The Willmar Stingers (summer collegiate; Northwoods League) will remain at their home ballpark for another decade, as Willmar, MN officials have approved a 10-year lease extension with the team.
The Stingers have played at Bill Taunton Stadium since 2010, and will continue to do so through the next decade as part of a lease extension with the City of Willmar. Approved unanimously by the Willmar City Council on Monday, the lease extension will go into effect late next month and run until late August 2029.
Previously the city had approved two five-year leases with the Stingers, so the 10-year extension will mark the third such agreement between the two parties. More from the West Central Tribune:
The new lease will go into effect on Aug. 25 and expire on Aug. 25, 2029. The first two leases were for five years each, but for the third, the lease length was doubled. Stingers will pay the city $450 per weekday game and $350 per weekend game for use of Bill Taunton Stadium and Baker Field. The rental rate will increase $10 per year for the life of the lease.
The team will be responsible for cleaning the stadium following each game and will also prepare the field for games on the weekends. This will save the city approximately $7,000 a year. In the past the city had been doing the stadium cleanup and all the field preparation. The city will continue to maintain the field.
In exchange for cleaning the facility, the Stingers will get the advertising rights, use of the concession stand and office and storage space at the stadium.
Baseball has been played at the site of Bill Taunton Stadium for decades, though much of the current facility was constructed as part of a 2005-2006 renovation that included a new grandstand.