Henderson (NV) makes pitch for MLB team

According to the Las Vegas-Review Journal, the Las Vegas suburb Henderson has made a pitch to lure the Arizona Diamondbacks to the city. The intention is that the D-Backs would be part of a ballpark development à la Suntrust Park and surrounding The Battery.

As the Diamondbacks ownership has expressed its dissatisfaction with how Chase Field was being run and maintained, the team and Maricopa County agreed on cutting the stadium lease short with five years, giving the club the possibility to move to greener pastures after the 2022 season, either in the Valley of the Sun or elsewhere.

Since the two parties (Henderson and the D-Backs) met, the talks have been stalled. Nevertheless, Henderson wants more conversations with other sports clubs that are looking to move to a new market, not only MLB clubs btw.

According to the Las Vegas-Review Journal, Henderson hired a consultant to conduct a financial analysis for a ballpark, assuming it would have 32,000 seats and space for 4,000 standing-room-only ticket holders. The Diamondbacks would serve as the primary tenant for a 30-year term and the stadium would be publicly owned and exempt from property tax. The construction of the ballpark would cost an estimated $1 billion and the development that would include retail, offices and residential buildings.

The Diamondbacks stated: “A number of cities have expressed interest but we have not pursued any because we have not received permission from MLB and our desire is, first and foremost, to stay in Arizona.”

The Las Vegas-Review Journal posted a couple of renderings to show how the ballpark would look like.

So far the city hasn’t heard from the Diamondbacks on whether the project could move forward. It is very likely Henderson isn’t the only city making a pitch for the MLB team. Besides that, the Diamondbacks have expressed they prefer to stay in Arizona.