Court 13 is reserved everyday on the queuing system because it's always a Challenge Court. Anyone can sign up for it by using the paper behind the court or you can call next. Thats how its like at the other BBC in Burlingame too. It's fun when you win haha, stay on longer.
So I played at BBC3 yesterday. We started playing at 2:30, and there were only 6 other people playing in the whole facility. One or two people trickled in, but that's basically how it was until 5ish. Then it filled in a hurry, but despite the three courts reserved for coaching, there were just enough people to fill the courts. We ended up finishing around 7:15 (we got hungry ), and no one used our empty court while we were packing up. I looked back right before we walked out the door and the court was still vacant. On a side note, it was quite warm til 5 when they finally turned on the AC.
methinks that we need to start a thread for each gym to report how busy each one is on particular days. this will be useful for future references.
i was in the area earlier today so i dropped by and take a look at the Bintang5 site. very very nice location. accessible as it is between Calaveras and Montague, close to 680/880, and the road is nicely lined by trees. neighbors appears to be high tech companies. there is a notice at the front telling neighbors about the pending condition permit hearing. the building looks quite enormous even though Bintang5 will be occupying just 1/2 of it.
the details are out: http://www.ci.milpitas.ca.gov/_pdfs/commissions/pc/2010/082510/ph_01.pdf total 23 courts. seems a bit packed.
23 courts wow no more wait times would be great to play here.. based on google maps Bintang5 at Yosemite dr is walking distance from BBC3.. interesting
this area will have some pretty stiff competition. Bintang5 (23 courts), BBC3 (12 courts) and CBA (18 courts) slightly up north. each place have plenty of courts for everyone. the differentiating factor between the 3 will be quality of service and user experience.
It would be nice for a couple of people to do a full comparison between the three on the same night. Like say, on a typical Friday night.
Great investigative skills, kwun, thanks for sharing the 127 page (!) permit. With ~50% of the populations of Milpitas and Fremont being Asian, and CBA and UBC being so heavily trafficked, hopefully the market can sustain this new 23-court facility. Even in light of the economy, Asian parents are always looking to supplement their children's schooling with a variety of activities -- e.g. cram/prep schools in the area are popping up left and right! Hope Bintang got a great lease on this property, in light of the real estate doldrum.
Let's hope all the club owners have done an exceptional job in their business planning. There will be 60+ full-time courts within a 3 miles radius. As long as everyone can make enough money to stay in business, that would be great. Keep the cost down, better facility, better services, and lots of court time for us fans. Hate to see anyone lose money for such noble ventures. This is badminton heaven!
I was at BBC3 today and they didn't reserve Court 13 until like 8 PM. I actually haven't seen the paper being used except once.
i didn't read the whole 127 agenda report but what caught my attention was the "installation of a chemical monitoring system" ..... pretty much the same as what i saw when i first went to smash city 4 or 5 yrs ago
The ammonia sensor is still functioning as far as I could tell when I went to BBC3/Smash City, and while I understand dangers of ammonia inhalation, I don't understand why ammonia would be a plausible danger in a badminton facility. Unless it was a leftover from the warehouse days. A thermostat set to 78 degrees would be much more useful.
I remember, while flipping through the pages of the CBA application, some mention of specialized resistant glass be in use in the event nearby commercial businesses exploded/leaked industrial hazards into the vicinity. I imagine these gas sensors that are mentioned in the Bintang package refer to something similar, so as to protect the patrons from some industrial hazard.
i listened to the planning commission meeting for Bintang5. the commissioners spent quite a bit of time to discuss the sensors and who's the responsbility it is to have those sensors. being in an industrial zone like Bintang5 and BBC3 (and probably most badminton facilities) it is a proper concern for the planning commission to have those sensors installed. they also mentioned locked in procedure which i think is for such accidents. i think it is very routine. also interesting in the hearing was the concern letter from "the other badminton facility" in the city, opposing the Bintang5 plan. citing potential economic and parking issues. the commissioner quickly shot down the former and addressed the latter issue. the plan was approved. congrats to Phuu and Stella. the archived meeting webcast is here in case you have tons of free time. http://milpitas.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?publish_id=413
I wonder when it would officially open. Last time they pre-announced a similar sized Bintang4 about 6 months ahead.
let me ask Stella. or she could just tell us here. with something this grand of a scale, i don't expect it to be open until at least early next year. and i hope they won't use those horrible looking net poles in SSF. they are too tall and ghetto.
Thanks for the link, kwun. Congratulations to the Khus indeed, I wonder if Phuu's right elbow is in a support
