Sounds, Metro can't agree on lease

By MICHAEL CASS • Staff Writer(Tennessean) • October 10, 2008 The Nashville Sounds and Metro government continue to disagree about the Sounds' future at Greer Stadium as the baseball team's lease is running out, a top city official said Thursday. Metro Finance Director Rich Riebeling said the team has asked for a short-term lease of one to five years after Dec. 31, but the city wants the Sounds to make a long-term commitment to fixing up the 30-year-old ballpark. "We want their ownership to show a commitment to Nashville, to staying in Nashville," Riebeling said. Jeff Diamond, a consultant working for the Sounds, said he couldn't say much about the negotiations. "I would just say discussions continue, and we're talking and meeting and trying to get something worked out," said Diamond, who was president of the Tennessee Titans from 1999 to 2004. "I'll just leave it at that for now." Alhough there are still more than two months to reach an agreement, the impasse reflects the frosty relations between the Sounds and Mayor Karl Dean, who was the city's top attorney during previous negotiations for a new riverfront ballpark on city-owned land. Under the original plan, that facility would have opened in 2007, but the deal fell apart 18 months ago after the Sounds fought with their development partner and missed two financing deadlines. Dean has shown little trust for the Sounds' Chicago-based management since then. He was angry when the Sounds advanced state legislation last winter that would have let them collect sales tax from a future ballpark to help pay off their construction costs. The franchise eventually had the bill withdrawn. Asked if the Sounds would want to be assured that they could build a new stadium before making a long-term commitment to Nashville, Riebeling referred to the earlier deal. "They had an opportunity to build a stadium in downtown Nashville, and they walked away from that transaction," he said. Dean said in a February interview that the Sounds may have missed their best chance to partner with the city. "We're certainly not going to offer a better deal, and we may not be able to offer the same deal," he said. City asks for upgrades Riebeling said the Sounds haven't offered any new proposals or designs. In the meantime, the city has asked the Pacific Coast League franchise to upgrade Greer Stadium, a 10,052-seat facility just south of downtown. Metro wants the Sounds to bring Greer into compliance with standards imposed by the federal Americans with Disabilities Act and improve the stadium's restrooms and concessions facilities. "What are they going to do about Greer?" Riebeling said. "Because it's not fair to the fans." He also said it was too easy for the Sounds to say the stadium is old. "Wrigley Field is old," he said. "Fenway Park is old. Just because something is old doesn't mean it's something that can't be maintained in a way that fans appreciate." But many of the Sounds' peers in the minor-league baseball ranks are enjoying newer facilities. Thirteen Triple-A teams will play next season in stadiums built in 2000 or later. "I think they need a new stadium downtown, without a doubt," said Wallace Primm, a longtime Sounds fan and a retired Metro Transit Authority bus driver. "I love baseball. What matters to me is the viability of having baseball in Nashville."

Sounds still in default of Greer Stadium lease

Sounds General Manager Glenn Yaeger claims the team has been responsive in becoming ADA compliant.

By Nate Rau, Friday, May 2, 2008 3:21 am(The City Paper)
Updated: Friday, May 2, 2008 3:21 am

The Nashville Sounds organization is still in default of its Greer Stadium lease because certain aspects of the 31-year-old ballpark are not in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, according Metro’s law director.

The letter, sent to the team by Law Director Sue Cain on April 22, states that the Sounds still have a number of upgrades to make at the ballpark before they are in ADA compliance. Although the team does not have to be fully ADA compliant by a certain date, it does have to submit a plan to do so soon.

The Sounds took a step toward ADA compliance — and toward solving a beef with the team’s major league affiliate, the Milwaukee Brewers — when it recently constructed a $1 million project for new home and visitor locker rooms.

The new locker room facility, located apart from Greer Stadium behind the outfield wall, wasn’t complete until Thursday. Until then, Sounds players were forced to change and prepare for games at LP Field and then take a bus to the ballpark.

“As you are, by your own admission, in violation of the laws of the United States, the Metropolitan Government is providing you with further notice of your continuing material default of the lease,” Cain wrote in the letter.

The team’s Greer Stadium lease expires at the end of the year. The Sounds own an option to extend the lease, but must first be in ADA compliance so they are not in default of their lease, before they can do so.

The Sounds must give 180 days notice about their intentions to renew the lease, which would give the team a July 1 deadline before submitting its plan to become ADA compliant.

“It is the desire of the Metropolitan Government to continue to have the Sounds play baseball in Nashville,” Cain’s letter reads, “and to the extent it is reasonable to do so, will work cooperatively with you should you choose to correct this default in conformance with the terms of the lease.”

Sounds General Manager Glenn Yaeger claims the team has been responsive in becoming ADA compliant and would develop a plan to complete its remaining issues — like the height of concession stands, the number of wheelchair ramps and rails on certain walkways throughout the stadium.

Renewing the Greer Stadium lease is another chapter in what has become a contentious back-and-forth between the Sounds and Metro.

Earlier this week, the team’s new proposed legislation to help with the funding of a possible downtown ballpark passed a state Senate subcommittee. This angered Mayor Karl Dean, who says he asked the team not to press forward with the legislation until it had private financing in place.

The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Thelma Harper (D-Nashville), would allow the team to use the sales tax generated by the new ballpark and its surrounding development to pay back the debt on construction of the stadium.

Metro’s legislative lobbyist Eddie Davidson said the team pushing ahead with the legislation was an act of bad faith and effectively cut off communication between the city and the Sounds on a possible new ballpark.

Yaeger said the team needs to have all its revenue streams, including public money, in place before it receives private financing.

Sounds cover all the bases to ready ballpark for opener

Aged stadium needed major upgrade to be playable By RACHEL STULTS • Staff Writer (Tennessean) • April 11, 2008 The paint was still drying in the stands. And the sound of hammers and saws echoed through the ballpark Thursday as workers scrambled to get ready for the Sounds' home opener against the Iowa Cubs. Groundskeepers put the finishing touches on the pitcher's mound in preparation for tonight's game. And in the stands, a painter methodically stenciled row numbers on the concrete. It's show time for the aging Greer Stadium. The Nashville Sounds have spent more than $1 million during the off-season upgrading the stadium. Those fixes — a new clubhouse for players, better lights in the field, improvements to restrooms, walkways and seats — will keep it going for another three to five years. By then, the Sounds will need to make major renovations, build a new ballpark or consider moving out of Nashville. "If we had not spent the money we did over the last year it's safe to say baseball would not be played," said Sounds General Manager Glenn Yaeger. "We continue to express our need for a new ballpark, and how important that is for the future of baseball here in Nashville. We're hopeful we can identify a solution," The 31-year-old stadium was not meant to last beyond 30 years, Yaeger said. It seats 10,000 fans, typically draws 400,000 fans per season and is one of the oldest Triple A stadiums in the nation. "It was built as a Double A facility in 1977, and facility standards back then were much different," he said. "It was built on the cheap, and never would have been a facility that would have been approved today." This year marks the beginning of the Sounds' 11th season as a member of the Pacific Coast League and its fourth year as a Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. Nashville bucks trend Branch B. Rickey, league president, said Nashville's continued use of Greer Stadium bucks the national trend of building new minor-league stadiums. "There really has been a renaissance in minor-league facilities over the past 15 years," Rickey said. "Many municipalities have recognized (building new stadiums) is an opportunity to help local fans have access to outdoor recreation, access to live professional sports during the spring and summer." Metro Finance Director Rich Riebeling said that while city leaders are glad to see the upgrades, a deal to build a new one must be struck under the right conditions, in which the burden is not on taxpayers. "You can't neglect what you have," Riebeling said. "These were necessary improvements, and realistically speaking, we're more than a couple of years away from a (new) stadium under the best of scenarios, even if you started today." The Sounds have campaigned for more than five years to build a baseball stadium south of Broadway, on the west bank of the Cumberland River. A deal for the riverfront ballpark fell through last year, leaving fans wondering about the future of baseball in Nashville. But there are no immediate plans for relocating the stadium, and league officials say they must focus on working with what they have. Rickey said investing the money for improvements wasn't the best option, but one that was needed. "In order to be fair with home team players, visiting team players and with the umpires, something had to be done," he said. Clubhouse was too small Most of the upgrade dollars have gone toward building a new $750,000 clubhouse after Sounds management learned their facility was "unacceptable" by league standards. The old clubhouse, located under the stands, was too small for the players and in constant need of maintenance, especially when it rained and the roof leaked. The stadium's new 48,000-square-foot clubhouse is located behind the outfield and will be used by the home team, visitors and umpires. That clubhouse is still under construction and is expected to be ready by the April 28 home game. In the meantime, the Sounds will use the player facilities at LP Field while visiting teams will continue to use the clubhouse at Greer Stadium. Meanwhile, there are some improvements for the fans as well. Aged walkways and broken seats have been replaced. Lights in the infield and outfield have been upgraded. The scoreboard is fully functioning, and the restrooms have been improved with new fixtures and partitions. But there's still a lot more to be done. "It's a constant uphill battle," said Joe Hart, assistant general manager of operations. "We've been going at it hard since the first of January, but every time you walk through you see something else that needs to get fixed. We've got a things-to-do list about five pages long. But we're trying to be proactive."