion that because you say something about it you should set up a paypal account to fix it: It just isn’t journalism’s role. And as far as I can tell this is more of a journalistic endeavor than non-profit public improvement/fund raising.
Keep up the good work raising the good points.
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0 0 I agree with you Slim in Post #14.
Montego Connection2255 - I don’t understand. One of the TV stations, in the past week, told the attendance of games and it has increased.
How a new building and the organization of the vendors is managed, is an issue for the owner/manager and staff to resolve.
I don’t know, but suspect more vendors were planned (isn’t that what Kevin kept saying in the ad?), but with the scale back so we don’t have a ball park like Baltimore, I wouldn’t be surprised if some vendors sites were removed too.
Montego Connection2255 - I strongly disagree with you, but respect your right to your opinion.
If there is nothing to be gained or no extra value in having the Chukars in Idaho Falls, then why do professional recruiters trying to fill open jobs in Idaho Falls use the Chukars as one of the plusses for the city?
And why would the Idaho State Journal recently have printed a story that talked about Pocatello’s difficulty keeping a team and when they “use” to be able to keep up with Idaho Falls. The article ended, essentially, by the journalist saying to readers, don’t give up, baseball COULD come back to Pocatello so you don’t have to drive to Idaho Falls to see games.
Why even write an article about the Chukars and one more recreational opportunity Idaho Falls offers, if people from Pocatello aren’t attending the games and wondering why they lost their team? The answer is simple- Pocatello residents are talking about the Chukars and how much they enjoy the games at Melaleuca Field.
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0 0 The place was packed early in the season because 1. It was a brand new ballpark, and people wanted to come see a game there, and 2. Early season attendance is usually higher. It’s true that it does get hot sitting in those seats, but for evening games, it cools off quickly and people realize this. It doesn’t make the attendance decrease by much. Many other ballparks have this same problem, and there’s really no practical way to remedy the situation.
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Thanks Joe, for bringing up something that has bothered me for a long time, even with the old stadium. I love to go to local baseball games, but when it gets as hot as it has been it just isn’t as appealing. I personally heard from Kevin Greene that there was some shading built into the first ballpark plans, but once the plans were scaled back that is one of the items that was cut. It is a shame because those shade things made out of some kind of netting material shouldn’t be that expensive. I would love to attend more games, but on a hot day (which applies to most of the baseball season) it just isn’t that fun. I’m afraid that as long as the stadium is filling up, this problem will probably not be addressed. That will only happen if people stop going to the games.