TO KINGDOME COME: ESPN's Kenny Mayne, moments before
the implosion of Seattle's Kingdome: "For the record, this
is my first implosion." Mayne, giving his take on the
Kingdome: "If the Kingdome had been a guy, I imagine he'd be
rather unsuccessful with women, but he'd have a really good
attendance record at work and saved a lot in the 401(k)
every week." After the implosion, Mayne said, "A reminder
to Seattle parents: Youth soccer has been cancelled at the
Kingdome for this week" (ESPN, 3/26). On "Fox Sports News,"
Keith Olbermann said of the demolition, "Seems like a waste
of effort. The thing probably would have fallen down by the
end of the week, on its own." More Olbermann: "They blew it
to Kingdome Come" (FSN, 3/26). In Seattle, Saperstein &
Jamieson write, "Vibrations from the implosion, equal to a
2.3-magnitude earthquake, rippled through the [local area].
The sound of the blast traveled for miles, and some people
said they felt concussions from far away." The Dome, which
"still isn't paid for," has $125M remaining in debt that
"will not be cleared until" 2016 and is financed by a 2%
hotel-motel tax (SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER, 3/27).
NAY-DER? In Boston, Meg Vaillancourt wrote that Green
Party Presidential Candidate Ralph Nader "blasted" the Red
Sox' plans for a $600M new Fenway park and said that the
team's ballpark plan was similar to "the ancient Roman
circus." Nader: "They both feature gladiators, but this
scheme is worse because at least the ancient Romans let in
the fans for free" (BOSTON GLOBE, 3/26). Nader writes an
Op-Ed in today's BOSTON GLOBE against the ballpark (3/27).
NOTES: In Charlotte, Ron Green, on the Hornets' pursuit
of a new arena: "If the team doesn't ask for more than $60
million in public assistance ... I think they'll get it. ...
If it's, say, $100 million and it goes to a public
referendum, it probably will be rejected and the Hornets
will be playing in some other town in a couple of years"
(CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 3/27). Hornets co-Owner Ray Wooldridge
"admits he's in a holding pattern" on his presentation to
Charlotte City Council for an uptown arena. Wooldridge:
"It's getting real complex. It's getting more complex than
just getting an arena." He hopes to make his presentation
within "the next couple of weeks" (GASTON GAZETTE, 3/27).