A long wait at a restaurant is annoying, but if the food is good, all is forgiven. Baseball fans in Richmond have certainly been waiting a long time for a new ballpark, one that would replace the “The Diamond.” The stadium is not that old (1985), but with every passing season, it looks more and more like a relic of the 60s.
There’s nothing like a rendering to heat up the process, and the Flying Squirrels (Giants AA) released conceptual ones earlier this week. Kevin Reichard of "Ballpark Digest" notes the new park would be patterned after "Coca-Cola Park" in Allentown, Pennsylvania, one he puts in his top five in the minors.
The ballpark would be built beside The Diamond, would seat 6,000 with room for 3,000 on the outfield berm. Other features include a brick façade, a circular bar that would bump up against the right field wall, wraparound concourse and dugout suites. The Diamond will be torn down and parking put in its place.
A report from WTVR indicates a 2015 opening. But the city wants the entire region to help with the funding.
“So who gets the bill?”
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