Florida battles for teams to remain on the East Coast as more teams move to Arizona
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Jeff Mielke on the strength of stability in the West Coast of Florida
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Washington Nationals announce negotiations with Lee County have begun
By Jessica Knox
Once located in Viera, Fla., at the Space Coast Stadium, the Washington Nationals spring training camp is planning to move to Florida baseball spring training hotspot, Lee County.
The move to Lee County would only have a positive effect on the county's economy according to Lee County Sports Authority Director Jeff Mielke.
"To have three teams here and then one across the river in Port Charlotte, would make us our own little hub of spring training and certainly the hottest place in Florida to see spring training games," Mielke said.
Florida has been competing with Arizona for teams' spring training seasons. One major attraction Arizona has over Florida is the locality of teams. The proximity of the teams in Arizona is more appealing to all teams whose contracts are reaching their end.
"For baseball operations you don't have to spend as much money driving up and down interstates," Mielke said. "You can get your premiere players to get into a van and travel across town much more easily than you can put them on a bus and ask them to drive up to Tampa."
Before a team moves, the partnership between team and location must be discussed. The partnership is the key to a successful relationship. The team must be a good fit for the city or county and the local government must be willing to operate the way the major league club wants or needs.
"We take care of their needs." said Carl Callahan, City Clerk and Treasurer/Chief of Staff for the city of Bradenton, Fla. "[The Pittsburgh Pirates are] happy here in a working relationship because they said a couple years ago, 'We need some renovations to McKechnie Field. We're bringing our high A team here. You need to make some improvements to McKechnie Field.'"
The county was willing to make those renovations because of the revenue the Pirates brought to their community. The relationship between the major league club and the community is a working one that is the most important to the stability of the culture. That relationship starts with the process of finding a team.
Once located in Viera, Fla., at the Space Coast Stadium, the Washington Nationals spring training camp is planning to move to Florida baseball spring training hotspot, Lee County.
The move to Lee County would only have a positive effect on the county's economy according to Lee County Sports Authority Director Jeff Mielke.
"To have three teams here and then one across the river in Port Charlotte, would make us our own little hub of spring training and certainly the hottest place in Florida to see spring training games," Mielke said.
Florida has been competing with Arizona for teams' spring training seasons. One major attraction Arizona has over Florida is the locality of teams. The proximity of the teams in Arizona is more appealing to all teams whose contracts are reaching their end.
"For baseball operations you don't have to spend as much money driving up and down interstates," Mielke said. "You can get your premiere players to get into a van and travel across town much more easily than you can put them on a bus and ask them to drive up to Tampa."
Before a team moves, the partnership between team and location must be discussed. The partnership is the key to a successful relationship. The team must be a good fit for the city or county and the local government must be willing to operate the way the major league club wants or needs.
"We take care of their needs." said Carl Callahan, City Clerk and Treasurer/Chief of Staff for the city of Bradenton, Fla. "[The Pittsburgh Pirates are] happy here in a working relationship because they said a couple years ago, 'We need some renovations to McKechnie Field. We're bringing our high A team here. You need to make some improvements to McKechnie Field.'"
The county was willing to make those renovations because of the revenue the Pirates brought to their community. The relationship between the major league club and the community is a working one that is the most important to the stability of the culture. That relationship starts with the process of finding a team.
Mielke's three part process to selecting a team
Part 1:
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Part 2:
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Part 3:
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