York County is coming closer to a decision on the future of Knights Stadium, home of the Charlotte Knights (Class AAA; International League) — and the ballpark’s future is not looking too bright.
It’s really a two-part decision: if the ballpark is to stay, what future use could it serve? An easy decision would be to tear down the ballpark and then sell the 33 acres of Fort Mill, S.C. land for development: while not ideal for a facility serving the greater Charlotte area, the location next to the freeway and across the state line would surely be attractive for a developer (or developers) seeking to bring retail and housing to the area.
If the ballpark is kept, then the decision remains on how to reuse the facility in a financially advantageous way, which may include conversion to a county fairground or equestrian facility. But these sorts of uses are more speculative and less likely to be attractive to a developer.
The word here is that county officials are leaning toward tearing down the ballpark. We should know within a month: at the end of August the city manager is expected to make a recommendation.
RELATED STORIES: Knights meet deadline for ballpark-funding plan; Next up for Charlotte Knights: a ballpark financing plan; Charlotte approves $8 million for new Knights ballpark; Reese to try once again to torpedo new Charlotte ballpark; Majority of Charlotte council members supports Knights ballpark funding; Knights notch another major sponsor; Knights sign BB&T for new-ballpark naming rights; City OK’s Knights funding request, at lower level; Charlotte outlines ballpark funding plan; Knights: We’ve met big condition for new ballpark; Reese returns with another anti-Knights lawsuit; Economics of new Charlotte ballpark iffy: Mayor; Economic of new Charlotte ballpark questioned; Knights make economic case for city funding of new ballpark; Charlotte may help fund new Knights ballpark; More legal silliness in Charlotte; Back from the dead! Mecklenburg Co. moves forward with Knights ballpark; Rising from the ashes: A new Knights ballpark
—-
Share your news with the baseball community. Send it to us at editors@augustpublications.com.
Are you a subscriber to the weekly Ballpark Digest newsletter? You can sign up for a free subscription at the Newsletter Signup Page.
Join Ballpark Digest on Facebook and on Twitter!
Follow Ballpark Digest on Google + and add us to your circles!
Meanwhile, the new Knights ballpark is still on course to open for the 2014 season.