PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland Diamond Project is working to bring a Major League Baseball franchise and stadium to the Rose City.
KGW has reported on the stadium project, which was first announced in mid-April.
PDP has put bids on two potential stadium sites: One at the Portland Public Schools headquarters near the Moda Center in Northeast Portland, and one at the ESCO Corporation industrial site in Northwest Portland.
But the people behind the project have largely kept quiet about the specifics of their bid for major league baseball in Oregon.
That is, until this week, when Portland Diamond Project’s three leaders revealed some details about their plans. Sports columnist John Canzano sat down with PDP leaders, former Nike executive Craig Cheek, former Portland Trail Blazers announcer Mike Barrett, and former Oregon State Senator Jason Atkinson, on his radio show.
Here’s what they said about when an MLB team might come to Portland, which team it could be and when we could see first pitch.
When could we see first pitch?
Although there are a lot of factors going into a timeline, including actually buying land for a stadium and getting an MLB franchise to move (or adding a franchise to the mix), Cheek said Portland could theoretically see first pitch in four years.
“It’s a process,” Cheek told Canzano. “Ideally if we could write the script, we’d get some clarity as we move through 2018 and into 2019 around our ability to hit each and every milestone: Acquire land, put ourselves in position, and really, we know it takes around 33 to 36 months to actually build the ballpark. So we’re talking four years from now at the earliest and we would hope to have thrown opening pitch in 2022. We’re going to work on that timeline and give ourselves a healthy sense of urgency and adjust along the way.”
What could the stadium investment look like?
Barrett said PDP isn’t seeking public funding, except for the available $150 million in state bond money for the stadium. But the investment could top $2 billion, when a planned 8,000-unit housing project is factored in.
“As much as we talk about baseball and the love of baseball we have to come to the region with a regional solution,” he said. “So you look at transportation, you look at housing, workforce housing, you look at all those elements. We see us with a $2.3 billion investment into the community as a catalyst, and we see those multipliers at least doubling in the short term – short being 5 years.”
What’s happened with the MLB talks?
PDP has revealed very little about their discussions with Major League Baseball. The group said on Canzano’s show that’s because MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has asked them to keep those details secret for now.
“There hasn’t been some arrogance or because we’ve had this little thing we’re trying to hide and be selfish with it’s because we feel like it’s the best path to get there,” Barrett said, on why they’ve kept quiet.
He did reveal how Portland is being viewed by MLB, and that involves being a new location for the existing Oakland A’s or Tampa Bay Rays.
“If we’re a leverage play to get Oakland and Tampa settled, so be it. That helps us. If we are an escape route for one of those teams, so be it. That helps us. To try to be in a position where we can take either expansion or relocation, that’s great for us. That’s where we want to be,” Barrett said.
But Barrett assured Canzano that PDP is confident about Portland’s MLB prospects.
“We wouldn’t have put our collective leverage both relational, capital, at risk if we all weren’t confident and getting the proper messaging back,” he said.
What’s happening with the potential stadium sites?
Cheek told Canzano that while PDP has its eyes on other sites, they’re gunning for either the PPS site in NE Portland or the NW Portland ESCO land.
“We’re going to do everything we can to roll up our sleeves to work out a deal for one of those sites,” he said.
Cheek said MLB likely wants a stadium location that’s easily accessible from downtown.
“We’re focused on downtown because it is the model the MLB is finding a groove with when you look at other ballparks,” he said.
He also noted that a Moda Center location could revitalize the neighborhood and aid the “Albina Vision,” which is a development plan for the Rose Quarter that would bring back affordable housing for historically marginalized communities in Portland. Cheek said the stadium could be an “economic generator” for the neighborhood.
What happens if Portland lands a franchise before the stadium’s ready?
Cheek said it’s a real possibility that Portland could be given a team before there’s a stadium built for them to play in. If that happens, he has a plan.
“Hopefully we’d be bussing, flying, taking fans down and starting to take over stands and fill that stadium,” he said.
Cheek didn’t say which stadium they’d take fans to, but if fans were going to be bussed instead of flown, Oakland, California is more feasible than Tampa, Florida.
What about a museum?
The leaders of the Portland Diamond Project all said that while Portland hasn’t had a Major League team before, the city is full of baseball history. One way to honor that would be a museum, they said.
“We’ve even talked about doing a museum on our site because Portland’s got so much history,” Cheek said.