In S.F., Scott Ostler wrote when the Warriors move into the Chase Center in '19, many believe the crowd "will be corporatized," and the team's home-game atmosphere will be "cleansed of much of its traditional funk." The ambiance at Oracle Arena has "changed over the years, as ticket prices rose (and rise) and the team evolved from wretched to divine." Now the Warriors’ arena planners are "working hard to avoid a leakage of spirit when the team moves," trying to "enhance the acoustics and intimacy in their new place." Ostler: "I really hope they don’t go overboard on the artificial stuff, the deafening pumped-in sound effects and the Vegas-on-steroids lighting tricks, but that plague has infected every arena in the land." Ostler: "Give the Chase fans at least a chance before cursing them for converting what should be a bonkers shrine of hoops into the Pristine Chapel" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 3/5).
The lighted sign had to be installed in sections over the course of several days, starting Feb. 28Daytona Int'l Speedway
SIGN, SIGN, EVERYWHERE A SIGN: In Daytona Beach, Clayton Park noted installation of a 60-foot-tall sign for the One Daytona complex was "completed over the weekend at the center’s main entrance just west of the International Motorsports Center office building." One Daytona Marketing Dir Chelsea Phelps said that the lighted sign and the 20-foot-by-20-foot podium were "so large, they had to be installed in sections over the course of several days, starting Feb. 28" (Daytona Beach NEWS-JOURNAL, 3/6).
FOR THOSE ABOUT TO ROCK: In Detroit, Kathleen Gray reported the city's cost of concerts and sporting events "would get even pricier under a bill introduced last week in the state Senate." A $3-per-ticket excise tax would be "charged on all entertainment-related tickets at venues with at least 5,000 or more seats in cities with a population of at least 500,000." Detroit is the "only Michigan city that would qualify" (FREEP.com, 3/4).
