A plan to renovate a 3,500-capacity ballpark at Dallas’s Reverchon Park is now dead, as a group led by Dallas Mavericks general manager Donnie Nelson failed to submit documentation before a Sept. 30 deadline.
The 41-acre Reverchon Park includes a 1920s-era ballpark that is currently in use for high-school and amateur baseball teams, but the facility’s condition has fallen on hard times. A group led by Nelson–who, in addition to serving as Mavericks GM, is also an owner of the Texas AirHogs (independent; American Association), playing out of suburban Grand Prairie–has been seeking to lease and renovate the facility as part of a $10-million plan, allowing it to be used for events such as professional and amateur baseball (presumably American Association play), soccer, lacrosse, concerts and rugby.
The plan received initial approval from the Dallas City Council, but work stalled and the COVID-19 economy also impacted planning, as did a potential lawsuit seeking to overturn city approval of the project. Missing the Sept. 30 deadline means an end to the deal, per the Dallas Observer:
In a memo sent out Wednesday, John D. Jenkins, Park and Recreation Department director, wrote: “…Due to extreme disruptions in the professional sports and financial industries caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the contract was not able to be successfully executed.”…
“We plan to continue to explore options to renovate the ballfield and enhance the park to meet the expectations of the community that were identified through this process,” Jenkins said.
Reverchon Park Sports and Entertainment LLC could not be reached for comment, but their failure to close the deal is a victory for others.
Those others want to see the old ballpark restored in some fashion–just not as a professional ballpark.
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