It sounds like the independent Atlantic League might be able to pull off what the New York Mets, the New York Islanders and the Eastern League failed to do: build a new ballpark in Nassau County.
Talks are beginning between league officials and Nassau County officials about a new ballpark, which could open as soon as 2013 if things come together soon. We’re talking about a fairly standard Atlantic League ballpark, along the lines of what’s been built in Southern Maryland or York. Under the plan, Nassau County would borrow the money to build the ballpark, to be paid back by rent paid on the ballpark. Nothing is imminent: a groundbreaking probably wouldn’t happen until 2012 at the earliest — and, as all in baseball knows, anything projected more than six months out is a guess at the very best.
As you’ll recall, a proposed Eastern League ballpark for a Mets farm team owned by the Wilpons was once part of the ambitious Lighthouse project proposed by the New York Islanders. As support for the project withered away, so did the inclusion of a ballpark in the plan.
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