Columbia Common (Charleston, Greenville, Sumter: calculated, best place, reviews)

[JustSayinJG]

Originally Posted by garnetpalmetto

One correction here - Katz is the team president, not the owner. The primary owner is Jason Freier.

Yeah, that's what I meant.

[ColaClemsonFan11]

So last night at the Drvie vs Fireflies game here in Greenville, first of all it was more of a football score with a 13-9 win for Columbia but secondly, I have to say I was so happy to see them playing and have seen it come together as someone who has been a huge proponent of this from my days of living in Columbia when plans were started and many nay sayers including on here said it would never work. Last night here in Greenville at Fluor Field, I saw many many people sporting Fireflies gear, obviously folks who made the trip up from Columbia on a Thursday Night to support their team. As someone who goes to a lot of Drive games, I have never seen that from another fan base, including Asheville which is closer. They also had a group from Pelion High School there as well who made the trip up.

While I would say I am a Greenville homer now, it was an awesome thing to see not only my home city represented on the minor league diamond again, but also to see the clear support for them as well!

[garnetpalmetto]

Originally Posted by ColaClemsonFan11

So last night at the Drvie vs Fireflies game here in Greenville, first of all it was more of a football score with a 13-9 win for Columbia but secondly, I have to say I was so happy to see them playing and have seen it come together as someone who has been a huge proponent of this from my days of living in Columbia when plans were started and many nay sayers including on here said it would never work. Last night here in Greenville at Fluor Field, I saw many many people sporting Fireflies gear, obviously folks who made the trip up from Columbia on a Thursday Night to support their team. As someone who goes to a lot of Drive games, I have never seen that from another fan base, including Asheville which is closer. They also had a group from Pelion High School there as well who made the trip up.

While I would say I am a Greenville homer now, it was an awesome thing to see not only my home city represented on the minor league diamond again, but also to see the clear support for them as well!

That's definitely awesome! My wife and I are planning to drive down to Greensboro and maybe Kannapolis to see the Fireflies when they play the Grasshoppers and the Intimidators.

[UnderTheLiveOaks]

As a former Columbia resident now living in the Piedmont Triad area of NC, I am so glad to see that the Fireflies are up and running. The minor league parks in both Greensboro and Winston-Salem have been great additions to their respective downtowns and I've loved catching games at both. Next time I'm in Cola, I'll be sure to check out the new digs and the new team.

[Mutiny77]

Originally Posted by UnderTheLiveOaks

As a former Columbia resident now living in the Piedmont Triad area of NC, I am so glad to see that the Fireflies are up and running. The minor league parks in both Greensboro and Winston-Salem have been great additions to their respective downtowns and I've loved catching games at both. Next time I'm in Cola, I'll be sure to check out the new digs and the new team.

Yep, as well as Durham and Charlotte. Seems that the Carolinas get minor league ballparks right.

[UnderTheLiveOaks]

Originally Posted by Mutiny77

Yep, as well as Durham and Charlotte.

Yep. I mentioned Greensboro and Winston because they're A and High-A teams, more analogous to the Fireflies. As opposed to the AAA clubs in Durham and Charlotte, but yeah, the Bulls and Knights are great outfits.

[garnetpalmetto]

Originally Posted by Mutiny77

Yep, as well as Durham and Charlotte. Seems that the Carolinas get minor league ballparks right.

Pretty much. I'd say there's one park that isn't very nice, L.P. Frans in Hickory. It's one of those early '90s parks that was built before you start seeing the neo-classical parks that were built post Camden Yards. The chairback seats behind homeplate remind me of booster seats and the park has a stunning view of absolutely nothing. Here's hoping the Crawdads get better digs one day. For what it's worth, having been to all the active pro parks in both Carolinas, my wife and I would rank order them as follows:

1. Durham Bulls Athletic Park (Durham, NC - Durham Bulls (AAA))
2. BB&T Ballpark (Charlotte, NC - Charlotte Knights (AAA))
3. Spirit Communications Park (Columbia, SC - Columbia Fireflies (Low A))
4. Yadkin Bank Park (Greensboro, NC - Greensboro Grasshoppers (Low A))
5. Fluor Field (Greenville, SC - Greenville Drive (Low A))
6. BB&T Ballpark (Winston-Salem, NC - Winston-Salem Dash (Advanced A))
7. McCormick Stadium (Asheville, NC - Asheville Tourists (Low A))
8. Joseph P. Riley Ballpark (Charleston, SC - Charleston RiverDogs (Low A))
9. Ticketreturn.com Field (Myrtle Beach, SC - Myrtle Beach Pelicans (Advanced A))
10. CMC-Northeast Stadium (Kannapolis, NC - Kannapolis Intimidators (Low A))
11. Five County Stadium (Zebulon, NC - Carolina Mudcats (Advanced A))
12. Burlington Athletic Stadium (Burlington, NC - Burlington Royals (Rookie))
13. L.P. Frans Stadium (Hickory, NC - Hickory Crawdads (Low A))

I think 1 through 10 are all pretty decent parks, 11-13 not as much. Five County is just an ugly concrete behemoth in the middle of nowhere. Burlington Athletic Stadium is nice vintage stadium that has kind of a cool backstory in that the stadium was originally Danville, VA's. The city of Burlington purchased it in the late '50s and it was shipped piece by piece and rebuild in Burlington. L.P. Frans I've already discussed.

I'll be interested to see what the new park in North Augusta looks like when the GreenJackets move across the river in a couple of years.

[Woodlands]

Originally Posted by garnetpalmetto

Pretty much. I'd say there's one park that isn't very nice, L.P. Frans in Hickory. It's one of those early '90s parks that was built before you start seeing the neo-classical parks that were built post Camden Yards. The chairback seats behind homeplate remind me of booster seats and the park has a stunning view of absolutely nothing. Here's hoping the Crawdads get better digs one day. For what it's worth, having been to all the active pro parks in both Carolinas, my wife and I would rank order them as follows:

1. Durham Bulls Athletic Park (Durham, NC - Durham Bulls (AAA))
2. BB&T Ballpark (Charlotte, NC - Charlotte Knights (AAA))
3. Spirit Communications Park (Columbia, SC - Columbia Fireflies (Low A))
4. Yadkin Bank Park (Greensboro, NC - Greensboro Grasshoppers (Low A))
5. Fluor Field (Greenville, SC - Greenville Drive (Low A))
6. BB&T Ballpark (Winston-Salem, NC - Winston-Salem Dash (Advanced A))
7. McCormick Stadium (Asheville, NC - Asheville Tourists (Low A))
8. Joseph P. Riley Ballpark (Charleston, SC - Charleston RiverDogs (Low A))
9. Ticketreturn.com Field (Myrtle Beach, SC - Myrtle Beach Pelicans (Advanced A))
10. CMC-Northeast Stadium (Kannapolis, NC - Kannapolis Intimidators (Low A))
11. Five County Stadium (Zebulon, NC - Carolina Mudcats (Advanced A))
12. Burlington Athletic Stadium (Burlington, NC - Burlington Royals (Rookie))
13. L.P. Frans Stadium (Hickory, NC - Hickory Crawdads (Low A))

I think 1 through 10 are all pretty decent parks, 11-13 not as much. Five County is just an ugly concrete behemoth in the middle of nowhere. Burlington Athletic Stadium is nice vintage stadium that has kind of a cool backstory in that the stadium was originally Danville, VA's. The city of Burlington purchased it in the late '50s and it was shipped piece by piece and rebuild in Burlington. L.P. Frans I've already discussed.

I'll be interested to see what the new park in North Augusta looks like when the GreenJackets move across the river in a couple of years.

Of these stadiums that you listed.. which would you say have had a positive impact (jump starting)the surrounding area in the manner that we want to see happen here in Columbia? Some listed were built in booming areas as opposed to being the catalyst for the boom... Charlotte for instance. Not as familiar with some of the others..... Seems like the Fireflies are off to a good start but I guess only time will tell.

[SCxpBrussel]

Originally Posted by Woodlands

Of these stadiums that you listed.. which would you say have had a positive impact (jump starting)the surrounding area in the manner that we want to see happen here in Columbia? Some listed were built in booming areas as opposed to being the catalyst for the boom... Charlotte for instance. Not as familiar with some of the others..... Seems like the Fireflies are off to a good start but I guess only time will tell.

At the risk of stating the obvious, Greenville's Fluor Field is widely credited with revitalizing that area of town. Charleston's 'Joe' I don't think was quite as successful - that part of the peninsula is definitely still off-the-beaten-path, for sure. Although I think there are big plans for the area, I think that's more a reflection of Charleston's booming tourism industry and the demand for peninsular living than proximity to the ballpark. Not sure about any of the others.

[UnderTheLiveOaks]

Hard to pin revitalization efforts on any single project, but the parks in Winston-Salem and Greensboro have definitely had a marked effect on their immediate neighborhoods.

The park in Winston (BB&T Ballpark) was built in an area that was largely dilapidated housing before the park was built. Now the park is part of a wider boost to the downtown area, and the immediate area has seen the construction of higher-end apartments and an announced mixed-use development that will be a real game-changer for that area. Construction is slated to get underway in the fall.

Greensboro has experienced a similar boost, again accompanied by many other efforts and investments. The recently renamed Yadkin Bank Park is right in the middle of several new apartment and mixed-use developments, and has helped draw investment to a corner of downtown that was historically a little sleepier than the Elm St. corridor.

As for the others, several are pretty old (McCormick Field in Asheville dates back to the '20s and, as someone else mentioned, the field in Burlington was moved, piece by piece, to Burlington back in the '50s), so those don't really factor into jump-starting development.

Several others (Five County, CMC-Northeast, and LP Fran) weren't built in or near downtowns, and didn't seem to have wider development in mind. Both pretty much stand alone in their respective areas, and no one is walking around much after the games, I'd imagine. Drive in drive out.

Myrtle Beach, likewise, is sort of a special case. It's near Broadway at the Beach, and is likely banking on tourist crowds. And again, it's not the sort of place you'd walk around after.

Which pretty much leaves Durham, I think, and I think the DBAP had a strong effect on Durham, but not in the same way as some of the others listed. The Durham Bulls are the strongest brand of any of these teams, I'd say, and have been a draw on their own merits for some time. They are the baseball team of record in the RDU area, to the point that Raleigh has no team of its own. DBAP was built more than 20 years ago, and the area immediately adjacent has had additional help in the years since, such as the excellent performing arts center built a few blocks away. Plus there's been a lot of investment in Durham by tech ventures, etc., over that same time period. So all things considered, the park has certainly helped, but unlike some of these other towns, it'd be hard to draw a clear line between development and the park itself.