Huntington Park (Columbus, Ohio)
| Huntington Park | |
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| Location | 330 Huntington Park Lane Columbus, OH 43215 |
| Coordinates | 39°58′07″N 83°00′39″W / 39.968619°N 83.010743°WCoordinates: 39°58′07″N 83°00′39″W / 39.968619°N 83.010743°W |
| Broke ground | August 2, 2007 |
| Opened | April 18, 2009 |
| Owner | Franklin County, Ohio government |
| Operator | Franklin County, Ohio government |
| Surface | Natural Grass |
| Construction cost | $70 Million[1] ($75.8 million in 2012 dollars[2]) |
| Architect | 360 Architecture Moody Nolan, Inc. |
| Project Manager | Turner Construction[3] |
| Structural engineer | Jezerinac Geers & Associates, Inc.[4] |
| General Contractor | Tuttle Construction, Inc.[5] |
| Main contractors | McDaniel’s Construction Corp., Inc[6] |
| Capacity | 10,100 |
| Field dimensions | Left Field - 325 feet (99 m) Left Center Field - 360 feet (110 m) Center Field - 400 feet (120 m) Right Center Field - 365 feet (111 m) Right Field - 318 feet (97 m) |
| Tenants | |
| Columbus Clippers (International League) (2009-present); Big Ten Conference Baseball Tournament (2009, 2011-present) | |
Huntington Park is the home of the Columbus Clippers, a Triple-A minor league baseball team in the International League currently affiliated with the Cleveland Indians. Groundbreaking for the ballpark took place on August 2, 2007, with construction being completed in April 2009. Designed by 360 Architecture, the 10,100-seat stadium is part of a $70 million project. The stadium is at the corner of Neil Avenue and Nationwide Boulevard in the Arena District of Columbus, Ohio and replaced the Clippers' former home, Cooper Stadium (1977–2008). In February 2006, the naming rights for the park were purchased by Huntington Bancshares Inc. for $12 million over 23 years.[7] On April 18, 2009, the park opened to the public, with the Columbus Clippers playing the Toledo Mud Hens in the stadium's first game.[8] On August 12, 2009, Huntington Park was named the Ballpark of the Year by Baseballparks.com, beating out all other new or significantly renovated baseball stadiums in the country, including such Major League parks as the new Yankee Stadium and Citi Field. The award is given to the new stadium with the "best combination of superior design, attractive site selection and fan amenities," according to Baseballparks.com.
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[edit] Construction issues
The selection of the construction firms to build the ballpark was a contentious issue. On November 5, 2007, Lithko Contracting of Hamilton, Ohio filed suit against Franklin County. At issue was the fact that the contract for pouring concrete was awarded to Baker Construction despite Lithko's bid coming in $17,500 lower.[9] It was alleged that the Franklin County Commissioners had favored Baker over Lithko because Baker employed union labor and Lithko did not. Because the Commissioners did not want to face delays due to a lawsuit, they awarded the contract to Lithko on November 9, 2007.[10]
The county was subsequently sued two more times by firms after they were denied the contracts despite being low bidders.[11] In those cases, the county rejected the low bid due to allegations of "prevailing wage" violations by the low bidders. State Representative Larry Wolpert (R-23) had asked the state controlling board not to release $7,000,000 in funds until the low bidders were selected.
[edit] Other uses
The park hosted the 2009 and 2011 Big Ten Conference Baseball Tournaments and will host the event again from May 23-26, 2012.[12][13][14]
[edit] Concerts
On June 22, 2010 Huntington Park held its first major concert. The Dave Matthews Band performed on a stage in center field. [15]
[edit] References
- ^ Carmen, Barbara (March 16, 2009). "Huntington Park a Hit for Sponsors". The Columbus Dispatch. http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2009/03/15/ballparknaming.ART_ART_03-15-09_B1_AOD83RE.html.
- ^ Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–2008. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved February 22, 2012.
- ^ Huntington Park|Turner Construction Company
- ^ Jezerinac Geers & Associates - Our Projects
- ^ New Huntington Ball Park|Tuttle Construction
- ^ http://www.mcdanielsconstruction.com/downloads/brochure.pdf
- ^ "Huntington buys naming rights for ballpark." Columbus Business First. 7 February 2006.
- ^ Massie, Jim (04/18/09). "Huntington Park's opening day: Birth of a ballpark". The Columbus Dispatch. http://dispatch.com/live/content/sports/stories/2009/04/18/clippers_essay18.ART_ART_04-18-09_A1_74DJC4A.html?sid=101. Retrieved 2009-04-21.
- ^ Carmen, Barbara (2007-11-06), "Contractor Sues for Stadium Bid", The Columbus Dispatch, http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2007/11/06/Cementsuit.ART_ART_11-06-07_B1_TV8CSPI.html?type=rss&cat=&sid=101
- ^ Carmen, Barbara (2007-11-10), "Stadium Contract Awarded to Non-union Shop", The Columbus Dispatch, http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2007/11/10/BACKDOWN.ART_ART_11-10-07_A1_DV8E9UE.html?sid=101
- ^ Carmen, Barbara (2008-03-06), "Union Had Role in Ballpark Rules, Suit Says", The Columbus Dispatch, http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2008/03/06/stadiumsuit.ART_ART_03-06-08_B1_A99I8R5.html?sid=101
- ^ "Big Ten 2008-2009 Championship/Tournament Schedule". Big Ten. Archived from the original on 2012-2-11. http://www.webcitation.org/65NyJ5cZ0. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
- ^ "Big Ten 2010-2011 Championship/Tournament Schedule". Big Ten. Archived from the original on 2012-2-11. http://www.webcitation.org/65NyQTQDI. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
- ^ "Big Ten 2011-2012 Championship/Tournament Schedule". Big Ten. Archived from the original on 2012-2-11. http://www.webcitation.org/65NyTxFN1. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
- ^ http://www.davematthewsband.com/
[edit] External links
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