MINOR-LEAGUE REPORT : Northwest Arkansas Naturals’ new ballpark progressing rapidly
Posted on Thursday, August 23, 2007
When I first arrived in Northwest Arkansas last October, my first job was to set up an office. That meant I needed to get a desk, a computer and some phones. That was 10 months ago last week, and even I could not have imagined the level of detail involved in building this great new ballpark in Springdale.
It's been endless hours of meetings to talk through every tiny detail of the ballpark. Sometimes we get to talk about fun things like scoreboards. There was one meeting when we walked room-by-room through the entire facility and detailed where we wanted every electrical outlet in the building. While the architectural drawings are complete, the work to take a piece of paper and turn it into a real live ballpark brings out levels of detail which most people could never imagine.
Now that the ballpark is beginning to take shape, the real detail work begins. If you haven't driven by the new park, you really should. Simply get off at the Arkansas Highway 412 exit in Springdale, and head west. Then you make a left onto 56 th and head south. The park is on your right, and boy, is it moving ahead quickly.
The entire field is now surrounded by the concrete walls which will divide it from the seats. The bullpens are carved out into the outfield wall, as well as the space where we'll house our 1, 200-square-foot rolling concert stage. You read that correctly; there will be a full size concert stage permanently stored at the new ballpark.
The ground work is nearly complete with all of the drainage and utilities finally in place. Now begins a six-week process where the field will be installed. You might ask yourself why it takes six weeks to install a field which is essentially dirt and grass. The answer is simple and complicated all at once.
The field where the Naturals will play will be much more than just dirt and grass. It is a technological marvel which will allow for games to be played under nearly any circumstances. In fact, the field will utilize the exact same specifications as that which will be installed at the new Yankee Stadium next year. If you didn't know, Yankee Stadium (and the new Mets ballpark ) are being designed by HOK architects, the same HOK that has designed our new park.
There will be nearly two feet of materials below the grass you see on the field. Each element, from drainage pipes, to gravel, to sand, is designed to precisely allow the field to drain water during storms while nourishing the grass to keep it green. The dirt on the field is actually not dirt at all, but a mixture of materials designed to allow for dust-free play even in the hottest days.
Gone are the days of a sloped outfield for drainage. Our outfield will be laser-graded and completely flat, which will allow the outfielder to be at the exact same elevation as the batter, and give them a better look at every ball off of the bat.
Let's also not forget about the fans. The ballpark seating area is the first of its kind, and will utilize new geometry to maximize viewing angles for all fans in the seats. This sounds complicated, but HOK figured out after 20 years of building new stadiums that if you angle each section toward home plate, every fan will have a better angle to watch the game. So, whether you are sitting directly behind home plate or in the last section down the outfield line, your entire section will be pointed back toward home plate.
I have made it my life's work to be involved in baseball, and I've traveled to dozens of major and minor league ballparks across the country. I've never been a part of the construction of a ballpark before this one, and I've never had more fun being involved in baseball than I have while I've been in Northwest Arkansas.
Everyone involved in this project takes time to stop and pinch themselves to make sure this is real. It's been awesome, and it's being done so the great people of the region have just one more great reason to call Northwest Arkansas home. It can't get here fast enough for me, and I can't wait to be able to say," I'll see you at the ballpark."
Eric Edelstein is the general manager of the Northwest Arkansas Naturals, the future Springdale AA affiliate of the Kansas City Royals
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