Saturday, June 19, 1999

Reds want comfort, fun in new ballpark

Padded seats, cup holders top wish list

BY LUCY MAY
The Cincinnati Enquirer

[stadiums on riverfront]
Conceptual idea of Bengals, Reds stadiums on riverfront.
| ZOOM |
        Premium field-level seats behind home plate with a nearby lounge. A few thousand bleacher seats in the outfield. A themed restaurant.

        These are among the items on a Reds wish list for a new baseball stadium on the riverfront.

        Nobody knows yet what the ballpark will look like, but Hamilton County officials have a good idea of what the team wants to see inside.

BALLPARK WISH LIST
  • Family restrooms, including benches and changing tables. Must be near family and disabled seating areas.
  • Business center, including panoramic view, fax and copy machines, computer ports and phones and dining space for 18 people.
  • Picnic area in the outfield commons area for use before games.
  • Activity zone with baseball-related activities, such as pitching machines, batting cages, games and/or a playground for kids.
  • Kids-oriented concession stand, with special menu and kid-sized counters, and a novelty stand, with apparel, toys and souvenirs.
  • Theme restaurant, ideally facing Firstar Center. Would be open year-round, with access from inside and outside the ballpark and a view of the field.
  • Home and visitors' warm-up bullpens in the outfield.
        A “Preliminary Ballpark Program Narrative” developed by HOK Sport, the Kansas City firm designing the new ballpark, lists features and amenities the team wants.

        “I kind of liken this to somebody building a new house,” said Hamilton County Commissioner Bob Bedinghaus. “Once you decide you're going to build a new house, you start talking to a builder about all the different options. After you kind of go through your wish list, you go back and check your checking account.”

        The $297 million riverfront ballpark, to be built just west of Firstar Center, is scheduled to open in 2003.

        Architects will update commissioners on what the ballpark might look like based on the Reds wish list.

        Among the desired features:

        • 300 field-level premium seats near home plate with padded seats at least 21 inches wide, armrests and cup holders. Fans with these seats would have access to the “Field Club Lounge” behind the seats. The 3,800-square-foot lounge would include food, drinks and private bathrooms. Fans also might be able to get food and drink serv ice from their seats.

        • 2,000 to 3,000 club seats. These seats also would be 21 inches wide with cup holders. The section would have direct access to a 27,000-square-foot Club Level Lounge.

        • 6,000-seat bleacher seating area in the outfield. The goal is bleacher seats with contoured backs.

        • A Reds Hall of Fame and Team Store that could be as large as 10,000 square feet. It could include a theater for viewing promotional films and holding business meetings and news conferences.

        Officials stressed the report is preliminary, and they haven't begun to determine how much is affordable.

        “Our business is to assess the cost of these things and be able to report back to the Reds and the county and say, "We can afford this,' or "We can't afford that,'” said Dan Streyle, project manager for the new Reds ballpark.

        “It does start to show you the kinds of things the Reds are looking at,” Mr. Streyle said of the report.

        Many of those elements are already in other, newer ballparks around the country.

        For example, the report describes a 20,000-square-foot “Sponsorship Area,” which the report says would resemble Detroit's “Skyfield.”

        The idea is to take a part of the ballpark's plaza or concourse and make a sponsorship deal with a company such as Coca Cola or Kahn's that has a reason to be associated with baseball, Mr. Streyle said.

        The area might have inflatable pop bottles, interactive games featuring the product, and video games connecting the product to baseball, Mr. Streyle said.

        Such an area doesn't typically require added space in the ballpark, he said. Usually it makes use of existing space in such a way that the team makes more money.

        “The idea is to immerse fans in their product,” he said, “and obviously the sponsor is paying money for that.”


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