Many of us shared the same immediate reaction: How could we justify a new soccer stadium, especially after spending $30 million not long ago to build P&C Stadium, a facility that's supposed to handle many sports?

Yet here's a second thought, based on a round of calls to local coaches, offered with absolute awareness of the shaky finances of this city, its school district and the state:

Syracuse could benefit from a downtown stadium built mainly for lacrosse - where the Salty Dogs would be welcome as a tenant. What makes the concept more than a useless notion is the way lacrosse coaches and volunteers almost universally agree on how much they need that stadium.

To make it work, in these hard times, would demand financial genius.

Brian Elwell, Onondaga County's superintendent at P&C Stadium, said SkyChiefs baseball takes priority at P&C in early spring, which leaves the field unavailable for lacrosse. But Elwell warned that any new stadium would require millions to put it up, money for the salaries of the people who'd run it and money for the bills and operating costs.

"Who'd pay for it?" Elwell asked.

The new stadium would also

need to succeed without the presence of Syracuse University, whose athletic director, Jake Crouthamel, said the championship SU lacrosse team is happy on campus, in the Carrier Dome.

Even so, many in the lacrosse community say a new stadium could make sense downtown.

"There's always a demand," said Dan Sheehan, men's lacrosse coach at Le Moyne College, whose Dolphins just won the NCAA Division II championship. Sheehan said colleges from outside Onondaga County regularly schedule games in greater Syracuse, simply for a presence in such a hotbed of skilled young players.

Liverpool High School athletic director George Mangicaro said his school's field - covered with artificial turf - is often rented by those college teams, some of whom would probably decide to go downtown.

In the pastfew months, Liverpool hosted lacrosse games involving St. Bonaventure, the University of California at Berkeley, the University of Vermont, Canisius College, Oswego State, Geneseo State and St. Lawrence University. Coaches bring those teams to Liverpool both for recruiting purposes and to avoid wear and tear on grass fields, Mangicaro said.

"I'm for as many all-purpose fields as we can get in Central New York," Mangicaro said. "It would hurt us a little bit, but the more synthetic fields we can get in this climate, the better."

The proposal for a downtown stadium intrigues John Sardella, of Liverpool, one of the founders of the Brine Upstate Lacrosse League, a booming Central New York youth instructional program. He expressed excitement about a downtown facility where colleges, high schools and youth leagues "could run games all day long."

The proposal will rise or fall based on harsh economics. At a time when the Syracuse city schools face a massive shortfall, at a time when city leaders stare into a deep financial hole, a new stadium is not easy to rationalize. Kuhl and other backers suggest linking the project to commercial or residential projects that might generate some cash.

One possibility, if everything fell exactly right, would be attaching the stadium to the Lacrosse Museum and National Hall of Fame, now in Baltimore.

Steve Stenersen, executive director of U.S. Lacrosse at Johns Hopkins University, said his organization is out of room in its building, which includes the Hall of Fame. "Our first attempt would be to see what's available in the Baltimore area, because Baltimore's been good to us," Stenersen said.

If it doesn't work out, U.S. Lacrosse would consider a new town - and the Greater Syracuse Convention & Visitors Bureau is eager to make a pitch. John Rathbun, the convention bureau's sporting events coordinator, said the goal would be tying the Hall of Fame into a new downtown stadium.

"We're all fired up about this," Rathbun said. "They've outgrown their space (in Baltimore), and one of the things we'd like to do with this stadium is turn it into an attraction for 12 months a year."

So Kuhl - in suggesting a new home for a soccer team - has kicked off a wistful discussion about a stadium tailored for lacrosse. One dream, for instance, would include innovative stadium architecture that brought in elements of Iroquois design.

If a way could be found to actually make that work, it might satisfy all those highly paid visiting consultants who keep telling us to focus on what makes this town unique:

What other city dreams about a downtown showcase, for lacrosse?

Sean Kirst is a columnist with The Post-Standard. His columns appear Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Call him at 470-6015 or e-mail him at citynews@syracuse.com.

© 2004 The Post-Standard. Used with permission.