Jacksonville on short list for NASL franchise

[KenFSU]

The graphic on the CSX building was a brilliant idea & needs to be a mainstay.

A brilliant, yet borrowed idea.

The USFL Bulls were the first Jacksonville team to reveal their name and logo on the side of the CSX/Seaboard Building.

[I-10east]

The Jacksonville Armada FC logo has been getting good reviews so far on sportslogos.net.

www.sportslogos.net/logos/view/506436712015/Jacksonville_Armada_FC/2015/Primary_Logo

[pierre]

^^^I was about to say, that St Pete baseball field is a bad soccer venue; Like you said, one goal is way in no man's land.

Only thing I would add is that the Baseball Grounds has alot of seating all the way down the right field line. And have bleachers beyond right field, where the goal would be.

[I-10east]

Our sister expansion team will be named Oklahoma City FC, and they unveiled their logo; It's actually a holdover logo from an OKC National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) team that was founded in 2012. It's nothing special IMO, as it looks very 'typical cookie cutter soccer emblem'. IMO the Armada definitely has the better and more unique logo of this expansion bunch.

www.oklahomacityfc.com   

[Coolyfett]

Looks like the Tampa Bay Rowdies play in a hybrid/former baseball stadium as well - I'd imagine that scheduling & field prep would be tough with the Suns though:



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tampa_Bay_Rowdies#Al_Lang_Stadium

thats a cool set up, I hope they play on Bragan Field, but not forever. Also hopes the team can be there for some time. It takes time to build a fan base.  I noticed mj.com still has barracudas still in the forum tag, does that team still exist??

[FSBA]

Looks like the Tampa Bay Rowdies play in a hybrid/former baseball stadium as well - I'd imagine that scheduling & field prep would be tough with the Suns though:



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tampa_Bay_Rowdies#Al_Lang_Stadium

thats a cool set up, I hope they play on Bragan Field, but not forever. Also hopes the team can be there for some time. It takes time to build a fan base.  I noticed mj.com still has barracudas still in the forum tag, does that team still exist??

[mbwright]

Al Lang stadium is no longer used for baseball on a full time basis. 
from wikipedia--
Sadly, the Barracudas don't play anymore.  The Arena management company said it was too much trouble to have ice down, and do other events.  Still, however, management at the 15,000-seat Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena worried that the team's revenues were too low to justify the expense of setting up the facility for ice hockey.[5] After the season the Arena proposed an increase in the team's yearly lease, but this was too much for the team to afford.[6] For the 2007–2008 season they relocated to Jacksonville Ice, a local 1,200-seat recreational ice rink.[6] They continued their on-ice success, qualifying for the playoffs and advancing to the league finals for the second year in a row, ultimately losing to the Knoxville Ice Bears. However, the new venue was too small for the team to be financially viable, and unable to secure any other arena lease, the Barracudas suspended operations after the season

[Tacachale]

The Barracudas haven't been around since 2008 and we haven't had a pro hockey team since.

Converting Al Lang for soccer is a nice adaptive use from the pictures I've read and seen in pictures. The Baseball Grounds would be even better for that. Not only is it a nicer stadium with better amenities, it's a lot bigger, so you'd have stands and seating going around much more of the field (at Al Lang the permanent stands only cover part of the field). It's also more accessible to more people. UNF and JU also have advantages, being built specifically for soccer. All good possibilities.

[edjax]

Per JBJ I see final decision between UNF and Baseball Grounds.  Saying should play there 3 years until a new stadium and complex is built. They expect decision within 60 days and also study on new stadium should be completed about that same time.

[AuditoreEnterprise]

I really hope they use the baseball grounds on this one. Unf is a bit isolated.

[I-10east]

^^^I agree. I'm kinda surprised that JU isn't in the temporary stadium race, given that Milne Field will be renovated (although it's kinda isolated also).

www.jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=542825

[Ajax]

^^^I agree. I'm kinda surprised that JU isn't in the temporary stadium race, given that Milne Field will be renovated (although it's kinda isolated also).

www.jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=542825

Most of the time that the front office have talked about a temporary home, it's been between UNF and the baseball grounds.  I went to their town hall meeting at Mellow Mushroom a couple of weeks ago, and at that time they also threw JU into the mix, but now I see that it's back down to the original two. 

Maybe JU's renovations would not have been completed in time, or maybe JU just doesn't want to over-use their fields.  JU's soccer team doesn't play on that field - they have their own natural grass field right next to the football stadium. 

It's also possible that the Armada don't want to play on field turf.  You would also be playing soccer on a field that has football lines and lacrosse lines all over it.  I know that's probably not a deal breaker, but a lot of people get up in arms about that. 

I'm sure if there was any way they could have worked something out with JU they would have.  Mark Frisch is heavily involved with JU and he and his companies are big supporters of JU athletics. 

[Ajax]

I received an email from the Armada yesterday - they announced some youth camps this summer that will be run by Real Madrid for kids ages 8 to 14.  I'm very impressed that they've been able to bring some RM youth coaches over here, and they're partnering with Publix on these camps.  So that's a great sign. 

Apparently there will be 5 or 6 sites, and they announced 4 of them.  They are Atlantic Coast High School, Fletcher High, Patton Park and Stanton Prep.  Not sure where the other site(s) will be, but if this is any early indication of where they see their base, then I might be willing to wager that they're looking very closely at UNF. 

[CityLife]

Apparently there will be 5 or 6 sites, and they announced 4 of them.  They are Atlantic Coast High School, Fletcher High, Patton Park and Stanton Prep.  Not sure where the other site(s) will be, but if this is any early indication of where they see their base, then I might be willing to wager that they're looking very closely at UNF.

There is no denying that UNF is centrally located for soccer playing families in Jax. I think a big question is whether the fan base for the team will be made up more of in-town dwellers or soccer families that live in the burbs. A lot of the 20 and 30 something former soccer players I know live in the in-town neighborhoods. I'd imagine they are exploring whether the soccer families in the burbs would be willing to drive a little bit extra for the better gameday/stadium experience downtown or if the in-town folks would still go to games at UNF.

Definitely not an easy choice.

[fieldafm]

JU > UNF

That's your calculus for the day.