Austin would disagree with you. They’re secure in their image, and don’t have any desire to enter into the civic Ponzi scheme that big-time pro sports have become.

Different story entirely. Both of those cities received their pro sports franchises at a point in their histories when they were A LOT bigger than they currently are. It’s been more than 40 years since either of those cities have received an expansion team (the new Browns are a special circumstance), and both cities STILL have considerably more people in their metropolitan regions than Columbus does.

Look, I’m not trying to denigrate Columbus by saying that we’re not a pro sports town; just acknowledging reality. To be honest, I don’t think we need major league sports to be a great city. A large part of what makes this city a unique and special place is its relationship with OSU and its sports teams. Let’s focus on what this city does well and be the best at that, rather than try to be something we’re not.

So if we shouldn’t have pro sports in this city, does that mean we shouldn’t spend money on the arts in this city because there are many out there who just don’t like art? Should we not spend money on parks because not everyone uses them and many think it’s a waste of funds? Should we not spend money to pursue light rail because some people living here think it’s a boondoggle? The point I’m getting at is that different people visit and move to this city for different things, because we have a variety of amenities. Having that in Columbus promotes a variety of residents. Many people have chose to move here, whether you believe it or not, because of our choices in sports entertainment. I personally would not want to move to a city that lacks a pro sports team, but that’s just me. There are many out there like me. It’s another tool of attraction for this city and we need all the tools we can get.

And yes, Columbus is big and rich enough to support pro sports. A 1.8 million metro is nothing to laugh at. When the team starts winning, the people will come.

RBloodworth said:
Let’s stop pretending that we’re anything but a big college town, and own it!

You’re more than welcome to pretend that college football is the only thing that matters and enjoy it. No reason that anyone else needs to think that way.

NHL cancels All-Star Game, ‘feels badly’ for Columbus hockey fans
Business First by Doug Buchanan, Managing editor
Date: Saturday, November 24, 2012, 7:15am EST

The National Hockey League made official what Columbus Blue Jackets fans have been dreading for months by cancelling the city’s long-awaited shot at hosting the NHL All-Star Game.

READ MORE: http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/blog/2012/11/nhl-cancels-all-star-game-feels.html

I’m surprised anyone has even noticed the lockout. Seems like a non-event in town.

MoneyDragon said:
but they too will find other work.

You have employment for them? Try finding permanent employment this time of year, especially to replace the jobs they were working at the arena.

I believe the cancellation allows all of the people who had paid for tickets in order to secure their seats for the all-star game to get their money back. Lots of checks will be coming out of the CBJ offices this week, and I wonder how many of those fans choose not to spend money with them next year. What a cluster**** of greed the NHL is.