Exclusive: Developers drop Shockoe ballpark project
Highwoods Properties
Developers had proposed a $363 million project in Shockoe Bottom that would include a baseball stadium residential and commercial areas.
A plan for baseball in Shockoe Bottom is dead.
Developers of the proposed Shockoe Center ballpark announced this afternoon that they're walking away from the project as well as a proposal for development along the Boulevard.
"We have carried these projects as far as our collaborative team can under the present circumstances," the development team led by Highwoods Properties said in a statement released to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
The developers said their efforts aimed at revitalizing Shockoe Bottom and the Boulevard have been overshadowed by debate over the ballpark.
They also said the "good faith" but ultimately unsuccessful effort by a group of local investors to buy a baseball team had "fundamentally altered the way minor-league baseball will now return to Richmond.
"The city will need to negotiate directly with any new team owner on such issues as location, timing and financing of a new ballpark."
A statement from Mayor Dwight C. Jones is forthcoming, according to his press secretary, Tammy D. Hawley.
For more details on why the plan was dropped, see tomorrow's Times-Dispatch.
-- Will Jones
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Reader Reactions
Well I hope high speed rail does come to Richmond. At least it will get me to DC or Baltimore pretty fast. At least they have baseball there. Bad baseball is better than none at all.
HateRichmond, you hit the nail on the head. DickTracy is most definitely sounding like Mr. Diradour, himself.
A movie theater and a restaurant or 2 across the tracks from a poorly redone stadium is not going to inspire business. I was at Movieland last Friday night, and was extremely unimpressed. The theater was puny (no bigger than those home movie theaters you see on Cribs) and it seemed to be fairly empty at peak weekend viewing hours.
theobserver was exactly right when he/she pointed out that the point of the stadium in the Bottom was to inspire business growth. It was also meant to be designed in the spirit of the surrounding architecture. It was ALSO meant to house other events outside the baseball season for whoever suggested it would stand empty outside of baseball season.
Question: While both areas now stand essentially stadium-less, which generates more business?? What are the chances that having baseball on the Boulevard generates significant offseason business? An even better question would be: what business owner wants to take the gamble that significant off-season traffic will develop when the status-quo is ghost town?
And for whoever bashed minor league baseball as a family outing…a minor league baseball ticket is cheaper than the ridiculous cost of a movie ticket these days.
Final point: If baseball starts at 7pm, what nightlife-goers are families going to have to “wade” through?? Furthermore, what “nightlife” takes place on the surface lots that currently exist at the site?
“Yes, the Mayor has spoken: High-Speed Rail will get us out of this 2nd class town much quicker.“
High speed rail might not get “us” collectively out of this 2nd class town quicker, but it will get “you and I” out of this 2nd class town quicker.
Richmond “Future suburb of DC”
Richmond “Sadly people still live here, even during nascar offseason”
Richmond “Soon Coming in Fourth to Roanoke”
Richmond “about 100 miles from the North Carolina or DC border”
“Translation: the developers wanted to build a ball-park with a big subsidy by calling it “revitalization”.“
Nothing could possibly be more wrong, but thanks for sharing
It’s honestly just sad that so many people didn’t understand the fundamental facts of the project. How Highwoods property intended to finance the entire project privately with the sale of private bonds. How all they wanted from the city was a chance to sell those private bonds. How if the bonds didn’t get sold NOTHING WOULD HAPPEN, the city would not owe a DIME. How the study recommended that the city co-sign the PRIVATE LOANS but Highwoods has never once requested this.
Richmond “Where the smallest commitment to progress possible is just too much”
Posted by ( theobserver ) on June 23, 2009 at 9:22 pm
Mayor Jones supposed is more interested in high-speed rail. How exactly is high-speed rail going to help Richmond? Has he said?....
Yes, the Mayor has spoken: High-Speed Rail will get us out of this 2nd class town much quicker.
“The developers said their efforts aimed at revitalizing Shockoe Bottom and the Boulevard have been overshadowed by debate over the ballpark”
Translation: the developers wanted to build a ball-park with a big subsidy by calling it “revitalization”.
Gotta love the Richmond is second class without baseball comments. An ironic twist on previous (and false) ideas that Richmond could not survive without slavery or Tobacco. Richmond will grow up, but not by being a one-trick (or sport, or business, or university) pony.
I think DickTracy is part of the development team that was looking out for their own interests by defeating the Shockoe plan. He keeps propping up MovieLand (a movie theatre over a mile from the current Diamond over a railroad bridge) as reasons why the Boulevard should be developed.
BTW, give a better plan than the ODP for a new Boulevard stadium. Your blog did nothing but bash the Shockoe plan and did nothing to support a Boulevard plan. When the ODP plan came out you half-heartedly supported that. Wouldn’t a new stadium on the Boulevard support your development plans better? Why don’t you throw some money at that?
LOL… Hate you are spot on. “Embrace the Mediocrity” and “No chance in h*ll you are mistaking us for Charlotte” are perfect slogans. You can probably add something like “Living in the past and dying in the past” to the list as well… What a joke!
It’s a shame that much smaller communities can come together on a consensus for a new stadium (like greenville, sc), but this joke of a city cannot.
Whoever put that lifeinthe804 blog up should win an award. That describes this city to a T.
Where progress is not welcome: Richmond, VA
In light of the latest developments, it’s only appropriate that we use this as an opportunity to update Richmond’s new advertising slogan! Here are some ideas…....
http://lifeinthe804.blogspot.com/2009/06/help-select-richmonds-new-advertising.html
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