Portland City Council backs group's plans to build Major League Baseball stadium
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The Portland City Council unanimously agreed on Wednesday to formally support the Portland Diamond Project’s plans to bring a Major League Baseball team to the city and to build a new stadium along the city’s South Waterfront.
Mayor Ted Wheeler brought the agenda item to the council, he said, with the intention of sending a signal to Major League Baseball and to the rest of the country that the City of Portland is “very serious” about landing an MLB team.
“Major League Baseball will be expanding by two teams in the very near future,” Wheeler said. “That’s been known for some time, and during that time, cities across the country have been preparing proposals and packages to convince [the] MLB that their cities should be selected. “Based on everything we have heard to this point, Portland should be in the lead.”
The adopted ordinance directs the City of Portland to partner with the Portland Diamond Project and make the best possible pitch for the MLB to select Portland for the league’s next expansion. In September, the Portland Diamond Project announced that it signed a letter of intent to acquire the Zidell Yards property in hopes of building an MLB stadium.
The ordinance specifically:
- Instructs city administrators to put together a citywide team to work with the Diamond Project and all other necessary community parties on attracting an MLB team
- Prioritizes the building of an MLB stadium on the Zidell Yards property
- Directs city administrators to support the development of creating the most competitive package possible for bringing an MLB team to the city of Portland
Portland Diamond Project President Craig Cheek, who represents the ownership group behind the plans to bring an MLB team to Portland, addressed the council Wednesday. During the discussion, Cheek announced that the Portland Diamond Project will soon unveil architectural renderings of the proposed MLB ballpark.
“When we get ready to unveil those [images] in the near future, it is going to captivate the hopes and the dreams of a lot of fans, and really unlock this incredible opportunity for us as a city and a region,” Cheek said.
While the City of Portland missed out on the Montreal Expos relocating to Portland in 2003, and the last MLB expansion in 1995, which added the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Rays, Cheek said that that the city is finally in a position to win its bid for an MLB team.
“I am supremely confident that professional baseball can come to Portland and [support from the city council is] a big step forward,” Cheek said.
On Sept. 18, the WNBA announced that Portland was selected as the newest city to receive a WNBA expansion team.