Sun City Stadium
Location | 111th Avenue & Grand Avenue Sun City, Arizona, U.S.[1][a] |
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Owner | Del E. Webb Construction (1971–1983) |
Capacity | |
Field size |
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Acreage | 12.5 acres (5.1 ha)[2] |
Surface | Grass |
Construction | |
Opened | 1971 |
Demolished | 1995 |
Builder | Del E. Webb Construction |
Tenants | |
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Sun City Stadium was a
History
The park was dedicated on June 17, 1971, with the Sun City Saints, a women's softball team, winning a
The
After the Brewers left in 1985, the ballpark was closed and put up for sale.[15] The women's softball team, the Sun City Saints, had disbanded after ownership raised their rent for use of the facility.[16] In 1989, a Glendale-based three-person partnership bought the stadium to use for youth and adult amateur baseball leagues.[15] The following year, the Sun City Saints reformed after ownership allowed them to use the stadium rent-free.[17] Also in 1990, the stadium served as the home ballpark of the Sun City Rays of the short-lived Senior Professional Baseball Association.[18] During this timeframe, the stadium became the property of a local bank, which was later absorbed by the federal Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC).[18]
In May 1991, a different three-person partnership, incorporated as "Field of Dreams", leased the stadium from the RTC with an option to buy, primarily to host men's amateur baseball; the partnership changed the name of the facility to Sun Cities Stadium.[19][20] In 1992 and 1993, the Mesa Solar Sox of the Arizona Fall League used the stadium as their home ballpark.[21][22] In March 1993, a partnership known as Sun Cities Associates—two of the Field of Dreams partners plus an attorney from New York—bought the stadium for $500,000 from the RTC.[23] Later that year, a closely-linked group, known as Sun Cities Stadium Associates, attempted to get the Kansas City Royals to move their spring training to a new stadium that would be built near the existing stadium.[24][25] The effort, along with attempts to attract other major-league teams, proved to be unsuccessful.[26] With no professional baseball tenant for the stadium, and a new baseball facility (Peoria Sports Complex opened in March 1994) located only 6 miles (9.7 km) away, ownership announced in June 1994 that the stadium would be torn down and replaced with a housing complex.[27]
Notes
- ^ Vintage postcards of the stadium can be found online, which note an address of 13440 North 111 Avenue.
References
- ^ "Cactus League". The Arizona Republic. March 23, 1980. p. E2. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c Hicks, Dave (August 1, 1971). "Sun City is 'when' proposition, not 'if'". The Arizona Republic. p. D-3. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Baseball is outta there". The Arizona Republic. January 27, 1995. p. NW 1. Retrieved November 25, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Cactus League Teams". The Arizona Republic. June 1, 1996. p. C12. Retrieved November 25, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Minard, Meg (December 14, 2020). "Former Cactus League Stadiums: Sun City Stadium". stadiumjourney.com. Retrieved November 25, 2021.
- ^ "Saints belt Bluejays". The Arizona Republic. July 18, 1971. p. D-9. Retrieved November 25, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "San Francisco Giants (ad)". The Arizona Republic. March 3, 1972. p. 75. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ McClatchy Newspapers. March 14, 1972. p. B7. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Major League Baseball comes to Sun City Stadium". The Arizona Republic. March 24, 1972. p. 18. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Brewers Set up Spring Camp". The Capital Times. Madison, Wisconsin. AP. January 12, 1973. p. 13. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Brewers announce Sun City schedule opening March 10". Daily Sentinel. Woodstock, Illinois. December 20, 1973. p. 14. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Walsh, Jim (October 5, 1983). "Ownership to pursue Brewers". The Arizona Republic. p. Extra E. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Milwaukee Brewers Spring Training". springtrainingonline.com. Retrieved November 26, 2021.
- ^ "Hot and bothered". The Arizona Republic. April 4, 1985. p. E1. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Remy, Holly D. (June 21, 1989). "Sun City Stadium's new owners dust off home plate". The Arizona Republic. p. 1W. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Konig, Ryan (June 13, 1990). "Saints holding a revival". The Arizona Republic. p. 1W. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Konig, Ryan (June 13, 1990). "Saints holding a revival (cont'd)". The Arizona Republic. p. 3W. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Stadium has had few hits". The Arizona Republic. June 27, 1994. p. 7. Retrieved November 25, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Baker, Lori (May 5, 1991). "3 Valley men set to buy Sun City Stadium". The Arizona Republic. p. 1W. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sun City Stadium gets new owners". The Arizona Republic. May 22, 1991. p. 7N-8. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Arizona Fall League Rosters". Arizona Daily Star. September 24, 1992. p. D5. Retrieved November 25, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Arizona Fall League". Tucson Citizen. October 5, 1993. p. 3D. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Baker, Lori (April 16, 1993). "Baseball one step closer". The Arizona Republic. p. 21. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Schwartz, David (October 4, 1993). "Stadium group woos KC Royals". The Arizona Republic. p. 1. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Schwartz, David (October 4, 1993). "Stadium group woos KC Royals (cont'd)". The Arizona Republic. p. 2. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- The Salina Journal. Salina, Kansas. October 6, 1993. p. 17. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Baker, Lori (June 27, 1994). "Ballpark out; apartments planned". The Arizona Republic. p. NW 4. Retrieved November 26, 2021 – via newspapers.com.
External links
- Stadium photos at digitalballparks.com
- Stadium photos via SmugMug