Though city officials were still holding out hope that the Edmonton Prospects (summer collegiate; WCBL) would continue to play at RE/MAX Field despite awarding a lease to a competing group, President Patrick Cassidy confirmed the team would be moving a new Spruce Grove ballpark for the 2022 season.
Tentatively called Spruce Grove Metro Ballpark pending a future naming-rights sale, the new ballpark development will feature a 360-degree wraparound concourse, suite, party decks and a merchandise store. Housing and a microbrewery will be located off left field, with a amphitheater located on the opposite side of the brewery. The privately financed ballpark will anchor a new highway commercial/retail district developed by Victor Moroz with Metro Horizon Corp.; no estimate yet on the cost of the project.
The Prospects were forced to look for a new home after former Edmonton Oiler Dr. Randy Gregg acquired a 10-year lease from the city to operate RE/MAX Field; the Prospects had also submitted a bid. Both bids called for the redevelopment of the ballpark site, but in the end the city went with the Gregg proposal, which deemphasized baseball and stressed more event dates by featuring a broader array of programming, including non-sporting events.
“While this move has been speculated by many for some time, it was never the official position of the Company as Gold Sports continued to seek an agreement to keep the Edmonton Prospects Baseball Club at RE/MAX Field in Edmonton’s beautiful river valley,” Cassidy, President of Gold Sports and Entertainment, the Prospects’ owner, said via press release. “While City of Edmonton officials both on Council and within Administration had indicated that they wanted to work with a new operating model for the ballpark they had also clearly conveyed their strong desires to keep the Edmonton Prospects and the Western Canadian Baseball League at RE/MAX Field. While this in the end did NOT prove to be the City’s priority–it does now provide the Corporation with an ability to focus its full attention and resources on an exciting opportunity in the Greater Metro Edmonton Region (GMER) and namely Spruce Grove, Alberta.”
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