Experiences / comments re: gameday parking for East Bank River Flats area

[Inigo Montoya]

Trying to decided whether to purchase a parking pass again this year. In the past I've elected to park in in the Oak Street Ramp which requires no additional donations. Purchasing a parking pass that allows tailgating is cost prohibitive at this time.

Each time I go downstairs I'm reminded how much I miss putting together my own tailgate by looking at all the tailgating paraphenalia I have in storage - tents, chairs, coolers, grills, etc....

Anyway, I'd be interested to hear from those of you who have parked / tailgated in the East Bank River Flats area below Coffman Union on gameday. How is the atmosphere? Family friendly / mixed age crowd? Is there any tailgating scene to speak of? How early do tailgaters arrive? Is it cumbersome / time-prohibitive to get to the game? Do you use the shuttle pick-up in front of Coffman Union on Washington Avenue to get to the games or just walk? Estimated walk time? Is traffic a pain when leaving is one where to leave shortly after the game? Price?

I understand the Washington Avenue Bridge will be undergoing massive modifications this fall for the light rail and will be down to 1 lane in each direction which could hamper traffic. Since this area falls under the Mpls Park Board how early is entrance allowed? Any deterences towards tailgating? Are port-a-potties available? Any overzealous Park Board wannbe cops roaming the area cracking down on fun?

I've anectdotally read that people really have enjoyed parking in the River Flats area and some think it of as a guarded secret. Any thoughts / advice would be appreciated.

 

[josh087]

Family friendly / mixed age crowd?

Mixed aged, but I would say it skews toward the younger crowd of <50, but not a ton of kids in their 20s are there I would say. So maybe somewhere in the middle.

Is there any tailgating scene to speak of?

There has only been a small tailgate crowd. Not the best if you want to mingle with others as people are pretty spread out along the grass. Perfect if you want some space to operate and not bump in to others or worry about cars all the time. Usually the lot fills up by gametime but I'd say at least 50% of the people just use it to park, not tailgate.

How early do tailgaters arrive?

For 11AM games the gates open at 7. For later games I believe the policy is to open 6 hours before the game, but I could be wrong. It changed from 2009 to 2010.

Is it cumbersome / time-prohibitive to get to the game?

Takes 15-20 min at most to walk. A lot less cumbersome than most places to get to TCF, especially if you are on the west bank or St. Paul

Do you use the shuttle pick-up in front of Coffman Union on Washington Avenue to get to the games or just walk?

Walk. No need for the shuttle. My 70-year old dad who just got a hip replacement and has back issues made the walk with no problems.

Estimated walk time?

15-20 min - mostly uphill on the way to the bank, downhill after the game.

Is traffic a pain when leaving is one where to leave shortly after the game?

It was last year because of all of the construction by coffman/comstock hall. In 2009 it wasn't bad at all. You can avoid the whole Univ. Ave/4th St. debacle, and you're right on the edge of the east bank to begin with. I would avoid heading east and using the ramps by Oak St to get on the freeway - that area is always jammed up.

Price?

In 2009 and 2010 it was $10 per car. That includes both parking AND tailgating rights. Can't beat it.

 

[gopherguy05]

Trying to decided whether to purchase a parking pass again this year. In the past I've elected to park in in the Oak Street Ramp which requires no additional donations. Purchasing a parking pass that allows tailgating is cost prohibitive at this time.

Each time I go downstairs I'm reminded how much I miss putting together my own tailgate by looking at all the tailgating paraphenalia I have in storage - tents, chairs, coolers, grills, etc....

Anyway, I'd be interested to hear from those of you who have parked / tailgated in the East Bank River Flats area below Coffman Union on gameday. How is the atmosphere? Family friendly / mixed age crowd? Is there any tailgating scene to speak of? How early do tailgaters arrive? Is it cumbersome / time-prohibitive to get to the game? Do you use the shuttle pick-up in front of Coffman Union on Washington Avenue to get to the games or just walk? Estimated walk time? Is traffic a pain when leaving is one where to leave shortly after the game? Price?

I understand the Washington Avenue Bridge will be undergoing massive modifications this fall for the light rail and will be down to 1 lane in each direction which could hamper traffic. Since this area falls under the Mpls Park Board how early is entrance allowed? Any deterences towards tailgating? Are port-a-potties available? Any overzealous Park Board wannbe cops roaming the area cracking down on fun?

I've anectdotally read that people really have enjoyed parking in the River Flats area and some think it of as a guarded secret. Any thoughts / advice would be appreciated.

If I remember correctly one major drawback was that the lot did not open until 8 am on 11 am kickoff days.....

 

[GoAUpher]

josh~
To confirm, the lot was open at 7am for 11am games? I ask only because the 2011 flyer from the parks board says 8am. (link to the pdf) We've considered moving from the WB to the ERF lot I was wondering about that start time.

 

[Inigo Montoya]

josh~
To confirm, the lot was open at 7am for 11am games? I ask only because the 2011 flyer from the parks board says 8am. (link to the pdf) We've considered moving from the WB to the ERF lot I was wondering about that start time.

GoAUpher, good find on the pdf. Opening at 7am vs. 8am is a huge difference for an 11am kickoff when you need to account for tailgate setup and breakdown, a 20 minute walk to stadium, entry into stadium and then gettting to ones seat. Broken down more succinctly - that is 2 less beers prior to kickoff.

Many pluses to the East River Flats. One thing I forgot to ask in the original post if there are people that bring in their TV / satellite dishes and watch games. Not that I want to mooch but do want to keep abreast of the day's games. I imagine most of the die-hard fans that do such elaborate tailgate setups are already in the donation-only lots.

 

[GoAUpher]

GoAUpher, good find on the pdf. Opening at 7am vs. 8am is a huge difference for an 11am kickoff when you need to account for tailgate setup and breakdown, a 20 minute walk to stadium, entry into stadium and then gettting to ones seat. Broken down more succinctly - that is 2 less beers prior to kickoff.

Many pluses to the East River Flats. One thing I forgot to ask in the original post if there are people that bring in their TV / satellite dishes and watch games. Not that I want to mooch but do want to keep abreast of the day's games. I imagine most of the die-hard fans that do such elaborate tailgate setups are already in the donation-only lots.

Thanks. They've had one online for both seasons but I can't recall if that 8am thing is a change or not and I never saved previous versions (no need obviously). Since I think we can safely assume that josh's car has a clock that means either A) the opening time was 7 and is being moved to 8 or B) it's been 8 but hasn't been enforced. And I agree, factoring in the setup/teardown time is important, especially since for us the extra time required to walk from our WB isn't substantially more then what we'd face from ERF.

 

[Breakin' The Plane]

See you there. We've been on the WB for 2 years and it's time for a change.

 

[josh087]

Thanks. They've had one online for both seasons but I can't recall if that 8am thing is a change or not and I never saved previous versions (no need obviously). Since I think we can safely assume that josh's car has a clock that means either A) the opening time was 7 and is being moved to 8 or B) it's been 8 but hasn't been enforced. And I agree, factoring in the setup/teardown time is important, especially since for us the extra time required to walk from our WB isn't substantially more then what we'd face from ERF.

They did change from 7 to 8 AM for the 11AM games this year. I can't remember if it was strictly enforced. I feel like I arrived for one of the 11AM games earlier than 8, but I can't say for sure.

As for satellite dishes I can't remember anyone in the lot ever watching another college football game during the day.

For the record I approve of this. As a DVR snob I record as many games as I can and watch them later - the last thing I want is for scores to be revealed during the day, thereby ruining my fun when I get home after the game. I HATE when scores are displayed at games. Since this is no longer 1974, the showing of other games' scores should be outlawed. If you have to find out and just can't live with yourself without knowing the live score, just look it up on your phone. Sports is reality TV. If you're watching the Amazing Race finale, they don't interrupt the coverage to tell you who won Survivor. It should be the same way with sports.

 

[GoAUpher]

They did change from 7 to 8 AM for the 11AM games this year. I can't remember if it was strictly enforced. I feel like I arrived for one of the 11AM games earlier than 8, but I can't say for sure.

As for satellite dishes I can't remember anyone in the lot ever watching another college football game during the day.

For the record I approve of this. As a DVR snob I record as many games as I can and watch them later - the last thing I want is for scores to be revealed during the day, thereby ruining my fun when I get home after the game. I HATE when scores are displayed at games. Since this is no longer 1974, the showing of other games' scores should be outlawed. If you have to find out and just can't live with yourself without knowing the live score, just look it up on your phone. Sports is reality TV. If you're watching the Amazing Race finale, they don't interrupt the coverage to tell you who won Survivor. It should be the same way with sports.

Thanks Josh!

 

[Hates Monikers]

We park there for every game. I can't believe there aren't more tailgaters. It's the best deal in town by far at only $10. A relatively short (and nice) walk to the stadium.

Usually, we make the 10-minute walk to Sally's before the game. We only tailgate once or twice a season, simply because there aren't many tailgaters there. But last season was better there than Year One, and I expect it to improve again next season. A lot of great space to throw a football around, a good mix of people, and easy to get into.

 

[ilovethebarn]

ERF

I tailgated there once this season and really enjoyed it. I will definitely make it back a couple of times this season.

My question is can we use charcoal grill there? I seem to remember no, but does anyone know differently?

 

[Breakin' The Plane]

I tailgated there once this season and really enjoyed it. I will definitely make it back a couple of times this season.

My question is can we use charcoal grill there? I seem to remember no, but does anyone know differently?

If I recall, the Park Board's rules for tailgating pretty much mirror the U's and the U says "nyet" to charcoal grills.

 

[GoAUpher]

If I recall, the Park Board's rules for tailgating pretty much mirror the U's and the U says "nyet" to charcoal grills.

Correct. The pdf I linked to above covers all those details and as far as I can tell they basically lifted the U's tailgate policy language word for word.

 

[Tee09]

Keep it quiet. It's a great spot.

 

[ilovethebarn]

Keep it quiet. It's a great spot.

yes keep it quiet please.

 

[GophersInIowa]

I personally think the location sucks and I would avoid it as much as possible.

 

[RedPoo]

Agreed.
Walking up that hill after a couple beers and tube steaks is just asking for a heart attack for you older fans.
And for the young tailgaters out there, the lack of college women or atmosphere in general is horrible.
I'm doing everyone a favor by parking/tailgating there for most games, thereby pushing people who want a good time elsewhere. But I don't expect everyone else to be as noble as me. There are rare few of us who can tolerate cheap parking in the middle of a wide-open park, surrounded by trees, right next to the river, a marathon ten-minute walk to the stadium.

 

[Ski U Master]

Don't park here it totally sucks! I am taking one for the team by parking there and making the most of it. STAY AWAY!!!!

 

[Killjoy]

Time to take one for the team

Don't park here it totally sucks! I am taking one for the team by parking there and making the most of it. STAY AWAY!!!!

You guys have suffered long enough. It time for the rest of us to take one for the team!

Maybe I should charter a bus and sell bus tickets from this hell hole to TCF. I expect now that your nasty little secret is out business will be great.

 

[HouseOfHagen]

And to think every time I attended a game in the past, I've always parked in lousy St. Paul. Thanks to Inigo for pointing this lot out. I (and many others) will now make this our choice of parking destination.

 

[Omega015]

In 2009 and 2010 it was $10 per car. That includes both parking AND tailgating rights. Can't beat it.

The West Bank tailgate lots are $70/year, which is $10/game. Same price.

 

[josh087]

The West Bank tailgate lots are $70/year, which is $10/game. Same price.

Same price, closer bank.