Business owners took notice last week after Short Season LLC, owners of the Yakima Bears, made public their intention to relocate the short season Single-A minor league baseball team to Vancouver by the start of the 2012 season.
In need of a facility that meets the standards of Minor League Baseball, Short Season proposed the creation of a 6,000-capacity multi-use facility on the Clark College campus. The initial site location (vacant Clark College property between I-5 and Fort Vancouver Way) isn’t far from the retail shops and restaurants of downtown Vancouver – a fact that isn’t lost on business owners in that area.
“It [baseball] could be a really good draw for the city as far as downtown exposure,” said Kathy Hampton, owner of Ice Cream Renaissance, located at 1925 Main Street in Vancouver. “I can’t help but think that it would be a benefit for local businesses.”
Lee Rafferty, executive director of Vancouver’s Downtown Association, shared in Hampton’s excitement adding, “Construction and management of the facility will be a huge shot in the arm for our downtown. [Just] think about visitors with overnight stays, fans who shop and dine… It’s an investment that will yield huge results in community pride and opportunity.”
While many area businesses are ready for the first pitch, others remain cautious because financing has yet to be negotiated. Short Season said the facility would require a $23 million investment – a percentage of that coming from public financing through an entertainment admissions fee, according to one proposal.
“I don’t think people should pay for my hiking trips into the national forests if they’re not actually entering the campground, so I don’t think I should pay for a baseball field even if it’s only when I go to the movies,” said Lynn Krogseng, factotum at Neighbors Market, located at 1707 Main Street in Vancouver.
“I think there are ways this [project] can be beneficial,” she added. “I just think we shouldn’t have to bear the financial burden.”
Downtown business owners aren’t the only ones measuring the potential impact of a neighboring baseball facility. Questions about the project are also top of mind at the Fort Vancouver National Trust.
“It’s a little early for us to create a position on whether or not this [project] is in the community’s best interest or not,” said Mike True, chief operations officer at the Trust. “However, we’re very supportive of trying to stimulate downtown activity from an economic standpoint and from a tourism standpoint, and there is a very attractive nature to this (in terms of) increasing the visibility of Vancouver and drawing more visibility to the [historic] site. I think there are a lot of questions we have with it though.”
True said his questions range from parking and sound concerns to whether an admissions fee would apply to events put on by the Trust.
“A good example is Independence Day, where we have 20, 30, 40 thousand people come here for a day and we charge an admission to come into the event. Is that an activity that would be subject to this type of tax?”
Ron Arp, a project adviser for Identity Clark County who has been hired by Short Season LLC, believes the answer to that question is no.
“Obviously County Commissioners will have to work through a fair number of details, but generally in other communities [with an admissions tax] non-profits (like the National Trust) and high schools are exempt,” said Arp.
As for True’s other concerns, Arp said he doesn’t anticipate parking will be a problem because baseball games would fall on off-peak hours at Clark College, freeing up existing parking spaces. In addition, he said a new facility would incorporate small, directional speakers into its design that significantly contain sound.
Concerns aside, True noted an opportunity for the Fort Vancouver National Trust to work closely with a baseball team.
“I think there is an opportunity for the team and for this project to play off of one of the city’s largest assets, which is the Fort,” said True. “Whether that is associated with naming or incorporating into the structure of the facility, I think there are components of partnership that could be built there that would be mutually beneficial to them and mutually beneficial to the site… It could be a win-win for everybody.”
