Downtown Baseball Stadium

[CanukInAugusta]

New web site for the downtown baseball stadium:

http://www.bringbaseballdowntown.com/default.asp

[socaguy]

Honestly, I hope that Golf Hall of Fame goes away. It is SUCH a waste of space, right on a prime piece of riverfront property. Maybe condos and shops would work better there. Nice location for the stadium though!

[jungletobacco]

kyak waterpark?

[augga706]

More info on the stadium

The feasibility study has been signed. The ball park would be next to Golf and Gardens along the Savannah River

The study is set to begin the first week in January. We should have results by February.

http://www.wrdw.com/home/headlines/12674162.html

[augga706]

Deke Copenhaver mayor

Cal Ripken Jr. - President & CEO, Ripken Baseball, Inc.

Chris Flannery - Chief Operating Officer - Ripken Baseball, Inc.

Bill Ripken, Co-Owner, Executive Vice-President, Ripken Baseball, Inc.

Representative Quincy Murphy

Jeff Eiseman - Vice President, Ripken Baseball

Some of the people who are apart of the Downtown Stadium Exploratory Committee

This project is probably already done behind close doors. Deke and quincy can sell augusta to anybody. The cal ripken endorsement is only icing on the cake

[Disgusta]

Just hope the voters approve it.. It will need a big PR campaign. Having been in Augusta since the early 70s I can tell you that it is very difficult to get the voters in Augusta to approve of any major spending project. The Civic Center was originally going to be a much grander facililty... situated in a better location downtown and seating over 12,000 but the taxpayer groups came out against it and had the project scaled back considerably. You still have active members of the Southside Mafia that are against anything that will improve downtown. I don't know why this is.. but they have always been against any major projects in downtown.

I don't think a baseball park will be a panacea for downtown.. but it will certainly help.. and the current location of the stadium just doesn't have any impact at all..Augusta has to get out of the habit of scattering things out and focus on creating an entertainment cluster in downtown. One thing by itself won't be the anser.. but rather a combination of things that promote more activity in downtown. I'm just curious why The Chronicle is so Lukewarm on the idea.. when they were gung ho over a downtown ballpark in the mid 90s.

[augga706]

Augusta downtown is coming back with the Tee Center right beside this project.

Copenhaver to reveal stadium project study

A proposal laid out before the study called for a multiuse stadium that would seat 5,000 to 6,000 people and cost $20 million to $25 million, to be funded through a private-public venture with Ripken Baseball.

[augga706]

Mayor says downtown ballpark would benefit city

Mr. Copenhaver said the targeted opening date for the stadium is 2010

[PJA]

I'm excited about this project!! I really think it will provide even more of a boost to an already improving downtown. I'm pretty confident this stadium will be built.

[augga706]

City moving forward on $31.8 million minor league ballpark and multipurpose facility at the site of the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame on Reynolds Street.

http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/091808/met_476117.shtml

[Lady Celeste]

The prospect of a new downtown stadium on the riverbank seems exciting. What minor league team is the new stadium being built? If Augusta can pull of $31 million for a new ballpark for their minor league team then I want to know why the Gwinnett Brave's new stadium could cost upwards of $59 million.

[PJA]

The prospect of a new downtown stadium on the riverbank seems exciting. What minor league team is the new stadium being built? If Augusta can pull of $31 million for a new ballpark for their minor league team then I want to know why the Gwinnett Brave's new stadium could cost upwards of $59 million.

[Lady Celeste]

The Augusta Green Jackets is the name of the minor league baseball team.

[CanukInAugusta]

Who does this team farm for?

[Lady Celeste]

Cool. I didn't know the Giants had a farming team so close to us. Now that I know this, I am even more excited about the prospects of this staduim. It will probably do well for development in the immediate area as well. Keep us update guys. As soona s pictures come out, I want pictures!!!!!!!!!!!

[rbp]

It's working well in Montgomery. $26mil for a stadium, a new AA team for Tampa Bay and the downtown was WAAY behind what Augusta already is. That's been the impetus for a new hotel, an upgrade to the civic center three blocks away, an extension to the Riverwalk (it was just an Amphitheater on par with the one there to a whole block of what you've got) and streetscape improvements in the area.

[augga706]

Cal ripken Jr says construction will start in Fall 2009.

Stadium plans get Perdue's support

During a 25-minute conference call Thursday, Gov. Sonny Perdue told Mayor Deke Copenhaver and Cal Ripken Jr. that he's in favor of their plan to build a stadium on the 17-acre Golf and Gardens property, and he said he'll work with them to make it happen.

"It was very encouraging to me to hear him say that he's very enthusiastic about the project," said the mayor, with the Hall of Fame baseball player at a news conference later at Lake Olmstead Stadium.

Mr. Copenhaver said the governor has assigned a representative of the Georgia Department of Economic Development to help shepherd the deal.