Renovation work continues at NBT Bank Stadium, as the Syracuse Mets (Class AAA; International League) prepare to debut several ballpark upgrades when the 2020 season begins.
Over this offseason, NBT Bank Stadium has been undergoing the first round of a multiyear renovation project that is expected to wrap up by the 2021 season. For the 2020 campaign, the upgrades will address several of the ballpark, with new, larger seats with cupholders to be installed along with other changes to the seating arrangement that include a terraced area behind home plate, drink rail seating down the left-field line, berms down both foul lines, and bleachers in some parts of the upper deck. In addition to those changes, the ballpark is receiving a paint job to match the Mets’ color scheme, new LED lighting, and the left-field wall is being moved in
Construction work continues to unfold at the ballpark and is making progress, according to Onondaga County Department of Facilities Management commissioner Archie Wixson. With the improvements for 2020, fans should mainly see a wider variety of seating options, including the upgrades to traditional seating, along with the debut of a terraced area with hi-top tables and berm areas. More from LocalSYR.com:
Wixson says, “The county is very excited to see the progress here, I know the Mets are too. I speak with the Mets every week.”
He says there will be a section behind home plate that will be terraced so that shaped tables, swivel seating, and hi-tops with stools can be installed there to add a new fan experience.
“That’s the practice now in the professional baseball is to give that full experience to our patrons here,” Wixson tells NewsChannel 9.
It’s the same idea behind a new feature at NBT Bank Stadium that fans will find at the ends of the first and third base lines on the lower level, basically lawn seating.
Per details on the project that emerged back in the fall, upgrades that will be completed in 2021 are expected to include a bar area behind the left-field wall, the renovation and expansion of the Hank Sauer Room and party deck in right field, a new playing surface, expanded entrances, and the relocation of bullpens to behind the outfield wall. Upgrades to NBT Bank Stadium are the result of an agreement approved by Onondaga County in July that includes a 25-year lease extension with the Mets and $25 million in ballpark renovations.
The approval came after the county and New York Mets, owner and parent club of the Syracuse Mets, mapped out long-term plans that include a ballpark lease extension through 2043, along with the $25 million renovation project. The cost of the project is being equally split between $12.5 million in local bonding, and a $12.5 million state grant.
Renderings courtesy EwingCole.
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