Not a surprise: the Ryan Companies/AECOM/Julie Snow Architects bid was approved by St. Paul officials for the design/build contract for a new St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) ballpark.
The group received initial approval for the contract before a public outcry and pressure from Gov. Mark Dayton forced city officials to put the project out to bid.
“We are thrilled that this part of the process is complete, and that we are able to move forward to build the ballpark with a company that we know will be responsive and responsible, has demonstrated experience, and will hit the ground running,” Mayor Chris Coleman said via press release. “This ballpark will be an attraction for families across the region, it will add vitality to our community, it will bring 400,000 people to downtown yearly, and create hundreds of jobs. With this decision, we are one significant step closer to playing baseball in Lowertown.”
Three groups ended up bidding for the project, which calls for a new Lowertown ballpark for the Saints by 2015.
The city will begin negotiations with Ryan on various proposed design and project management fees to help achieve maximum value based on the current project budget of $54 million.
“We are so thrilled to win this project and continue our longstanding partnership with the City of Saint Paul and the St. Paul Saints. Based on our extensive past experience on this project, we knew we would submit a very competitive proposal. The Ryan team has a lot of experience and we look forward to leveraging our design/build expertise on this project,” said Pat Ryan, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ryan Companies US, Inc. “We recognize how important this ballpark is not only to the residents of Saint Paul and Lowertown, but also to the entire region. We look forward to delivering a ballpark that is innovative, sustainable, and functional for many years to come.”
Image courtesy St. Paul Saints.
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