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08/23/2008 12:49 PM ET
Drillers, City Agree On New Ballpark
Tulsa Drillers
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 Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor and Drillers President Chuck Lamson announced plans Saturday for a new downtown ballpark in the historic Greenwood District. Plans are for the park to open for the 2010 baseball season.
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Mayor Kathy Taylor and Tulsa Drillers President Chuck Lamson announced today that they have reached an agreement, in principal, to build a new ballpark for the Drillers in the historic Greenwood District in downtown Tulsa. The agreement comes after more than eight months of negotiations between the two parties.
"I am thrilled that we were able to reach a mutually beneficial agreement that will really super-charge our exciting development and revitalization efforts in the area," said Taylor. "The 70 Drillers home games along with other events throughout the year will bring over 400,000 additional people to downtown each and every year for affordable family entertainment. We believe this new state of the art stadium will ultimately play host to over 100 days of activity each year. A new ballpark in downtown Tulsa has long been a dream of mine for the Tulsa Drillers and their loyal fans."
"I would like to thank Mayor Kathy Taylor and her team for their tireless efforts in bringing this exciting ballpark project to reality," said Lamson. "We are sure that it will be one of the finest ballparks in the Texas League, right here in the heart of downtown Tulsa."
The timing of the agreement allows for a 2010 opening of the ballpark.
The Tulsa Drillers and the City of Tulsa have been in dialog since an exclusive negotiations agreement was signed last January. That agreement set a series of milestones that had to be achieved to move the process forward and reach a relocation agreement.
Mayor Taylor said those milestones were: (in order)
Finding a suitable downtown location for a new ballpark.
Public financing through a Business Improvement District (BID) for the ballpark.
Private Donations to supplement the ballpark construction.
City Council approval of a Trust Authority to oversee the ballpark.
A signed lease agreement with the Tulsa Drillers.
The first milestone was achieved when two locations were secured, one in the East Village and one next to the planned John Hope Franklin Reconciliation Park in the historic Greenwood District. The Greenwood site was the preferred location.
A second milestone was attained when the Tulsa City Council approved a Business Improvement District for the new ballpark on July 10th that enjoyed support from over 50% of the property owners in the Inner Dispersal Loop of downtown Tulsa.
Mayor Taylor also expressed her thanks to the donors, who offered $30 million of their own money for the betterment of Tulsa, and to the team that worked diligently to reach this important milestone.
"Over $30-million in donations have been pledged from over 20 extraordinarily generous visionary Tulsa philanthropists for this strategic project that will serve as a catalyst to our downtown entertainment district. The private funding has been secured and it is now up to the City Council to approve the trust authority to accept the generous donations and commence with the construction. Time is of the essence, and we need the City Council to complete this final crucial step next Thursday to move the trust agreement forward ", Mayor Taylor said.
"I would also like to thank the generous donors that have worked with us collaboratively to reach a mutually beneficial agreement," said Lamson. "I strongly encourage the City Council to allow us to proceed immediately so that we can play ball in our new home in 2010 and avoid any unnecessary delays."
Now that an agreement in principal has been reached, the plan is to finalize a lease agreement over the next week. The agreement with the Drillers contains many provisions customarily found in comparable agreements, such as safeguards for the City that include but are not limited to:
Thirty year lease term unless BID retired earlier. Twenty year minimum term.
City of Tulsa will have use of the ballpark for over 20 days for other events (Concerts, festivals, events, shows, etc...) during baseball season and unlimited use in the off-season for activities and events.
Lease economic terms consistent with those outlined previously and comparable with other transactions in the Texas League and other municipalities.
Annual capital contributions from both the Drillers and the Trust to support long-term maintenance of the ballpark.
An obligation that the Drillers play all seasons required under the lease and a right of first offer in the event of a sale of the team.
Revenue sharing with the Trust for non-baseball events and participation in the growth in baseball attendance.
"This new ballpark and the associated development activity will provide long-term new sales tax revenue streams that our City desperately needs to address our many requirements," the Mayor said. "We plan to aggressively work with the Brady, Blue Dome and Greenwood Districts to develop a first class arts-and-entertainment district that will connect the area to the new BOK Center."
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