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San Diego Ballpark Builders, a joint venture between Clark Construction Group, LLC, Roel Construction and douglas e. barnhart inc., have completed Petco Park, the new home of the San Diego Padres baseball team. The $294 million (construction cost) project boasts a natural grass playing field and a unique seating bowl design that creates distinctive seating “neighborhoods” for 42,000 fans. The official opening day took place on April 8th and the Padres beat the San Francisco Giants 4-3 in 10 innings.
“The ballpark is spectacular, with the best sightlines in baseball and state-of-the-art amenities,” said JMI Realty, Inc.’s Executive Vice President Charles Black.
Intimate and asymmetrical, Petco Park evokes the charm of great old ballparks. Designed by Antoine Predock of Albuquerque, N.M., the natural stone and stucco exterior and lovely landscaping features the Park at the Park, green space beyond the outfield fence. Imported from India, the exterior stone reflects the soft colors of the Torrey Pines cliffs along San Diego’s coastline. Vice President of Ballpark Development Erik Judson made the long trek to the quarry in India to personally select the uniquely colored stone. The historic Western Metal Supply Company Building, which existed on the site, was incorporated into the design as a portion of the left field wall and foul pole.
Executive architect HOK Sport + Venue + Event of Kansas City connected the skywalks to the perimeter buildings, which house concessions, rest rooms and other program elements, to the upper decks. The concourse is open to the sky. An extended cantilever on the Club Level and upper level decks bring fans seated on the top two decks closer to the field.
In addition to the architects, the team included Hines of San Diego, development manager and Andrew Spurlock Martin Poirer of San Diego, landscape architect.
Building Petco Park led to significant economic contributions to San Diego, including 32% HUBE (Historically Underutilized Business Enterprises) participation, equaling $68,738,577. The project also is the anchor and catalyst to redeveloping the 26-block area around the ballpark, known as the East Village.
A dry-run opening took place in March when Petco Park hosted the Aztec Invitational, a four-day college baseball event. Seventy percent of the ballpark is owned by the City of San Diego and 30% by the San Diego Padres for 30 years - the City will own 100% thereafter. Clark Construction Group, LLC is headquartered in Bethesda, Md.
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