Montgomery Riverwalk Stadium

Montgomery Riverwalk Stadium
Location 200 Coosa Street
Montgomery, Alabama 36104
Coordinates 32°22′56″N 86°18′38″W / 32.3822°N 86.3106°WCoordinates: 32°22′56″N 86°18′38″W / 32.3822°N 86.3106°W
Owner City of Montgomery
Operator Montgomery Professional Baseball, LLC
Capacity 4,500 seats
20 luxury boxes
~2,500 general admission (7,000 total)
Field size Left Field: 314 ft (96 m)
Left-Center: 380 ft (120 m)
Center Field: 401 ft (122 m)
Right-center: 377 ft (115 m)
Right Field: 332 ft (101 m)
Surface Grass
Construction
Broke ground May 11, 2003
Opened April 16, 2004
Construction cost $26 million
($32.5 million in 2015 dollars[1])
Architect Populous
Project manager Hagan Construction Company[2]
Structural engineer Walter P Moore/Sykes Consulting, Inc.[3][4]
Services engineer J. M. Garrett & Sons, Inc.[2]
General contractor Jesco Inc.[5]
Tenants
Montgomery Biscuits (SL) (2004–present)

Montgomery Riverwalk Stadium is the home of the Montgomery Biscuits of the Southern League. The minor league baseball ballpark opened in Montgomery, Alabama in 2004. Located right in the heart of downtown Montgomery the stadium can host up to 7,000 people a night.

Riverwalk Stadium is considered a top rated ballpark. The park offers a wide variety of concessions. From the usual burgers and hotdogs, to Mexican, wraps, and of course biscuits. Not to mention Riverwalk Stadium is located in the center of the Montgomery night life. Within two blocks from Riverwalk Stadium there are several restaurants, a few local bars, and three of the best hotels Montgomery has to offer. It is also located right near the Alabama River. Montgomery offers a beautiful riverfront area that is easily accessible from Riverwalk Stadium with a children's splash pad. There is also an amphitheater located behind the field.[6]

Riverwalk Stadium is a converted old train shed in Montgomery. The actual train station is located just two blocks away from the field. The shed that the stadium was converted from was over a century old. The abandoned train shed is what is on the exterior of the first base side of the park. Many major league as well as minor league parks have been built out of existing buildings, but Montgomery's is said to be one of the nicer ones in the minor leagues.[7]

Features

The stadium offers 20 luxury suites. Six of the suites are built into the old train terminal along the first-base line and the remaining 14 extend along the third base line.[7] Montgomery Riverwalk Stadium offers picnic areas along the third-base line and in left-center field.[7] The picnic area in left-center field can accommodate up to 4,000 fans. Both picnic areas tend to be reserved, catered sites through the Biscuits' season. The stadium also has its very own, full bar, The Club Car Bar, which is located on the first base line.[7] In addition, a children's playground area is located along the third-base line.[7] The stadium scoreboard is a video board with a LED screen capable of instant replay. The stadium also has its' gift shop there that is open just about all day called The Biscuit Basket.[7] The stadium is also known for the notched-in curve in deep right field under which the American flag is flown.

Between 2004 and 2007, Riverwalk Stadium hosted the NCAA Division II baseball championship tournament; the tournament moved to Riverwalk Stadium from nearby Paterson Field, where it had been held since 1985.[8] The tournament moved to Sauget, Illinois, in 2008.

History

Victor Mateo threw the stadium's first no-hitter on August 24, 2013, when he allowed just one baserunner on a walk (the runner was erased in a double play later in the inning) in the Biscuits' 3–0 defeat of the Jacksonville Suns.[9]

Field Diagram

References

  1. ↑ Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–2014. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved February 27, 2014.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Montgomery Riverwalk Stadium". Tensar Earth Technologies, Inc. October 2005. Archived from the original on February 20, 2006. Retrieved September 19, 2011.
  3. ↑ "Our Company Awards". Walter P Moore. Archived from the original on July 7, 2007. Retrieved September 19, 2011.
  4. ↑ "Montgomery Riverwalk Stadium". Sykes Consulting, Inc. 2006. Retrieved June 26, 2014.
  5. ↑ Broughton, David (April 12, 2004). "Homestyle: Biscuits’ New Park Ready". SportsBusiness Journal. Retrieved September 18, 2011.
  6. ↑ "Montgomery Riverwalk Stadium". Stadium Journey. Retrieved February 23, 2014.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 "Stadium Facts". Minor League Baseball. February 25, 2013. Retrieved February 23, 2014.
  8. ↑ Knight, Graham (2011). "Montgomery Riverwalk Stadium". Baseball Pilgrimages. Retrieved February 23, 2014.
  9. ↑ Seiner, Jake (August 25, 2013). "Biscuits' Mateo Spins Second No-Hitter". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved February 23, 2014.

External links