See the archived town hall meeting on whether a minor league baseball stadium should be built in Shockoe Bottom.

There is the urban-renewal angle of the Shockoe Center proposal. There is the familiar angle of The Boulevard. And there is the angle that Mike Berry hopes ultimately tops the list: What’s the best place for baseball in Richmond?

Baseball season is in full swing—but not in Richmond. For the first time in more than four decades, Virginia’s capital city does not have a professional baseball team, and the debate about what to do about it continues. Progress, so far, has been slow. The Diamond is quiet. Some would like to see it revived as home to a minor league team. The city is reviewing a plan to build a ballpark in Shockoe Bottom as part of larger project that would include hotels, offices, restaurants, and living space. Its supporters believe tax revenue from the development can pay for the new stadium. Critics are skeptical.

Where to build a baseball stadium remains a hot topic in metro Richmond. The discussions date to 2003 when an $18.5 million renovation plan stalled and was ultimately canceled as developers and the Richmond Braves discussed a downtown stadium.

Charlie Diradour isn’t afraid to take a stand, especially about issues that concern his hometown. His roots in Richmond date to the 1920s, when his grandfather immigrated from Armenia. As Diradour puts its, he has a passion to be a steward to the city for what it provided him and his family—the chance to make a living. “It’s very important to stand up against what I think is wrong, or stand up for what I think is right,“ said Diradour, who hails from a family of successful real estate investors.

Where should Richmond play ball? After more than five decades on North Boulevard, minor-league baseball could relocate to Shockoe Bottom as part of the proposed $318 million Shockoe Center development. As city officials weigh the proposal, many Richmonders continue to debate whether the Bottom is the city’s and the region’s best place for a stadium.

Critically evaluate Bryan Bostic’s belief that minor-league baseball can greatly enhance a community’s quality of life. Challenge his contention that Shockoe Bottom is the ideal location for a new ballpark. Questioning his commitment to those positions is a tougher task. Dating back to his involvement with the Richmond Ballpark Initiative, the local businessman has spent the past seven years advocating an upgraded baseball experience in a modern facility. Since the Atlanta Braves announced in January 2008 that they were moving their Class AAA franchise to Gwinnett County, Ga., Bostic says he has worked nearly every day toward his goal of returning baseball to Richmond.

Paul Kreckman prefers backpacking to baseball. Yet, he was part of a small group of real estate professionals and civic leaders drafted in late 2006 to revive the once-rejected idea of a ballpark for Shockoe Bottom. The private group dubbed itself C.O.D.—Committee of the Delusional, said organizer Stan Joynes, a partner and chief growth officer for the LeClair Ryan law firm.

Jean Wight joined the fight to save a historic building in Shockoe Bottom soon after moving to Richmond about 10 years ago. “There’s a great immediacy when you live here. You don’t need to live here all your life” to get involved, she said. Wight, who lives in Church Hill, is now helping to wage a preservation fight to keep a minor-league ballpark out of Shockoe Bottom.

For the first time in more than four decades, Virginia’s capital city does not have a professional baseball team, and the debate about what to do about it continues. Progress, so far, has been slow.

It’s time again for the boys of summer, just not in Richmond. As the city faces its first summer without professional baseball in many years, the question remains, where will baseball stage its eventual comeback?

Editor’s note: This is an edited transcript. To watch the entire Public Square online, go to TimesDispatch.com and type in keywords “Public Square.“  Tom Silvestri, publisher of The Times-Dispatch: This Public Square is a special one because it’s about you. It’s about you and the role of worrying about your community and working in your community.

Panel, audience discuss how to make Richmond a top-five volun teer city Suggestions to make Richmond among the top five volunteer cities nationwide were shared during a Public Square gathering at the downtown Richmond Times-Dispatch building last night.

While there is much talk about what the recent economic stimulus package will or will not do, there is uniform agreement that it will not be enough to address the critical issues facing our communities—and Greater Richmond is no exception. Research on strong communities shows without question that those that are the most successful on both fronts—economic and quality of life—have a strong sense of civic engagement from all areas of the community.

Before Bob Argabright retired in 2004, he looked forward to days of leisure. But now he finds fulfillment volunteering at least 40 hours a week helping schoolchildren and their families in an impoverished Richmond community. At 66, Argabright is a little older than the baby boomers, the demographic group born between 1946 and 1964. But his passion for engaging in work reflecting his values, using expertise from his work life and influencing lives is typical of boomer volunteers, nonprofit leaders and researchers said.