After the city twice offered Plant City Stadium for sale or lease, City Manager Greg Horwedel is suggesting to move forward with negotiations with the sole bidder.
Big League Dreams, Inc., a California-based company, was the only bidder in the two request for proposals of the stadium.
“My recommendation to the commission is to begin negotiating with Big League Dreams, as they were again the sole respondent to our stadium RFQ,” Horwedel said. “However, the recommendation to move forward with negotiations doesn’t mean that we are recommending approval of their proposal as submitted.”
Horwedel said that they want to come to a “mutually-acceptable framework” on an agreement within 45 days. The negotiation period, if the commission authorizes its approval, would begin Aug. 1.
VisionPro Sports Institute, which is leasing the stadium through at least August as the home venue for a United Soccer League professional team and three affiliate teams, decided not to make a proposal on the latest bid, after reportedly missing the deadline of the first bid.
Big League Dreams builds replicas of famous baseball stadiums, such as Boston’s Fenway Park, New York’s Yankee Stadium and Chicago’s Wrigley Field. The stadiums are designed to accommodate a variety of sports, including youth baseball, youth fast-pitch softball and adult slow-pitch baseball. Currently, the company operates parks in California, Nevada, Arizona and Texas.
The company makes its profits on renting the stadiums to teams and tournaments that want to use the replica stadiums and fields.
The Plant City Commission rejected April 22, a proposal from Big League Dreams, stating that it lacked key information, specifically regarding the potential costs and benefits of the proposal to Plant City. The RFQ was then reissued on May 29 with responses due by 2 p.m. June 28. Again, Big League Dreams was the only bidder.
The decision effects the future of the 75-acre complex off Park Road. The 6,700 seat stadium, which originally served as the spring training home of the Cincinnati Reds, anchors the complex, which also includes the Randy L. Larson Softball Four-Plex.
Big League Dreams’ interest in bringing its replica stadiums to Plant City dates back several years. The city approved in October 2011, a 30-year license agreement with the company. Before that approval, city staff spent 18 months reviewing Big League Dreams’ operations in other states.
Under the agreement, Plant City would pay Big League Dreams a $450,000 licensing fee to ensure the company did not build a similar location within a 40-mile-by-30-mile oval around Plant City Stadium.
Big League Dream’s current interest is to work out a long-term lease of the stadium and four-plex. Plant City currently loses about $387,000 each year on operating costs.