Intimidators Stadium

Intimidators Stadium
The Cannon
Former names Fieldcrest Cannon Stadium (1995–2012)
CMC-NorthEast Stadium (2012–2016)
Location 2888 Moose Road
Kannapolis, NC 28083
Coordinates 35°30′28″N 80°33′59″W / 35.50778°N 80.56639°W / 35.50778; -80.56639Coordinates: 35°30′28″N 80°33′59″W / 35.50778°N 80.56639°W / 35.50778; -80.56639
Owner Rowan County and City of Kannapolis
Operator Smith Family Baseball (maintenance by Rowan County)
Capacity 4,700 (seated)
Field size Left Field: 330 feet
Left-Center: 375 feet
Center Field: 400 feet
Right-Center: 375 feet
Right Field: 310 feet
Surface Natural Grass
Construction
Broke ground October 19, 1994[1]
Opened April 8, 1995[2]
Construction cost $6,800,000 (including adjacent property)
($10.7 million in 2016 dollars[3])
Architect Lescher and Mahoney
Services engineer Brittain Engineering, Inc.[4]
General contractor Wayne Brothers, Inc.[5]
Tenants
Kannapolis Intimidators (SAL) (1995–present)
Charlotte 49ers (NCAA) 2003, 2007

Intimidators Stadium is a baseball stadium in Kannapolis, North Carolina. It is the home venue for the Kannapolis Intimidators, the Class A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox.

History

When the Intimidators franchise (then known as the Piedmont Phillies) began play in 1995, the stadium's construction was not complete. The field and seating areas were ready for the team's first game in April of that year, but the concession stands, restrooms, luxury boxes, and box office were not complete until that winter. The stadium was named Fieldcrest Cannon Stadium for the Fieldcrest Cannon Corporation, the textile giant that built the mill town of Kannapolis and operated it until the city was incorporated in 1984.

In addition to home games for the Intimidators, Fieldcrest Cannon Stadium is also used for several local high school baseball games each spring in addition to select Amateur Athletic Union events throughout the year.

The stadium was the home of UNC Charlotte's baseball team during the 2003 season while their on-campus facility's playing surface was being redone.[6] The 49ers played in Kannapolis again for the first part of the 2007 season while their stadium was undergoing a $6 million renovation.[7]

Improvements

A new scoreboard was installed in center field for the 2005 season, replacing the original board that the stadium used when it opened.[8]

The city of Kannapolis is considering a replacement facility.[9]

Naming Rights

On April 3, 2012, it was announced that Carolinas Medical Center-NorthEast purchased the naming rights to the stadium, adopting the new CMC-NorthEast Stadium name for the upcoming season. Per club policy, terms were not disclosed.[10]

For 2016, the naming rights deal was quietly dropped, with the team referring to the stadium as Intimidators Stadium again.[11]

References

  1. ↑ "Officials Break Ground on Ballpark". The Charlotte Observer. October 20, 1994. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
  2. ↑ "Kannapolis Brings Back Baseball to Full Stadium". Star-News. April 10, 1995. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
  3. ↑ Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Community Development Project. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
  4. ↑ "Clients & Projects". Brittain Engineering, Inc. Retrieved August 11, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Builder of the Year". The Charlotte Observer. February 13, 1997. Retrieved March 4, 2012.
  6. ↑ "Baseball Moves All C-USA Home Games To Kannapolis". University of North Carolina at Charlotte Department of Athletics. March 12, 2003. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Charlotte Releases 2007 Baseball Schedule". University of North Carolina at Charlotte Department of Athletics. January 10, 2007. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  8. ↑ "2005 Intimidators: The Remaking of a Team, New Owners, Skipper Have the Roster Stocked with Fresh Players, Many of Them Green". The Charlotte Observer. April 7, 2005. p. 1K.
  9. ↑ Smith, Deirdre (2016-03-16). "Kannapolis Intimidators have new owners, big plans". Salisbury Post. Retrieved 2016-03-16.
  10. ↑ "Name Game: Welcome to CMC-NorthEast Stadium". Minor League Baseball. April 3, 2012. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
  11. ↑ http://www.milb.com/content/page.jsp?ymd=20090114&content_id=41000294&fext=.jsp&vkey=news_t487&sid=t487
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