With PK Park out of the question as the team’s long-term home, the Eugene Emeralds (High-A West) and Lane County have agreed to explore a new multiuse facility at the Lane County Fairgrounds.
MLB’s new facilities standards hit the Emeralds hard, leading to a search for a new facility in the Eugene area. What’s emerged after plenty of meetings with local governments units and a review of a dozen potential sites is the concept of a multiuse facility for baseball, concerts and other events. The Lane County Fairgrounds is centrally located in Eugene and is already host to a variety of venues and events.
The action from the Lane County Board of Commissioners directs County staff to continue planning efforts with the Emeralds.
“This is an exciting step forward for the Emeralds to collaborate with the County to secure a permanent home for our team and a venue that will serve as a centerpiece for community and regional events,” said Allan Benavides, General Manager of the Eugene Emeralds, via press release. “I want to thank all of our fans and the community leaders who reached out to County Commissioners to express their support for the Emeralds to be an important part of the plans for the Fairgrounds.”
We made an allusion to new ballpark plans emerging in our Winter Meetings report; this is one of them. Watch for another on Thursday.
Right now the facility is being envisioned as a private-public partnership.
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