Parking Rates to More than Double at New Stadium

[DODGER DEB]

The NY Daily News is reporting this AM that while parking at the new ballpark will be free (paid for by NYC taxpayers) for the Yankees and their VIP customers, the average (and loyal) Yankee fans parking rates will more than double. :shhh:

Read more...

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2008/01/02/2008-01-02_taxpayers_will_fund_yankees_vip_parking_.html

c.

[DoubleX]

Boooooo! This is pretty irreprehensible and disgusting. On the other hand though, mass transit to the new stadium will be pretty good as not only the subway and ferrys will go there, but a new Metro North station as well. Nevertheless, this does screw a lot of the fans in the suburbs.

I shudder to think about how expensive tickets will be to the new stadium.

[JLevin]

Speaking as someone who lives in northern NJ, the easiest mode of transportation to and from the stadium is car. I was disgusted this fall when after paying $14 all year I got to the stadium during the ALDS and the parking was bumped to $25.
I tailgate to every game I go to and as much as I like the train it is rediculous to believe I could bring everything I normally would on the train.
I hope the Yankees wake up and realize that between raising ticket prices, parking prices, and food prices (this will probably be a reality too) that they are pricing out the middle class.

[Gary Dunaier]

I was disgusted this fall when after paying $14 all year I got to the stadium during the ALDS and the parking was bumped to $25.
You obviously didn't try the valet lot at River Avenue and 157th Street...

[MedicCook]

If you are a VIP or employee of the Yankees it will be free when the new stadium opens for valet parking.

[JLevin]

Although it is not very likely, the only way to protest is by hitting the Yankees in the wallet. I doubt this would ever be likely though. The possibility of large scale protests over pricing are basically impossible. As much as people complain about the prices rising there will always be someone to pay the price.

[hellborn]

I guess you guys are going to be more in line with what I would expect to park near a stadium in NYC. It's pretty crazy how easy it is to get to Yankee now, and how cheap it is to park...Fenway and Wrigley are totally insane by comparison. They're not convenient to highways (even Mass Pike is difficult for Fenway...Wrigley has NOTHING nearby) and don't have much "official" parking at all, so you have to fight for street parking or pay big bucks to get parked in. I was flabbergasted that I could pop off a highway, be at Yankee in no time, and pay $14 or whatever to park a short walk away.
You've been coddled long enough...welcome to the rigors of modern fandom!!
:(

[MedicCook]

From what I have read the parking prices in the new garages are not going to be set by the Yankees but by the city. The city owns the garages and lots I believe.

[Mattingly]

I tend to think that this is just one of many NYC problems than anything else. Madison Square Garden, home to Jim & Charles Dolan's NY Knicks and NY Rangers, as well as countless concerts and sporting events, gets an $11m tax break every year.

I personally wish the Yanks weren't squeezing the average fan so badly, as this makes people just stay home and watch the games on TV. I love my Yankees, but I've got bills to pay.

[JLevin]

What frustrates me above anything else is the rate at which the prices are going up. We're not talking about a 3-4% increase each year. The Upper Tier prices jumped about 30% from 2007-2008. If you're talking about a price increase in the garages from $14 in 2007 to $25 in 2009 that's almost a 50% rise in prices.

[psbaseballfan27]

This makes me worry about prices at the citi field. I guess that's why we have TV.

[mikeymussina35]

guess so. There is this horrible lot at the Stadium. Run by some Mexican or Columbian people that have prices in the high 40s. We have only gone there once and we will never go back. Plus they held our keys! Who knows if they stole anything!:choke:

[dougj1]

For years I have been stating that baseball, moneywise, will turn into POLO as far as fans go. There's a sport in which the owners are rich, the players are rich and the spectators are rich..The average working stiff who made this a great sport is slowly disappearing. There was a time when families could go together quite often during the season, but it's like going to Disneyland or the B'way theater these days. You guys who think TV is the answer will one day be wrong, when virtually all games will be pay TV.

[KCGHOST]

They charge these insane amounts because someone will pay that amount. If you don't blame a player for fighting for every dollar he can get in contract negotiations why blame a business entity for sucking every dollar out of you that you are willing to fork over? The real tragedy of ticket scalping is that owners are seeing what is the real value of the product they are selling.

Sure it would be nice if the "common man" could afford to take himself and his family to a few games each year, but even if he could get some gifted tickets he couldn't afford the concessions.

[Stray Cat]

For years I have been stating that baseball, moneywise, will turn into POLO as far as fans go. There's a sport in which the owners are rich, the players are rich and the spectators are rich..The average working stiff who made this a great sport is slowly disappearing. There was a time when families could go together quite often during the season, but it's like going to Disneyland or the B'way theater these days. You guys who think TV is the answer will one day be wrong, when virtually all games will be pay TV.

If you live near a minor league team it's still affordable. Just a matter of finding one.
http://www.google.com/Top/Sports/Baseball/Minor_League/Teams/

[farmsystem]

Boooooo! This is pretty irreprehensible and disgusting.

You mean it is reprehensible. Otherwise you are for the parking subsidy.

If the taxpayers are gonna pay for it then they should get to use it. Mayor Bloomberg's always talking about 'no free lunches' and we all have to chip in and yet here is a situation where hard working tax payers are subsidizing free parking for people who can afford their own parking fees.

[Mattingly]

You mean it is reprehensible. Otherwise you are for the parking subsidy.

If the taxpayers are gonna pay for it then they should get to use it. Mayor Bloomberg's always talking about 'no free lunches' and we all have to chip in and yet here is a situation where hard working tax payers are subsidizing free parking for people who can afford their own parking fees.
Speaking of whom:

Daily News prompts Mayor Bloomberg to eye free Yankee parking (http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2008/01/03/2008-01-03_daily_news_prompts_mayor_bloomberg_to_ey.html)

The hundreds of free parking spaces set aside at the new Yankee Stadium - courtesy of New York taxpayers - seem like a "large number," Mayor Bloomberg said Wednesday.

The Daily News reported exclusively Wednesday that tucked into the fine print of a $237 million tax-free bond issue for the new Stadium is a plan for taxpayers to subsidize a 660-space valet parking garage for the Yankees, their VIP guests, city vehicles and cops assigned to games.

Bloomberg said the free parking won't be forgotten when the city helps set parking rates for average fans.

The mayor controls two seats on a five-person board that will determine what fans pay for parking when the new Stadium opens next year. The group building the garages, Bronx Parking Development LLC, has two votes, and the Bronx borough president controls the fifth.

"It does sound like a large number," Bloomberg said of the free spaces. "We will certainly take that into account. I suppose there's some argument for a handful of free parking places."

Stadium parking fees for fans could jump to $29 in 2010 and rise again to $35 by 2014 - up from last year's $14 rate, according to an analysis included with the bond issue.

Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion said Wednesday the issue of the free spaces would be "examined and addressed" by the panel that imposes the parking prices for average fans.


* * *

[Silver Blaze]

Stadium parking fees for fans could jump to $29 in 2010 and rise again to $35 by 2014 - up from last year's $14 rate, according to an analysis included with the bond issue.


First article says the parking will be $29 in 2010, this one says could be. Which is it?

I understand the frustration and inconvenience for a certain number of fans, but really, this comes back to Economics 101. If the parking rate is something you are unwilling to pay, use mass transport. In the longview, anything that gets more people to use buses, subways etc, is a good thing in my opinion. I know we all like the autonomy of the car, but that comes with its own price, at the pump and in the environment.

[DoubleX]

I understand the frustration and inconvenience for a certain number of fans, but really, this comes back to Economics 101. If the parking rate is something you are unwilling to pay, use mass transport. In the longview, anything that gets more people to use buses, subways etc, is a good thing in my opinion. I know we all like the autonomy of the car, but that comes with its own price, at the pump and in the environment.

I agree and mass transit will be easier for some fans thanks to the new Metro North station. Still, for a lot of fans outside the city, driving will still be the best option and the parking will be rough for them.

You know, this could all be a part of Bloomberg's master plan to reduce vehicle congestion and emissions in the city by making driving too costly (like his toll plan for Manhattan).

[Gary Dunaier]

I agree and mass transit will be easier for some fans thanks to the new Metro North station. Still, for a lot of fans outside the city, driving will still be the best option and the parking will be rough for them.
The smart thing to do would be park-n-ride - park at a Metro North station and take the train to the game.

[Mattingly]

I agree and mass transit will be easier for some fans thanks to the new Metro North station. Still, for a lot of fans outside the city, driving will still be the best option and the parking will be rough for them.

You know, this could all be a part of Bloomberg's master plan to reduce vehicle congestion and emissions in the city by making driving too costly (like his toll plan for Manhattan).
I had to take a long hike to find it, and these garages all close an hour after the games end, but around Garage #13, I saw the Metro North train passing by. If you're by the Bronx House of Detention right near YS-II, I think that's the Metro-North also.

Lots of Yankee fans in Westchester and Connecticut where the MR serves, so this should help keep costs down, since they won't have to come from the Harlem 125th stop (above and to the left of "Queens").

[Mattingly]

You obviously didn't try the valet lot at River Avenue and 157th Street...


Was that picture from the regular season or the playoffs? If the postseason, I've heard that teams routinely double parking, just as they highly increase ticket prices.

[Gary Dunaier]

Was that picture from the regular season or the playoffs? If the postseason, I've heard that teams routinely double parking, just as they highly increase ticket prices.
Postseason, of course; I took the photo during the 2007 ALDS. The sign showing the $56 price is what makes it makes a great shot.

I have no idea what the regular-season price for Valet parking at this lot is.

[Mattingly]

Postseason, of course; I took the photo during the 2007 ALDS. The sign showing the $56 price is what makes it makes a great shot.

I have no idea what the regular-season price for Valet parking at this lot is.
I showed it to someone and they'd said postseason.

I remember around 2004 or '05 when I was still going to games, Gate 12 or so (about 1/4 mile from the Stadium) went for $12 parking, and people looked aghast that one of the lots about 2 blocks from the Stadium charged $16-20.

Who needs valet service to park a car? Maybe I'll get some guy to park a VW bug, tip him, of course, and bring it back to me when the game's over.

I always thought that people needed valet service if going to a Beverly Hills restaurant, or if going to a fancy gala, like a black tie affair, a catered wedding reception or something else similarly fancy. You go to see the Yanks play Detroit or Toronto and you need your car parked and retrieved for you? I hear the words "expense account" and "entertaining clients" screaming softly in the background.

I figure that these people may use the "cruise control" option for much of their lives anyway, not that mine is any bit more important than theirs.

[Silver Blaze]

Who needs valet service to park a car? Maybe I'll get some guy to park a VW bug, tip him, of course, and bring it back to me when the game's over.




Regardless of need, $56 is beyond a joke.