The architectural firm Provencher_Roy has reportedly designed renderings depicting a new Montreal ballpark, a city with major league ambitions.
The design concepts for a new ballpark in downtown Montreal were commissioned by Stephen Bronfman, a Montreal businessman and the son of former Montreal Expos owner Charles Bronfman, according to a report from Global News. This is the latest development in the effort to bring a team to Montreal, where many officials–including mayor Denis Coderre–have expressed their desire to see Major League Baseball make its return.
Multiple design concepts have been created by Provencher_Roy. More from Global News:
The firm is working on two different models, after Bronfman rejected the initial design; one has a permanent roof and the other doesn’t have one at all.
Analysts explain the stadium models are a sign that Bronfman is pushing hard to bring the Expos back to Montreal.
“The fact that Provencher has been approached to put these plans together…shows us that the work is being done behind closed doors,” 98.5 FM sports analyst Jérémy Filosa said.
From arranging an ownership group and ballpark financing to obtaining a team, there is still plenty of work to be done to bring MLB back to Montreal. MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has mentioned Montreal as a potential market in previous comments, but has also been clear that expansion to 32 teams will have to wait until after the Oakland A’s and Tampa Bay Rays resolve their ballpark situations. The A’s are moving forward with a plan to construct a ballpark near Laney College in Oakland, but those discussions are still in the early stages, and the Rays have yet to announce a preferred site for a new ballpark in the Tampa Bay area.
Regardless, there are still signs of support for baseball in Montreal. Annual exhibitions featuring the Toronto Blue Jays at Olympic Stadium have drawn high crowds, and Coderre is reported to have extended an offer to host a series between the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees at Olympic Stadium after it was determined that the two teams could not play at Tropicana Field because of Hurricane Irma.
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