CoolToday Park
CoolToday Park is a ballpark in North Port, Florida, located in the southern portion of Sarasota County, south of Sarasota, Florida. It is the spring training home of the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball. The ballpark opened on March 24, 2019, with the Braves' 4–2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Braves' $140 million project was funded by private and public sources. Sarasota County contributed $21.2 million through hotel bed tax dollars. The state of Florida put in $20 million after showing the Braves arrival would add $1.7 billion economic impact on the area over the team's 30-year lease. Mattamy Homes, a private developer, donated the land and $4.7 million. The city of North Port contributed $4.7 million and Wellen Park, the planned community within North Port that houses the facility, ran the construction and development. The Braves committed a 30-year lease, annual payments to Wellen Park, and at a minimum the first $18 million in the cost of the complex.
History
Planning
In 2015, the Atlanta Braves began looking for a new Spring Training home. From 1997 to 2019, the Braves held spring training at Champion Stadium near Orlando. To reduce travel times the team sought a new spring home in Florida to get closer to other teams' facilities.In April 2016, the Braves and Sarasota County officials announced they were in formal negotiations. The Braves and Sarasota County began discussing a site in the Wellen Park master-planned community in North Port.
In January 2017, the Atlanta Braves and Sarasota County announced that formal negotiations had begun regarding a new spring training facility. Early proposals called for a $125 million complex to be developed on approximately. About six weeks after Sarasota County entered exclusive negotiations with the team, the two sides reached agreement on the primary terms of a proposed deal. The resulting term sheet outlined plans for a $75.4 million facility to be constructed in North Port, with funding coming from Sarasota County, the state of Florida, the city of North Port, the Braves organization, and a private developer.
City and County approval
Between February and September 2017, multiple governmental approvals finalized the financing and development framework for the Braves' new spring training complex. An initial term sheet outlining project responsibilities was approved by the Sarasota County Commission in a 4–1 vote on February 28, 2017, followed by a May 9 decision to allocate a portion of the county’s tourist development tax toward the project, including repayment of approximately $22 million in borrowing without a tax increase. On May 23, the county unanimously approved a 30-year operating and non-relocation agreement with the Braves, setting a target construction completion date of January 15, 2019.In June 2017, Wellen Park sought $20 million in state grant funding as part of the project's public–private financing plan, while North Port approved a public use licensing agreement for the facility. The North Port City Commission later approved $4.7 million in local funding on July 25, 2017, followed by conditional approval of $20 million in state funding on September 1, 2017. Sarasota County commissioners unanimously approved the final agreements on September 12, 2017, including an interlocal agreement assigning design and construction duties to the West Villages Improvement District, with ownership transferring to the county upon completion. Final public approval was granted by the North Port City Commission on September 19, 2017.
Construction
By September 2017, preliminary site work, including studies and surveying, was underway at the future stadium location. On September 1, 2017, the Braves named Mike Dunn as Vice President of Florida Operations. Dunn was placed in charge of development for the new spring training complex, and on October 16, 2017, team officials and local leaders held a formal groundbreaking for the planned $100 million facility. During the brief ceremony, Braves Vice Chairman John Schuerholz addressed more than 100 attendees, including fans, residents, and elected officials, welcoming them as new partners in the project despite hot weather conditions.Sarasota-based Tandem Construction and Southfield, MI based Barton Malow was in charge of project. The construction schedule was to complete the stadium in time for when pitchers and catchers report to camp in February 2019. However, on January 31, 2018, the Braves announced they would extend their lease with Disney's ESPN Wide World of Sports through April 2019 "to ensure there is enough time to complete” the new facility. The team held their 2019 spring training at Disney and played their final spring training home game at the new facility.
In June 2018, 30% of the construction was complete. On December 4, 2018, North Port announced a 20-year stadium naming-rights deal with CoolToday, a local air conditioning, heating, plumbing and electrical services company, in which the park's name was unveiled: CoolToday Park. At the completion of the park the costs for the project had increased to $140 million.
Design
CoolToday Park includes 6,200 permanent seats and can hold approximately 8,000 spectators when berm and standing room areas are used. The complex also contains the team clubhouse, player development and training facilities, six practice baseball fields, six multi-use fields, and space dedicated to the organization's sports medicine academy. The broader development is intended to serve as the centerpiece of a planned mixed-use town center district, creating potential partnerships between the team, a nearby college, and surrounding medical offices.The main stadium is located on the northern portion of the property, immediately south of a proposed elementary and middle school campus. A public plaza along West Villages Parkway is designed to function as an event space when baseball activities are not taking place. Practice and multi-use fields occupy the southern and eastern areas of the approximately site. The multi-use fields are used for overflow parking during spring training and serve as public recreation space for local schools and tournaments. The team's sports medicine, fitness, and physical therapy facilities are also located within the complex.
The ballpark incorporates several familiar facets from other Grapefruit League facilities. The clubhouse behind the right field fence is reminiscent of Charlotte Sports Park. An outfield grandstand is similar to Bradenton's LECOM Park. The berm in left field is common to many spring training facilities. The ballpark has a left-field tiki bar, as does the Phillies' Spectrum Field in Clearwater.
The outfield dimensions mirror those of Truist Park, the Braves' MLB home.