OT--Curt Pringle's Last Day?

[wbaxter1]

Tomorrow (Nov. 7) is Election Day. A Mayor of Anaheim (and the other OC Cities) will be elected. Was Mayor Pringle acting in the interest of Anaheim Reisdents throughout The City's legal battles with The Angels? After tommorrow, we'll know for sure.

[wbaxter1]

11/7/06--8:35pm (pst) Results in So Far:

CURT PRINGLE 10646 80.7%
WILLIAM FITZGERALD 2542 19.3%

Landslide!

>" Was Mayor Pringle acting in the interest of Anaheim Reisdents throughout The City's legal battles with The Angels, or himself? "<

That's your answer.

[CaliforniaCajun]

Originally Posted by wbaxter1

11/7/06--8:35pm (pst) Results in So Far:

CURT PRINGLE 10646 80.7%
WILLIAM FITZGERALD 2542 19.3%

Landslide!

>" Was Mayor Pringle acting in the interest of Anaheim Reisdents throughout The City's legal battles with The Angels, or himself? "<

That's your answer.

I grew up primarily in Orange County and it was known for decades as one of the most conservative counties in the US. They voted Republican in every presidential election from 1936-1992. I was 8 at the time of the 1964 election and going by the signs in our neighborhood I thought Goldwater was going to win.

As you know, I really think the name change was necessary to demonstrate to fans, media, potential sponsors that it represented everyone in the entire L.A. market of which Anaheim is a part. In 1961, the Angels paid the Dodgers $350,000 to share the same territorial rights and to acquire the name "Angels." It doesn't matter where specifically in this territory where they are located, because both of them serve the same marketplace.

I have the precedent of seeing my alma mater benefit from a similar change. There was a newspaper article a couple of years ago that said federal research grants had increased from something like $3 million to $37 million since the change. The university thinks that the new name suggests that it is larger in size and scope, and attracts more attention for the same thing. The name changed from University of Southwestern Louisiana to University of Louisiana, Lafayette.

The Angels have similarly benefitted from their name change, as evidenced by the FOX TV contract, financial stability, record attendance, the third-highest payroll, one of the lowest "ballpark experience" prices for the fans, three consecutive winning seasons for the first time, and two consecutive division titles for the first time.

The politicians are fighting the name change because they think not taking a stand against it will hurt them politically. Pringle told Moreno just that. They are creating fears in peoples' minds that this owner predetermined before buying the team that he was going to move it. Before he tells everybody he is going to stay in Anaheim, he needs to know that he can work with the City of Anaheim, and that the park will remain up to MLB standards for the forseeable future. The Big A is 40 years old. Look at how many stadiums were replaced within 40 or fewer years: Candlestick Park, Three Rivers Stadium, Riverfront Stadium, Veteran's Stadium, Kingdome, Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, Jack Murphy Stadium, Astrodome, Busch Stadium. The Metrodome will soon be replaced. The Big A was remodeled in the mid-90s but it's still a 40-year-old stadium.

I hope something can be worked out.

[wbaxter1]

What I am saying is that if the People of Anaheim were fed up with Mayor Pringle "Wasting Taxpayer's money" they probably would have voted Pringle out, and William Fitzgerald in. Pringle has won the election by a landslide, which tells me that Pringle was doing what the people of Anaheim wanted. Mayor Pringle answers to 328,000 Residents of Anaheim, CA; not to Angels Fans. If Pringle is doing what the people of that city wants, he is not wasting Anaheim Taxpayer's money. And yes, this is a political thing.

As far as the stadium, its is not in the best of shape at the moment according to some of the posts I have read on The Official Angels Board. A section of the stands was shut down by The Dept. of Health, and the restrooms have been tagged with grafitti. What I'm nOT sure of is whether that is the fault of Arte Moreno, or the city refusing to put anymore money into the upkeep of the stadium. If The City of Anaheim is choosing to be Arte's "Slumlord," I think he and The Angels would be better off in L.A. Proper.