MountainStar Sports Group–the owner of the El Paso Chihuahuas (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League)–is seeking about $1.2 million in capital improvements for Southwest University Park.
In a request that will be considered on Tuesday, the El Paso City Council is being asked to approve an updated five-year plan for capital improvements to the ballpark. An earlier five-year plan was approved by the city council last February and amounted to roughly $900,000, while the updated plan would come out to about $1.2 million.
Southwest University Park is owned by the city, with MountainStar leasing the facility. More from The El Paso Times:
The first five-year plan approved by City Council in February 2017 totaled about $900,000, city documents show. The updated plan for about $1.2 million is about $350,000 more and includes added backstop netting, sidewalk improvements as well as concession stands and building improvements, among others.
Officials with MountainStar couldn’t immediately be reached for comment Saturday.
“It’s our building at the end of the day,” City Manager Tommy Gonzalez said during a recent council meeting where ballpark revenues were presented to the Downtown Development Corporation.
Under the terms of their agreement, the city is to be responsible for capital improvements to the ballpark, while MountainStar assumes routine maintenance and operations. Southwest University Park has been the Chihuahuas’ home since its opening in 2014. In the year of its debut, Southwest University Park received Ballpark Digest’s Best New Ballpark Award.