City must decide fate of Ed Smith Stadium after Reds leave

By CAROL E. LEE
Sarasota Herald-Tribune

SARASOTA -- It could become a park. Maybe it will be sold to a private developer. It could wind up demolished, as the mayor said on election night. Or it might just remain a stadium.

Whatever happens to the Ed Smith Sports Complex in the absence of the Cincinnati Reds, the city has not figured it out yet. No one ever did a financial analysis of what life without the Reds would be like for the city and its 20-year-old sports complex.

But the failure of a $16 million bond referendum to rebuild the stadium for the Reds leaves the city with a sizable budget void -- possibly $1.3 million -- and raises questions about how the facility will be used in the absence of spring training.

The city will begin dealing with both issues now that the clock has started to tick on the Reds' remaining time in Sarasota.

The team has made clear its intention to leave.

The exact shortfall the city will face is unknown, as is how it will pay for facility maintenance and upgrades.

"We've always been going forward with the expectation that it would be a rebuild," said City Manager Robert Bartolotta. "Now we're going to put our heads together."

The city subsidized the stadium with about $500,000 this past year.

The Reds cover about $500,000 in field maintenance costs, according to the city's sports facilities manager, Pat Calhoon. Calhoon also estimated that the team brings in about $330,000 in revenue from areas such as ticket sales and parking.

Some of the Reds' financial void will be offset by decreased expenses, such as electricity and security, because the stadium would be used less. And the freedom to book new events from March to September, when the Reds and their Florida State League team would normally have first rights to dates, could also bring money to the city.

But that money still might not be enough.

The city gets about $20,000 from a Reds spring training game, for instance, compared with about $7,000 it generates from the Sarasota Blues Festival, Calhoon said.

Bartolotta said once the Reds give notice, the city will likely come up with a handful of possibilities for the facility, including a recreational complex, a park, a mixed-use development or selling the stadium -- and analyze the economic impact and community benefit of each.

The Reds' lease expires at the end of 2008. After that, the team has the option to continue on a year-to-year lease for three years.

The team is not wasting any of that time.

"We'll get moving here in the next couple days," said Jeff Maultsby, director of Florida operations for the Reds.

Cities in Arizona and Florida have already approached the team. Goodyear, Ariz., recently got the Cleveland Indians and wooing the Reds would give the area a monopoly on Ohio spring training fans. Lee County, Orlando and Vero Beach have been tossed around as possible new Florida homes for the Reds.

"It's like a blank canvas, which is kind of exciting," said John Allen, the Reds' executive vice president and chief operating officer. "We can look at a lot of different options."