This week I'm going to ask the question "What if?" In this instance, I'm asking "What if we had a downtown ballpark?" When we examined best practices in other communities, we saw that the construction of a new ballpark in the downtown had a significant economic development impact in San Diego. Of course, Chico doesn't have a major league team, but as a community, we've been pretty supportive of baseball. Having a nationally-ranked team at Chico State has certainly encouraged interest in the national pastime. The Chico Heat, although part of a struggling and ultimately failing Western Baseball League, was enormously popular over the years. The Chico Outlaws, having just won a team record 11 consecutive games, may become as successful at putting backsides in buckets as they've become at winning games.

Nettleton Stadium is a nice ballpark. But it's probably not ideal for the Outlaws, inasmuch as they must share it with the University. Certainly the possibility of including a baseball facility in Meriam Park stems from long-term plans for a dedicated venue for the Outlaws to play. So it's not as though the status quo is indefinitely acceptable.

The photo above shows Nettleton Stadium relocated, through the magic of Photoshop, in downtown Chico. The infield is approximately where the US Bank branch at Second and Wall is currently located. That, and the old laundry building on that angled spur of First Street, would need to be removed, as well as a chunk of Parking Lot 5. The Sierra Central Credit Union is left alone in this fantasy, resulting in a shorter right field than "the Nett" currently has, but that's okay; more home runs. Hey, people like offense.

More importantly, people who attend baseball games have discretionary income to spend on entertainment. What if there were an additional 1500-3000 people in the downtown area an average of fifteen nights per month when the students are gone? What sort of impact would that have on the economy downtown? Right now most games start at around 7 PM, so regular patrons who may not be interested in a steady diet of hot dogs and peanuts might patronize the many restaurants that suffer a huge hit every summer when Chico State is not holding classes. People who are already in the downtown might be inclined to bridge the workday and the ballgame with a happy hour or two. Certainly retailers would be encouraged to stay open until 7 on game days. People who have money to spend on game tickets, souvenirs, and refreshments also have money for apparel, decor, giftware, and especially sporting goods.

With the transit center located a few blocks away, a great many fans could take the B-Line to the game, which is difficult at the current location. Of course, the buses would have to run an hour later than currently, although that's a service that would certainly pay for itself. Alternatively, gametime could be pushed up to 6 PM, since the shade pattern would be more favorable as depicted above. This would make it easier for families with children to enjoy the game, even on a school night, since most games would be over before 9 PM. Probably add some late evening dollars to restaurants' cash boxes.

Some might ask about parking. The lot at Nettleton Stadium has approximately 180 spaces, and seems to be nearly adequate to the purpose. The lot at 2nd and Wall has 173, so it could be argued that that lot, plus the remaining parking west of the stadium in the photo above, would be enough. That said, building the stadium would take a significant number of long-term (10-hour) spaces off the game board, so they'd need to be replaced somewhere. Moreover, it's not as though the game is the only draw in the downtown, particularly with the Thursday Night Market and Friday Night Concerts at the same time as the games. Other entertainment options would likely spring up with so many people leaving the stadium at that time of night, as well.

So realistically, before something like this could happen, investment in new parking facilities would have to happen first. Adding 1500-3000 people to the urban core four nights a week all summer would consume existing capacity and then some. So the real question is "What if we had an additional 500 parking spaces at Second and Wall Streets?"

And the answer is not necessarily "a downtown ballpark". I'm not sure that's the best use of that parcel. But the idea of luring a great many more people into the city center during the summer is certainly a good one, as the Thursday Night Markets and Friday Night Concerts demonstrate. But in order to accomodate them, however they happen to be attracted, more parking will certainly be required.