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Clearwater appears to have found a win-win-win when it comes to the thorny issue of what to do about 48-year-old Jack Russell Stadium - at least temporarily - now that a new spring training baseball stadium is nearing completion on U.S. 19 at Drew Street.
Thursday night, the Clearwater City Commission is expected to vote to approve a contract that would give use of the old stadium to a private organization, Winning Inning, for two years.
The win-win-win for Clearwater doesn't come from making a big bundle on the lease of the property - Winning Inning, a business that conducts baseball and athletic training, will pay no rent.
However, the business will keep up the stadium at its own expense, no small task considering the age and size of the facility. A $25,000 to $30,000 tax burden for the stadium will transfer to Winning Inning. And third, and perhaps most important, the lease with Winning Inning buys the city time to figure out a more permanent plan for the property.
For the next two years, Jack Russell will be the home of baseball again. Winning Inning conducts sports clinics and camps for athletes, from amateurs to pros. The business has previously located some of its programs for young people in a Countryside park and has rented fields elsewhere for adults. At Jack Russell, the company can consolidate all its sports programs along with offices for the business and facilities for the coaches and trainers it employs.
City officials hope that before the lease runs out in two years, they will have found a use for the property that will make sense for the future and score with the surrounding neighborhood. Ever since the city began developing plans to build a new stadium for spring training baseball, people in the North Greenwood community that borders Jack Russell have been concerned about what would happen with the old facility. No one wanted it to become an eyesore.
Residents who were surveyed for their development preferences seemed split. Some wanted a place to shop, especially a grocery store. Some wanted housing built on the site. And others said the city should try to attract a manufacturer or clean industry that would bring jobs to a neighborhood that needs them. The city was not given strong guidance in any particular direction.
Thursday night the City Commission also will consider directing the city staff to put out a request for proposals from developers interested in the property. Provided there is interest in the development community, city departments will review submitted proposals, residents near Jack Russell will be given an opportunity to see and comment on the proposals, and the city staff will make a final recommendation to the City Commission.
Because Jack Russell is city property, and one that holds many fond memories for local baseball fans, residents citywide should be interested in its disposition.