Cowboys' PSL Sales Presentation

LonghornLawyer

500+ Posts
Last week, one of my good friends who has Cowboys season tickets had an appointment to go out to the Cowboys Sales Center to let them try to sucker him into buying $16,000 per seat PSL's at the new stadium. He was kind enough to let me tag along. So, friends, here is my review of a few high-points.But before we get to that, let me make a note. As many of you know, I am not a fan of Jerry, the Cowboys, or Arlington. I personally think this is the biggest boondoggle in the history of an area that is repleat with boodoggles. So it is impossible for me to go into this without a skeptical eye--and I wasn't trying to. But with that being said, I'll try to relate just the facts as much as possible.The Good:1) Construction seems to be moving along nicely. Both arches are up and there are well on their way towards being halfway finished with one side of the roof. And it is a monsterous edifice. With the glass installed on the south side of the stadium, it is possible for the first time to get a feel for the architectural wonder of the stadium. It really is impressive, and I do wish it were sitting in Dallas rather than Arlington.

2) If you're into that sort of thing, then the clubs and amenities
are going to be pretty unparalleled for people sitting in the club seats (i.e., the bottom three decks stretching from goalline to goalline). And let's face it, whether it be because we want to take clients and get the tax break, or because we want to take our wife or girlfriend, the clubs are a nice (and increasingly necessary) thing to have in the stadium.

The Bad:


1) We got lost on our way to the nondescript former bank building housing the Sales Center, so we had an opportunity to drive around the site. If you thought suburbs didn't have slums, you're very wrong. Jerryworld is situated smack-dab in one of the nastiest parts of the Metroplex I've ever ventured into. The fact that there's a Wal-Mart right across the street
is funny; the fact that there are crack houses a block away isn't. I know Arlington says that the stadium will be a source of urban revitalization, and I think that's possible. But the area won't be revitalized before 2011, and the entire world is going to have to wade through that mess to get to the stadium. And as a Dallasite, that scares the **** outta me.

2) Part of the salesgirl's job in trying to sell you the club seats is to trash the other seats in the stadium. I recognize that. But I also don't think she had that tough a job trashing those seats. As she said, the upper deck seats would be above the roof at Texas Stadium. The fact is the upper deck sucks
. And there was no talk of amenities in the non-club seats, because, I suspect, there are none. This stadium is built for the suite and club seat people--the rest are superfluous. A fact illustrated by . . .

3) The parking situation, which is in a state of flux at best. The Cowboys will only control 17,000 parking spaces. To make up the rest, they're going to have to contract with the Rangers, but as anyone who's been out there knows, the Ranger parking lots are a long way from the stadium. And even then, I don't think they'll be able to fit all the cars they should expect. So I imagine there will be plenty of parking on people's front yards. It's funny that Jerry moved all the way out to Arlington to replicate that part of the Cotton Bowl experience


The Ugly:


1) Another part of the Cotton Bowl experience may be the seating itself. I asked the salesgirl how they're going to fit 100,000 into that place for the Super Bowl and other big-time events, and she told me that "the really exciting thing is" that the lower bowl seats have removable arm rests, so they can narrow the seats.
No ****--they can go all aggy and narrow the seats to literally squeeze more butts into the place. One wonders how long it will take Jerry to narrow the seats on a permanent basis to sell more lower-bowl seats. to playoff and maybe even regular season games And for those wondering, no, there is no langauge in the PSL to prevent that.2) No buses; no rail; no mass transit of any kind. Drive in, drive out. And you're dumb for even asking about it.The Open Questions:

1) One of the interesting things was a virtual seat view, by which the salesgirl contrasted our possible club seats with upper deck seats. The interesting thing about the upper deck seat at the 40-yard line is that if you look straight ahead, you're looking right at the suspended jumbotron. To see the field, you have to ignore the 60-yard television in front of your face
and look down. It's going to be an interesting dynamic, and I don't know how it's going to work out. I could easily see everyone in the upper deck essentially just watching the game on television.

2) On a random weekday, Collins was packed. But the nice thing is that there are several back ways that you can take to get to the stadium, unlike Texas Stadium, which is only accessible by the three freeways surrounding it. I don't know how the traffic flow will work
, but they are relying a lot on Arlington to turn streets (e.g., Collins) into one-way streets for Sundays. That may work, but in my experience of going to Rangers games, if you're relying on the Arlington police to figure out traffic patterns, you could be in a world of ****.

3) The salesgirl was very up-front about the fact that Jerry is trying to eliminate the secondary market
by pricing the seats so high. I for one don't appreciate that, since I buy on the secondary market, and my season ticket holder buddy doesn't apprecaite it because he sells on the secondary market. I'm not an economist, so perhaps someone who is can review the effects of trying to eliminate the secondary market through high prices. But I expect it isn't a good idea because the option of selling through a broker is one of the things that makes tickets worth purchasing in the first place.

3) Sales aren't going particularly well, but they aren't terrible. We're through the period when only people in those seats now could buy club seats, and from what I could tell, they only had about a third of those people take PSL's. Those should be your easiest sales.

They were obviously very sensitive about the Channel 8 reports that they haven't sold any of these seats
, and went to pains to show that they have. They even had a mock-up of the two sections that require a $150,000 per seat PSL to show that most of those seats are taken. But next to those sections were seats that originally required a $100,000 PSL, and that's been abandoned in favor of a $50,000 PSL. And less than a third of the $16,000 PSL's have been taken.

BTW, you don't have to pay all at once. They'll be happy to finance the price for you on a 30-year note at 8.5% interest
(floating rate, of course).

Nonetheless, the salesgirl was nice. She's just trying to make a buck selling a product that's a tough sell. So I was reasonably nice. I actually felt kind of sorry for her. The place was empty, and she looked beaten down.
 
The Wrong-

There will be plenty of parking. The city of Arlington is paying off the bonds it took out with new parking garages it will build, and then sell to the Rangers for a nominal fee when the bonds are paid off (I think because the Rangers own the land the garages will go on).
 
So where was I wrong. I wrote that the Cowboys will only control 17,000 parking spaces. That's all they will have, and that was a big selling point for the club seats because only the suiteholders and club seat owners will be able to get parking spots from the Cowboys.

As I wrote previously, the rest of the parking is going to have to come from the Rangers, either from surface lots or from the parking garages you mentioned. As yet, however, the Cowboys and Rangers have not reached a deal on those parking lots. So talk of any parking at the ballpark is a bit premature.
 
That was kind of my point, Benson. We all know that there's that mess in Dallas. We all wade through it every October going to the Cotton Bowl.

Some on this board and elsewhere have claimed that that's a reason to move Texas-OU and the Cotton Bowl game out to JerryWorld. My point is that those people haven't been out to JerryWorld. This thing isn't set up in the middle of Frisco or Plano--it's in the barrio.

I have to admit to being puzzled by it. Arlington went through some serious expense to acquire a lot of land through eminent domain for this stadium. I don't understand why they didn't acquire a little more land (i.e., a block west of Collins) to clear out some more of the blight and give the stadium a more monumental entrance.
 
My couch is alot more comfy than their seats could ever be, my Coke is much cheaper, and so is my food. I'll be watching from home just like I am now.
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I myself am a Cowboys fan and totally agree with LL on the location. That area is just a dump. It really is a joke to build a stadium that the Cowboys are proclaiming to be the nicest in the world and put it there. Kind of embarrassing actually. There is really nothing nice there at all. Most everything is run down and becoming more crime ridden. There are no good bars or any sort of atmosphere surrounding the stadium. Yes I know about the glory hole project, but its not there, and even when it is finished the areas to east, west and south of the stadium will still be run down.
 
It is an older part of Arlington, and not 'nice.' It isn't some type of crime ridden hell hole though. If you got just a couple blocks north and West of Collins you have Lincoln Square which is plenty nice. There is a Hooter's there and a Chili's. I wouldn't say it is super nice or anything, but I don't call that kinda stuff 'dumps' either. What was around the stadium in Irving. NOTHING. Nothing too bad, but nothing good either. The point of moving it to Arlington as well, was that the development will come. There is still talk about putting in a river walk just south of the Stadium also. An area that LL mentioned as being particularly bad. Also, the area to the West is changing. It used to be home to several old time local car dealers. I mean like Vandergriff Chevrolet, and Arendell Ford. These dealers have since moved to 360, and crappy used car dealers took their place. I have got to believe a good bit of that will be cleared out. I have seen much change go on in that area, and there is a long way to go still, but things are changing.
Also, LL you mentioned a Walmart being right across from the stadium. I don't like Walmart (as anyone familiar with the Northcross threads knows), but hell, there could be a LOT worse across from a stadium than Walmart.
 
It's clear that Arlington is hoping for some redevelopment of that part of town. Collins is flanked on both sides by 30-40-year old strip centers housing things like payday loan places and nail salons. I wouldn't characterize it as a "crime-ridden hell hole." What it reminds me most of is large parts of Los Angeles from LAX down to Manhattan Beach.

To the extent that the stadium brings development to that part of town, then good for Arlington. I'm dubious, but at the end of the day there's lots of people living down there who need help. And if they get it this way, then I'm just glad that they got it.

What should surprise you, THEU, is my unending hatred of Jerry Jones (not my hatred of Arlington). I thought the revelation about the magically narrowing seats in the lower bowl was pretty revealing. And since many Longhorn fans will only see the place during a Big 12 CG or a BCS game, that seems particularly relevant.
 
LL, I am not a fan of J Jones either. And the fact that seats can shrink in size?
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I agree with you whole heartedly. This in light of the fat that Americans get fatter and fatter. I am now probably considered a pretty small guy. I used to always think I was 'average', but that average keeps going up. (I will confess I am 5 9 and 160 lbs.) I don't like someone else sitting in my space because they don't fit in their's as it is.
 
Aside from the shrinking seats, the thing I found most interesting (which I only briefly highlighted in my comment above) was the reaction to the question of mass transit.

The answer wasn't "regrettably no . . ." or even "we're talking about it, but it's not something we have concrete plans for right now . . . ." The reaction was as though I were from another planet and had just asked about a parking spot for my flying saucer. That's just kind of different from most places, where there is at least some expectation that the stadium will be accessible via mass transit.
 
It would piss me off to no end to try to move the Texas/BlowU game to Arlington. That has EVERYTHING to do with tradition, the fair, and the uniqueness of that event. It doesn't have to do with Arlington. Also, it's not like Texas Stadium has any real charm, and there is literally NOTHING around it, so you can't really get a lot worse so to speak.
LL, with regards to your mass transit issues. I agree with you there as well. I don't understand why they wouldn't want mass transit, or at least talk about it. I don't know if that is Arlington's fault or J Jones. What I heard was that J Jones was interested in NOT having mass transit because he wants the parking revenue. My understanding is that he is going to charge an arm and a leg for parking and it will be almost PURE profit. I would honestly park a bit away and take a cab close, or get a friend to drop me off. It's extortion on J Jones part.
 
No--the fact that the Rangers suck *** has been sufficient to drive away crowds from that place.

BL, as I said previously, that part of Arlington is reminiscent of the part of LA from LAX to Manhattan Beach. It's not terribly dangerous, but it is terribly ugly. And it looks like a good place to score some drugs. Having never scored drugs myself, however, I must admit that I'm speculating on that one.

But it is farther from the Ballpark than you indicate. It is a solid mile from the Ballpark. And beyond that, it is separated from the Ballpark by a creek and miles of parking lots. Suffice it to say that I have been going to Ranger games for two decades, and I never had any idea that neighborhood was there. Going to the Ballpark, you can miss it without any effort. You won't be able to miss it going to JerryWorld.
 
Here is a google map with distance measure from the Ballpark. There is a trailerpark about the same distance away straight south of the Ballpark.
2358736915_6f2ee9f2b0.jpg
 
Good tool, BL. I really thought it was further than 2/3 of a mile straight as the crow flies. But you still can see my point about the Ballpark being insulated by the creek and the parking lots.
 
you can measure all you want, but they're still not next door neighbors. I imagine there will be ample trammage if the Rangers's ots are ging to be used.
 
As a resident of a city that is fixing to be held up by the NFL Stadium Extortion Gang, I am rooting for the spectacular failure of JerryWorld. I hope Jerry loses his shirt, I hope the City of Arlington has to auction off parkland to recoup the money used for stadium, I hope the Cowboys fans revolt and quit attending games, I hope the neighborhood around the stadium remains a ghetto. The greed and hubris the NFL and its owners display when holding up cities is unbelievable, and the sooner the madness proves unprofitable, the better.
 
-The fact that there's a Wal-Mart right across the street is funny

For the record, they are closing the wal-mart to make way for additional parking. As of opening day at Jerryworld it will be asphalt and stripes.
 
When I was growing up Arlington was the THE place to go. Six Flags was new. And CLEAN. SeaWorld opened up next door. The Dallas/Fort Worth Spurs played AAA ball in Arlington Stadium. UT-Arlington played their football games across the outfield. Arlington was a real fun hotspot. Fast forward 40 years. Streets near UT-Arlington have graffiti all over them. Like others have said, lots of run down/abandoned businesses. Restaurants are vacant--- my personal favorites, Harrigans and Uno's are gone. 360 is a craphole.

Oh yeah, Fair Park is rebounding.
 
I stopped going to Cowboy games when Jerry said DART Bus Flyers had to park across the highway near UD instead of next to Texas Stadium like they had BJ (before Jerry).

The walk wasn't bad, it just pissed me off that a way to prevent traffic congestion (and make it easier for older folk) was taken away. Don't know if usage of the flyers declined, but it was annoying.

And I'm a capitalist, I understand. Still pissed me off.

I'm glad he is not selling PSL!
 
Lee, that's a brand new Wal-Mart. Where did you hear that they're closing it? And who is turning it into a parking lot? None of the materials I saw at the Sales Center indicated that the Cowboys would control that land.
 
As member of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, of the Arlington Planning & Zoning Commission, and an attorney who is aware of the land sales and several busniess deal in the "barrio" surrounding the stadium site, I think LL has too little information to make an accurate analysis of how the positively the Cowboys Stadium will benefit Arlington. The increase in the surrounding property values alone is incredible. Sometimes increasing the value of the property 6-fold!!! Three new hotels (not motels) north of IH30, 3 new Hotels in Glorypark, re-landscapred Johnson Creek between the stadiums, old buildings being bulldozed down across the streets from the stadium (yes Wal-Mart will be too), three reconstructed exits off of IH30 plus one new one at Baird Farm road, Lincoln Square shopping center expanding, the new Viridian development to the north, new entertainment district design standards recenlty adopted to ensure what is built is quality, the list goes on, and on, and on.

But there really is no way I will change LL's mind, until 5 years have passed, so I won't even try
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For the record, they are closing the wal-mart to make way for additional parking.
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I seriously doubt Walmart will close a store for jerry. a walmart store is too valuable to be bought either.
 
As member of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, of the Arlington Planning & Zoning Commission, and an attorney who is aware of the land sales and several busniess deal in the "barrio" surrounding the stadium site, I think LL has too little information to make an accurate analysis of how the positively the Cowboys Stadium will benefit Arlington. The increase in the surrounding property values alone is incredible. Sometimes increasing the value of the property 6-fold!!!
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Good thing you dont have a biased opinion or anything.
 

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