Over the past week, a number of articles and a podcast have come out regarding the proposal to bring a minor league baseball stadium to Phoenixville. In Sunday's Inquirer, a brief overview of the timeline for a decision was presented.
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The group seeking to build a minor-league baseball stadium in Chester County is writing the criteria to evaluate the 11 sites that have been nominated.
"We hope to have site visits and evaluations completed by the end of summer," said Tom McIntyre of the Chester County Development Council and a member of the Chester County Stadium Project Task Force, which now has 30 members.
Members of the task force's 12-person steering committee are putting together the evaluation criteria. The committee is scheduled to meet later this month with the full task force slated to hold its next meeting July 23.
"We're a volunteer group so there's been no hard schedule," McIntyre said. "We'd like to visit the sites, either impromptu or scheduled. Some of the owners [of nominated sites] have even offered to show us around."
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The Phoenix followed up a couple of days later with a little more information about what was in the proposal that Councilman Handwerk and his committee put together. In it they highlighted Phoenixville's ties to professional baseball with the likes of Mike Piazza and Andre Thornton growing up here, the fact that we can leverage the stadium with the vibrant downtown scene, and the fact that, with the steel site, we have more than enough land to support the stadium.
Skip Lawrence also did a sit down interview with Councilman Handwerk to discuss the proposal which has been podcast on PhoenixvilleNews.com.
Finally, a reader Bashar M., wrote me last week and asked that I post the following editorial on why he feels bringing baseball to Phoenixville would be a great boon to the community.
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Like my father before me, I am a salesman by trade. Normally people shrink away when they hear my profession, thinking of a greasy used-car salesman. I get the look of recognition and then a quick shift to a different conversation topic (as if I am about to sell them something). But truthfully I look at sales differently than most people do. I believe that a sale is the transfer of excitement from one person to another. If the new person is actually excited about something, then I have done my job, sale or no sale.
Now if you agree with what my definition of sales is, then I have been selling something for about the past month. Its not even mine to sell. It might not even be a reality, and I can’t really say that I love the category that it falls under. But, I cant help selling it nonetheless. Baseball, that’s right, I am a 26 year old, American man, that doesn’t LOVE baseball; but I can’t help but get jubilant whenever I hear of the possibility of a baseball team coming to Phoenixville.
As I just said, I am 26 years old, married, and looking to start a family in Phoenixville. My wife, Lacy, and I live in the new French Creek Town home community overlooking the old steel mill site. I have heard talk about train tracks, office buildings, parking decks, etc, being put behind my house. But when I first heard about a possible baseball team in my backyard I told everyone that I possibly could and I started to find out as much information on the opportunity as possible.
My wife and I are from North Carolina, we moved here because of work and this is the first house that we have owned. Because of this, I am very interested in seeing Phoenixville continue to grow, prosper, and improve upon the qualities that attracted us initially. I have spoken with people that don’t like the growth / renaissance that Phoenixville is going through and I always hear the same thing, “People are trying to make Phoenixville into Manayunk...that can never happen” etc. I agree, and honestly, I hope that Phoenixville never becomes Manayunk. Manayunk is a great place to hang out, possibly live, if you are single, or recently out of college. But Phoenixville stands out, to me, for being a great place for young families to start their life and enjoy a thriving downtown experience with the least amount of hassle that comes with a younger and rowdier crowd.
To this point I have spoken only about Phoenixville in general, but what can a baseball team bring into this equation? Now as I said before, I am not a big baseball fan. I can watch and understand a game, but I don’ t even know what all the abbreviations on a stat sheet stand for. What I do know, and what I do like, is the sporting experience. Honestly, what is better than going somewhere with your family for the afternoon that is affordable, entertaining, and keeps everybody happy for an extended amount of time? Multiply that with a close location (walking distance for some), food, beverage, and 4-5 thousand equally enthralled people and most people will have attained some sort of euphoria.
From what I have seen, and I have only been in the area for a little less than 2 years, Phoenixville has a great community spirit. Downtown Phoenixville on a Friday night is a great experience for anybody that comes. We have a great amount of mass appeal with the stores, restaurants, and performing locations. My wife and I never miss a chance to walk around for the evening on a First Friday. In my opinion Phoenixville has proven that it is a great community that will not only embrace the arrival of a baseball team, but enjoy and partake in a team’s presence to the utmost of our ability.
I am sure that many people are aware that Phoenixville was named one of the top 100 places to relocate. Again, my wife and I are a prime example of that, moving here from North Carolina. Being from North Carolina I have had the opportunity to see, first hand, what an opportunity such as this can do for a community. Any baseball fan that was alive in the late 80’s no doubt remembers the movie Bull Durham, with Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon, and Tim Robbins. That movie was actually based on the Durham, N.C. minor league baseball team The Durham Bulls.
The Durham Bulls have been around since the early 1900’s. In 1994 the Durham Bull’s stadium was rebuilt and located right around downtown Durham. The growth to the immediate surrounding areas was astounding. Within a couple of years The American Tobacco Building, an old warehouse next to the stadium, was remodeled with office buildings, restaurants, condominiums, and parking decks. All the business spaces were sold and the restaurants are frequented, not only by local workers, but by families about to attend a game.
It is my understanding that the baseball stadium only needs 15-16 acres of land to be constructed. It is also my understanding that the old steel sight has over 125 acres of land that can be utilized for whatever reasons. As long as it is done correctly there is no reason why that land cannot be fully utilized, for the benefit of Phoenixville, in conjunction with the construction of a new stadium
I do not have to tell anybody that there are pros and cons to every situation. Also, let me be the first to say that I know nothing about funding, zoning, architecture, construction, and all the other pieces of the puzzle that must be put together to build a new stadium. I cannot help but notice the huge amount of pros for constructing a baseball stadium in downtown Phoenixville. Parking, additional retail locations, increased consumer traffic, and regularly scheduled sporting events all greatly outweigh what I can see as being the cons of bringing a team here. As I stated earlier, I live in the town home community that overlooks the proposed location for the stadium. Now, whenever I look at that field I cannot help but imagine a new stadium, season tickets, and watching a game with my wife and a cold beer.
I don’t like baseball that much; hockey is my sport of preference. But I, along with most of the people I have spoken with in my area, have already pledged to get season tickets if the team comes to our town. It’s not just the thought of watching a baseball game that excites me, but what a baseball team could do for our quality of life. Now just imagine if this had been written by a baseball fanatic.
Bashar Massarani
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For those of you who have been looking for a more upscale drinking experience, you may soon have your wish. Coming later this summer will be 
On Saturday, September 27th, I will be participating in the 
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