The group attempting to resurrect the Montreal Expos has chosen a ballpark site and has begun the process to acquire it.
Expos Ballpark Site
According to a report by the French-language La Presse, Stephen Bronfman’s group has reached out to the Quebec Provincial Government for assistance in obtaining the land, currently owned by Canada Lands Company. Last week, their investment firm – Claridge – registered as a lobbyist in Quebec City. They hope to gain support from the province in possible negotiations with the federal government.
The site is a mile south of downtown Montreal on the southern shore of Peel Basin. According to La Presse, the land value is listed at C$6 million but is probably worth about C$49.5 million. The lobbying document did not specify whether Claridge plans on buying the land or asking for it to be granted.
At 900,000 square feet, the site will have more than twice the room needed for a stadium. (A stadium needs at least 350,000 square feet.) There is talk of building a vibrant, mixed-use residential/commercial neighborhood around the ballpark to fill the rest of the space.
Resurrecting the Team
The original Montreal Expos played from 1969 to 2004. That offseason, they moved to DC and became the Washington Nationals. Former Expo Warren Cromartie founded the Montreal Baseball Project in 2012 with the goal of bringing back the Expos via expansion or relocation. A group led by Stephen Bronfman – son of original Expos owner Charles Bronfman – has begun the process.
According to Maury Brown of Forbes, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has said that he’d like to expand to 32 teams. However, that will not occur until Oakland and Tampa Bay have new ballparks under construction. Oakland has unveiled plans but is finalizing the land deal.
Tampa Bay’s plan fell apart in December, and they seem to be making no progress toward a solution. If the Rays cannot get a new stadium in place, they could move to Montréal. However, that would not be possible until 2028 at the earliest.
Information from La Presse and the Twitter feed for MTL Loves Baseball (@MLB_MTL) contributed to this report.
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