It's kind of depressing.

Further down the left field line, more crickets:

Economic engine? The first westside Dollar Tree just opened its doors on West Burnside a stone's throw from PGE Park. There's also a tanning salon up the street, also relatively new to the neighborhood. The area is downscaling to strip mall businesses.

How do they come up with that number? Is it the number of tickets sold????

Beats me. I'm sure it counts all people who buy tickets, plus people who actually show up on free tickets. But heck, I can't believe more than 2,000 people actually bought tickets for tonight's game and didn't show. Maybe it counts people that the Paulsons wish were there.

Given that LLP is grubbing for $70 million or more of tax money, you'd think somebody in power would ask him. It may be hard to do, however, given the position the city commissioners assume when interacting with him.

Remember, according to the Barefoot Little Lord, it's the abundance of seating that leads to the lack of attendance. There's just no urgency when you know you can always get a seat, don't you know. (Alphas like Himself know that we Deltas only decide what we like to do by watching what the other Deltas do, and if there's no line of Deltas backed up seeking hard-to-get seats, then Deltas just aren't interested.)

In other words, Little Lord Pretentious believes that moving the Beavers to a smaller stadium that's much harder to get to (and much further away from the fan base) will be good for ticket sales. That and much higher priced tickets.

I'm beginning to understand why the name Paulson and colossal economic calamity will be inseparably linked for so long as this country exists as a going concern (which might not be long, thanks to geniuses like those guys).

A smaller stadium will create the illusion that the games are well-attended because there will be fewer empty seats even if attendance numbers don't increase.

The baseball stadium is going to be one expensive trompe l'oeil, all the better to fool the masses.

And to think, they currently play in a beautiful stadium in downtown PDX across the way from tons of housing filled with expendable income folks.

This picture gives the answer to the previous post, the scheduling of baseball and that other game kicking a ball around a field. Remove 1/2 of the seats and play the two games at the same time. Then maybe there will be more fans in attendance.

This is not the $71 million giveaway you are looking for...Let Paulson go about his business.

This is all sort of funny because the team that just beat the Beavers, the Reno Aces are averaging over 5000 people per game in a smaller stadium in a much smaller town. Of course it helps that the weather is almost always sunny and dry and there is ample public parking nearby.

Obviously this proves we need a convention center hotel, additional streetcar lines, more MAX and a lot more Beaverton Round/SoWa like transit oriented development.

Yes, we need more of everything the region has been doing the last 25 years.

We are about to arrive where all of the model for the nation planning has long promised we would be.

With the few additional investments to complete the trip we'll have accomplished the most livable and sustainable region in the country.

The new soccer and baseball investments are linchpins to completion of the carefully crafted puzzle.

I applaud Mayor Adams, Commissioner Leonard and various goverment agencies for their courage and leadership.

OMG, I just hurt myself.

If PCL requires 1,500 parking spaces for AAA stadia, where are PGE Park's mandatory parking spaces?

I'd like to take my son to some baseball games but the parking at PGE park sucks so I never bother to drive into town. I'm not going to take public transportation to a baseball game either so scratch that as an option. Without plenty of parking and easy access to the freeway there just isn't any reason for me to go to a game. The morons who run Portland can try to force all the sheeple onto buses and trains but I'm not going along with it. I'll make the drive to Keizer instead. Plenty of parking down there, the baseball is fun to watch and I'm back on the freeway in just a few moments after a game.

This is all sort of funny because the team that just beat the Beavers, the Reno Aces are averaging over 5000 people per game in a smaller stadium in a much smaller town.

You mean the stadium in Reno that just opened in April and that was built with $28 million in Washoe County bond revenues, a land giveaway and guarantee of up to $2.5 million in annual payments to the developer over the next 20 years? Our Little Lord would have blushed at such a deal...

Jack, you need to stop this. Every time I go to a Beavers game I get a foul ball to give to my son. (It's not hard when the closest person is 15 rows away.) All these pictures are doing is letting everyone know that they, too, can pick up a foul ball (or two!) if they go to a game. Thanks for ruining it for the rest of us.

I would love to go to a hardball game at Civic Stadium -- I am an addict, former player, and old school baseball crank, all rolled into one.

I went to 20 Beavers games last year, bought a jersey and hat, several $10 beers, in addition to spending money at nearby establishments, before and after the game.

Unfortunately, this year, I am boycotting the entertainment services provided by Peregrine LLC, along with five of my buddies. This will continue until the city council stops bending over for Hank Paulson III, or until the Beavers get a better owner.

The Amtrak trips up to Safeco are a more expensive option, to be sure (although the beer is cheaper than Portland's!), but that is the way things will be, unless this ridiculous idea of corporate welfare ceases.

The Amtrak trips up to Safeco are a more expensive option ... but that is the way things will be, unless this ridiculous idea of corporate welfare ceases.

Safeco, that would be the ballpark financed by $340 million in public money. Well, what the hell, as long as the corporate welfare isn't coming out of your pocket...

Pete, you forgot to mention that citizens of both Reno and Seattle got to at least vote on the issues. And there are other sides to the stories for each city.

Pete: You also forgot to mention that the ballpark in Reno sat on a little used parking lot right next to the Southern Pacific railroad tracks and in the Truckee River floodplain. Not exactly a high demand property and too far away from Virginia Street for any casino operator to consider using.

Pete, you forgot to mention that citizens of both Reno and Seattle got to at least vote on the issues.

You forgot to check your facts.

Reno's involvement in the construction of Aces Ballpark was approved by a vote of the City Council in September 2007. The Washoe County Commission approved revenue bonds in November 2007. There was no vote by the citizens.

In Washington, King County voters did have an opportunity to weigh in. And in September 1995 a proposed sales tax increase to help fund construction of a new stadium was defeated. The King County Council approved a revenue package despite that.

Anyway, my point wasn't to argue against the Reno or Seattle stadiums. Just wanted people to know that public financing was a large component to both....