The Richmond City Council made it official last night: Residents will not get to choose the location of a new Richmond Flying Squirrels (Class AA; Eastern League) ballpark.
Council President Charles R. Samuels had proposed putting the location to voters in the form of a fall referendum. And while that initially was seen as a good thing — the issue did shift to the location of a ballpark, not whether a new ballpark should be built — in the end the council decided not to take that course of action, saying land-use decisions shoudn’t be left to a majority vote.
That leaves things where they were before, with residents and the Flying Squirrels ownership waiting to hear from Mayor Dwight Jones on a ballpark plan. Jones has floated Shockoe Bottom as a potential ballpark site, but some residents oppose that, saying that the former slave-trading site is more suited to a museum. It’s an issue Jones will need to address. The Flying Squirrels currently play at The Diamond on the outskirts of town; one proposal has a new ballpark built in that area, with The Diamond torn down and the space used for parking.
RELATED STORIES: Flying Squirrels: Fans don’t know what they are missing; Richmond committee: Don’t put ballpark location to vote; Richmond ballpark location may be decided by voters; New Richmond ballpark: on or off?; Shockoe Bottom gaining momentum as Flying Squirrels ballpark site?; Progress made on new Richmond ballpark: McEacharn; MiLB squirrelly about new Richmond ballpark; Flying Squirrels: New ballpark still a priority; Flying Squirrels extend Diamond lease, setting stage for ballpark improvements; Experts: Downtown ballpark could revitalize Richmond; Squirrels: No plans to leave Richmond “at the present time”; Didn’t take long: Opposition rises to Richmond Shockoe Bottom ballpark site; Richmond ballpark discussion shifts back to Shockoe Bottom; Manchester in play as well; Richmond: Yes, we really do intend on building a new ballpark; Budget issues postpone Squirrels ballpark to 2015 at the earliest; New Richmond ballpark by 2014?; DiBella: Time to start talking new ballpark; Flying Squirrels throw out first offer on new ballpark; Baseball returns to Richmond’s Diamond — but for how long?
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