Scottsdale City Council will vote Tuesday on whether to spend up to $900,000 to renovate parking near the outfield and practice fields at Scottsdale Stadium.
“The trend really with spring training over the last five to 10 years it’s really grown,” said Chris Walsh, Scottsdale parks and recreation manager. “We need to have the change, the flexibility, to change with the times.”
The plan is to expand practice fields, add space for agility training and reconstruct the outfield parking lot at Scottsdale Stadium.
The facility is the spring training home for the San Francisco Giants and managed by the city. An estimated 80 players will take to the fields in January before the Major League Baseball season starts.
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The money comes from the Stadium Facilities Capital Improvement fund which includes contributions from Scottsdale, the Scottsdale Charros and the Giants.
Scottsdale is in the midst of a 25-year contract with the team that was signed in 2005. The fields were originally built in the early 1990s.
Walsh said, if approved, it will be the biggest renovation to take place in a decade.
“Our previous expansions were made in 2005 and they’re based on really a demand model that is more than 10 years old now,” Walsh said.
