Jimmy John's Field Macomb County
A 4,000-seat ballpark is under construction in the city of Utica in Macomb County.
The field will be home to the United Shore Professional Baseball League's three professional teams, which will be made up of "overlooked young players, mostly with college experience, who haven't made it into the major league farm system," says Andrew Appleby, chairman and CEO of General Sports and Entertainment, the ballpark's developer.
"It will be a highly competitive and entertaining style of baseball," he says.
For Utica and Macomb County, the $12-million ballpark, which is located at the northeast corner of Auburn Road and Moscona Drive and will be named Jimmy John's Field, could be an economic home run.
"For the city of Utica, this ballpark will prove to be transformative. For the county of Macomb, it is an economic, quality-of-life, and recreational asset," says Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel. "For the region it will prove to be a destination location."
Besides seating for 4,000 spectators, the field will have a grandstand, five dugout suites, five penthouse suites, 12 private patio siutes, a grass berm, and four picnic areas.
The Utica Downtown Development Authority is leasing the land, a former household waste disposal site and brownfield redevelopment project.
In addition to baseball games, the field will host concerts, movie night, community events, and college and high school sporting events.
Construction is expected to take 12 months from this week's groundbreaking and be complete in time for opening day in June 2016.
Source: John Cwikla, spokesperson, Macomb County
Writer: Kim North Shine
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