Despite Mayor Mike Sparkman’s wishes, the Plant City Commission rejected April 22, the only proposal it received for a longtime use for Plant City Stadium.
City Manager Greg Horwedel said the proposal from Big League Dreams Inc. lacked key information, specifically regarding the potential costs and benefits of the proposal to Plant City. Citing an exemption under Florida’s open-government laws, Horwedel declined to detail Big League Dreams’ proposal.
“Based upon our cursory review, we feel there is not sufficient information to make a good value judgment,” Horwedel said. “Our recommendation is that this proposal be rejected and a new request be put on the street.”
Sparkman, speaking to Horwedel and the rest of the city commission, said he opposed the idea of restarting the process.
“I’m disappointed that, at this stage, we’re starting over,” he said. “I’d rather see us not go out again (for proposals). I’m confused, and I’m disappointed by it.
“At this stage, if I were this person (Big League Dreams), I could walk away from it, and we, as the city, would be the losers,” Sparkman said.
Although City Commissioner Rick Lott expressed similar disappointment, ultimately he supported the decision to reject the bid.
“I’m very disappointed,” he said. “I was hoping for this to be resolved, but obviously, we’re not quite there yet.”
California-based 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.
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 Dreams officials did not return repeated inquiries seeking comment.
Horwedel said the new request for proposals will launch the first week in May. The city will keep the request open for two to four weeks and then reevaluate any proposals it receives.
Depending on the details submitted by the applicants, it is possible that the delay caused by this week’s rejection won’t affect the timing of welcoming a new owner or tenant.
“It is possible that we can take 30 days or more off the back end,” Horwedel said.
The city began soliciting for proposals for Plant City Stadium earlier this year. The stadium has not had a tenant since the Cincinnati Reds moved its spring training program following the 1997 season. The stadium costs the city about $387,000 annually.
None of these negotiations affect the short-term lease agreement the city has with VSI Tampa Bay, which is hosting four soccer teams at the stadium through August, with the possibility of extending through September.
VSI Director of Soccer Clay Roberts said his organization was working on a proposal but missed the 2 p.m. April 1 deadline.
“We did submit a proposal to the city; however, we were working to a 5 p.m. deadline, not realizing it was a 2 p.m. deadline,” he said. “Our mistake.”
Roberts said VSI will submit its plan when the request for bids is reopened next month.
“We are grateful that the opportunity is still there and plan on submitting again once it is released,” he said.
Contact Michael Eng at meng@plantcityobserver.com.
IN OTHER NEWS
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• Commissioners authorized the purchase of a Caterpillar 305E CR Mini Hydraulic Excavator from Ring Power Corporation, for $56,819.
• The commission approved a contract with Tecta America West Florida LLC to install a new membrane on the roof of the Plant City Police Department. Total cost is $225,097.
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