Miami Stadium
) (1989/1990) Miami Dade Community College Wolfson Campus (1970-1996) |
Miami Stadium, later officially known as Bobby Maduro Miami Stadium, was a
The stadium was located on the block bounded by Northwest 23rd Street (south – first base), Northwest 10th Avenue (west – third base), and Northwest 8th Avenue (east – right field), with an open area behind left field extending about a block north. A distinguishing feature of the ballpark was a high arched
It was the spring training home of the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers from 1950 to 1958 (for most of their "A" games). The Dodgers played their first game as the Los Angeles Dodgers at the ballpark when they opened their 1958 spring training schedule against the Phillies on March 8, 1958, in front of 5,966 fans.[1] It was used during the spring by the Baltimore Orioles from 1959 to 1990. At the time of its construction, Miami Stadium was remarkably modern and well-appointed, although in time it would be surpassed by later designs.
The Miami City Commission voted unanimously in favor of the renaming in February 1987, and the ceremony took place the following month. The ballpark became known officially as Bobby Maduro Miami Stadium in honor to the famous Cuban baseball entrepreneur
The City of Miami had proposed razing the stadium and selling the property for warehouses. But a sale price of $1.6 million plus demolition cost of $725,000, scared away would-be developers. The City rezoned the property in 1998 for housing. St. Martin Affordable Housing Inc. purchased the 12.6-acre (51,000 m2) property from the City of Miami for $2.1 million in 1999 to raze the stadium and build a rental housing project.[4] A large apartment complex (called The Miami Stadium Apartments) now stands where the stadium was.
Estadio Quisqueya, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (inaugurated in 1955), is an almost exact replica of the stadium.[citation needed]
A PBS documentary, White Elephant: What Is There To Save?, was produced in 2007 about the stadium's history.[5]
In 2017, Abel Sanchez, a Miami native, created a GoFundMe page which raised $2,500 to get a historical marker for the site. The Florida Department of State's State Historical Marker Council reviewed and ultimately approved the application.[6]
References
- ^ Gordon S. White Jr. (1958-03-09). "Phillies Triumph Over Dodgers, 7-4". New York Times. p. S1.
- St. Petersburg Times. Associated Press. 1957-06-07. Archived from the originalon 2012-07-13. Retrieved 2009-06-09.
- New York Times. Associated Press. 1990-05-27. Retrieved 2009-06-09.
- ^ Paola, Isupa (2001-04-19). "Maduro Stadium nearer demolition for apartment complex". Miami Today. Retrieved 2009-06-22.
- ^ "White Elephant Documentary". Archived from the original on 2008-10-07. Retrieved 2007-05-11.
- ^ "Historical marker installed at former Bobby Maduro Miami Stadium site". 12 December 2017.