After years of talking about a new stadium, and faced with the possibility of losing baseball altogether, last week was a big week for Richmond sports.
It was announced by the Richmond city government that it had reached a deal with RVA Diamond Partners to build a new baseball stadium by 2026, alongside a neighborhood filled with housing, a hotel, and a shopping area to be known as the Diamond District.
The new stadium will be a major step forward in keeping minor league baseball in the capital city. Late in 2022, Major League Baseball had informed the city that if a replacement stadium was not in place by 2026, the city could be in danger of losing the Double-A Richmond Flying Squirrels.
Under the newly announced plan, the new stadium is set to open in 2026.
The city will work with the Economic Development Authority to sell the land needed for the new ballpark to the developer. The city will be responsible for all the public infrastructure, including road improvements and utility infrastructure.
A new incremental tax district will be created, the Diamond District, that will help pay for road improvements and new infrastructure development through generated tax revenue.
The city plans for a 10,000-capacity baseball stadium, which will meet requirements to host a Triple-A affiliate. Currently the Flying Squirrels are a Double-A organization, affiliated with the San Francisco Giants. The team competes in the Eastern League.
The developer for the project, RVA Diamond Partners, has plans to create a gateway to the Scott’s Addition neighborhood of Richmond.
Todd “Parney” Parnell, CEO of the Flying Squirrels, didn’t hold back on his excitement of the news announcement which meant his team would be staying in town.
“Boom,” Parnell shouted on a video released by the organization Tuesday. “I hopped out of bed today and basically skipped to work,” Parnell said, “I normally do that, but I skipped with a little more earnest today.”
With a new stadium, are the Washington Nationals taking notice?
The Flying Squirrels have been in Richmond since the start of the 2010 season. After 2009 the Richmond Braves were relocated to the suburban Atlanta area, close to the parent team Atlanta Braves.
The San Francisco Giants quickly negotiated a deal to have their Double-A affiliate play in Richmond. An odd location considering that Richmond is about 2,800 miles (about the width of the United States) from the Bay area.
Despite the long-distance relationship, it’s worked very well. The Flying Squirrels are always among the Eastern League attendance leaders. But it’s also difficult for local fans to follow the players that advance from Richmond.
It’s no secret that Washington has been in the market for a closer home for its Triple-A affiliate than what it has now, the Rochester Red Wings, a six-hour drive from Nationals Park.
The new collective bargaining agreement now makes it easier for Major League teams to add minor league players to the roster, even for as little as one game. This makes having the farm system closer to the big-league team extremely important.
Washington currently has it’s Single-A team in Fredericksburg, its Double-A team is the Harrisburg (PA) Senators. Adding Richmond to the farm system would be a perfect fit for Washington.
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