Indianapolis’s Bush Stadium is on the way to becoming home to apartments and commercial space, with construction underway. The redevelopment includes plans to turn the stadium into the 131-unit Stadium Lofts apartment complex with the shell and the historic façade of the stadium maintained in its original form. A new 132-unit apartment complex, Stadium Flats, […]
Archive | Endangered Ballparks
Lane Field to be commemorated in new hotel complex
Lane Field, the former home of the minor-league San Diego Padres, would be memorialized under the terms of a hotel-development project on the old ballpark site. Lane Field was home to the Pacific Coast League Padres from 1936 to 1957, before it was replaced by Westgate Park. It occupied a pretty scenic waterfront location on […]
End of days for Moana Stadium
It looks like the end of the road for Moana Stadium, with the former home to professional baseball in Reno slated for demolition to make way for soccer fields. We’re not talking about a huge loss here: the facility is in very rough shape and has been closed by the city for safety concerns. Under […]
Yet another proposal for Tiger Stadium site: youth baseball
While Detroit searches for that elusive big-box retailer to pitch the city on a new development, yet another proposal for the Tiger Stadium site emerges: a youth baseball facility. After the Detroit Tigers moved from venerable Tiger Stadium to Comerica Park, the ballpark at the corner of Michigan and Trumbull sat empty for almost a […]
Another WPA ballpark to bite the dust
Al Krueger Field, a Perham (Minn.) WPA ballpark that’s hosted Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks (independent; American Association) exhibitions, is slated to be torn down because of unsafe conditions. Some background. In 1935, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) launched as an initiative from the Roosevelt Administration to bring financial relief necessitated by the Great Depression. It expanded on […]
Waterbury debates Municipal Stadium renovation
Eighty-two-year-old Municipal Stadium would be renovated under a $7-million plan currently under debate by Waterbury (Ct.) Board of Aldermen. The ballpark, formerly home to the Eastern League professional and independent-league baseball teams (including the charmingly named Waterbury Timers), is deteriorating rapidly. Under the plan, the ballpark’s stone facade would be restored, the press box would […]
Looking back at Cap City Stadium
With the city expected to tear down Capital City Stadium, home of the Columbia Blowfish (summer collegiate; Coastal Plain League), after this season, locals share their memories of the historic facility. In many ways the history of Capital City Stadium is the history of professional and summer-collegiate baseball in this country. Built by Hall of […]
Preserving a ballpark with berms
Chaska Athletic Park, a short-lived pro venue and a bastion of Minnesota amateur baseball, is a picturesque, classic facility threatened every spring by flooding — but city officials are working to change that. A riverfront site is sought-after these days for new ballparks; of course, back in 1950 when the ballpark was built by volunteers, […]
RFK Stadium at 50: Will there be 50 more?
At 50 years old, RFK Stadium — the first major multiuse facility to open in the 1960s as the home of the Washington Senators — may not live to see another 50, as District of Columbia officials debate its future. The facility is home to MLS’s DC United and was home to the Washington Nationals […]
Detroit spurns Chevy offer to maintain Tiger Stadium field
Chevrolet employees have volunteered to maintain the old Tiger Stadium playing field for use by youth baseball teams, but the offer was spurned by the Detroit Economic Growth Corp., where officials want to keep the property open for a future big-box retailer. Detroit, interestingly, is in somewhat of an economic renaissance of sorts: after property […]
Canad Inns Stadium to be torn down next year
The former home of the Winnipeg Whips (Class AAA; International League) and the Winnipeg Goldeyes (independent; American Association) is slated to be torn down next year after the CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers move to a new stadium. As a baseball venue, Canad Inns Stadium — the former Winnipeg Stadium — was always lacking, with a […]
Work continues on Engel Stadium preservation
A transfer of Engel Stadium management to a nonprofit will help preserve the historic former home of the Chattanooga Lookouts (Class AA; Southern League), which is sorely in need of some TLC. Engel Stadium opened in 1929 and is very much a product of the era, with the classic grandstand and brickwork throughout the grounds. […]
Racing OK’d for former Clippers home
The Columbus City Council approved plans to convert Cooper Stadium, the former home of the Columbus Clippers (Class AAA; International League), to a racing facility despite objections from neighborhood residents. The vote was unanimous, but there were some conditions applied: sound barriers must be periodically inspected, and races must end at 10 p.m. A city […]