At 10:10 today (10/10…how clever!), the Sprint Center will open without an anchor tenant.

There are some people who think that’s a bad thing (*cough cough*). I’m not one of them.

Look, I realize that it sucks that people won’t have a specific team to root for over the next couple of years, but I will guarantee that there will be a basketball or hockey team (god forbid) in there before the end of 2008. The truth is that it doesn’t matter. The place is going to be wildly successful.

One of the most exciting things about it is that it all but assures the return of the Big 12 Tournament to its rightful place here in Kansas City. And while that might only be for a week in March, I’ve got an inside source that says that AEG has over 200 events lined up over the next year. Anchor tenants do not make money for facilities. They get free rent, they typically struggle through growing pains, and considering that our best bet is hockey…well…I’d rather get an Arena Football team.

I wish that folks would see the bright side of this arena. Hannah Montana, Garth Brooks, Elton John - these are acts wouldn’t come near Kansas City in the past because our facility was hopelessly outdated. They would have opted for other booming cities like Oklahoma City or Omaha who have had the foresight to actually build modern arenas. The only thing Kemper had to offer was the ghost of Owen Hart haunting the catwalks.

I recognize that you wish that you didn’t have to pay scalper prices for tickets, but you should be appreciative that we are getting those events to begin with. Would you rather have to travel to St. Louis and figure out a way to buy tickets there, travel, get a hotel room, etc.?

I am thrilled to have an arena of this caliber opening in Kansas City. Like I said, some of these events wouldn’t touch KC with a ten-foot pole until the new arena was built. And unlike the area surrounding Kemper Arena, the area surrounding the Sprint Center is already under development and will likely have some decent pull. Out of all the problems the Sprint Center has, I would imagine that there is not one that is larger than parking. And that will always be a problem until people make it a priority. I imagine that as soon as Paul Saleh or James Hance, Jr., can’t find parking, it will become quite a priority.

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