local NFL observations, just in time for SB XLVIII!

I was at the above mentioned Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ this afternoon for the 1st NFL game of either of the 2 NFL teams that call that stadium home (which, in this case, would be the Jets), & throughout the game (which was actually quite unexpected, @ least for all the New Orleans fans who dared to invade N.J. on this particular afternoon….. http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2013110303/2013/REG9/saints@jets#menu=highlights&tab=recap), & even on the way into & out of the stadium, I noticed some things on the local roadways that suggested that SB XLVIII won't be an entirely positive experience around here for the fans of the 2 NFL teams that make it that far! Perhaps the most well-known of the problems surrounding the Meadowlands is this monstrosity known throughout the past decade under various names: Meadowlands Xanadu (2003-2007), Xanadu Meadowlands (2007-09), Meadowlands (2009-11), & the American Dream Meadowlands (2011-present)….. Originally conceived by the now-bankrupt Mills Corporation, it got transferred to various development companies, & in that time, it got that downright ugly color scheme that I'm sure all of you people have already seen numerous times in print & online!

(that's 1 ugly color scheme!)

(the ugly color scheme as seen from the now-rebranded Hilton Meadowlands)

Even though the project has been delayed by numerous bankruptcies & ownership transfers, not to mention being called all kinds of names (none of which are exactly PG-13 enough for this blog, unfortunately), that's not the only problem plaguing next February's SB XLVIII! The NFL, along with the states of N.J. & NY, has designated practically all of NYC the unofficial "host" of all the usual pre-SB activities, but, as they say in TV infomercials, "that's not all"; they've even designated Montclair (population 37,669) as the "official" "host" for "hospitality" for that entire week, which, having been in that municipality numerous times over the years, I understand that the NFL would much rather have a cleanish location (like Montclair or Bloomfield) representing the host region instead of a ghettoish location (like Paterson or Passaic, which I, for some strange reason, absolutely must bash every time I mention them online!)….. On top of the lack of representation on the N.J. side of this whole collaboration, there were apparently a few battles earlier this year between local mayors & the stadium, which lead to threats from the mayors to withhold their cops from the stadium for the actual game! (http://www.nj.com/bergen/index.ssf/2013/02/meadowlands_mayors_threaten_to_withhold_emergency_services_during_super_bowl.html#incart_river)

(http://www.northjersey.com/news/190502801_Mayors_resisting_Super_Bowl_cost.html?page=all)

I don't see the "hospitality", however, in those 2 particular locations (Bloomfield & Montclair), just for the reason that they don't actually have any hotels! If you want hotels around here, people, you'd have to look far outside those municipalities for a hotel stay….. East Rutherford itself has a few hotel options, such as Extended Stay America & the place that was a Sheraton for over a 1/4-century before becoming a Hilton earlier this year! Secaucus, which is just to the east of East Rutherford, has an Econo Lodge, a Holiday Inn, a Hilton Garden Inn, a Rodeway Inn (1 of their few NYC-area locations), an Embassy Suites, & a Crowne Plaza, all of which offer views of either NYC or Newark, N.J., depending on which direction your hotel room faces! Obviously, there are quite a few other locations between the stadium & NYC that will keep you people traveling over here with your teams for a few days, but those are just the lodging facilities closest to the stadium itself!