Heat, humidity and rain
are three factors that plague fans when attending Marlins games at
Dolphin Stadium. In April 2012, that will no longer be an issue as
the Marlins will move into their new ballpark. Since the Florida
Marlins inception in 1993, they have played at the multipurpose
Dolphin Stadium, a stadium built mainly for football. Not only do
the Marlins have to play at a stadium built for football, but the
threat of rain often keeps fans away from games. These factors have
led the Marlins to try to get a new ballpark built for nearly a
decade. Over the past ten years, several plans have been proposed on
where a new ballpark should be built and how it would be financed.
Support from local officials increased after the Marlins won the
World Series in 2003 when Miami Dade County announced plans to fund
a ballpark. However, Miami-Dade County decided not to fund the
project, but in January 2004, the City of Miami proposed building a
ballpark at the site of the Orange Bowl. This ballpark would have
adjoined the Orange Bowl. Throughout 2004 and 2005, the Marlins
struggled to gain financial support from the Florida House
Legislation, Miami-Dade County and the City of Miami.
In February 2008, the Florida Marlins reached an agreement for a
baseball-only ballpark. City and County Commissioners voted on
February 21, 2008 to approve funding for
a new ballpark for the Marlins. The ballpark was originally
scheduled to open in 2011 but was delayed by a lawsuit by South
Florida auto dealer Norman Braman, who unsuccessfully challenged the
public funding aspect of the project.
In March 2009, both the City of Miami and Miami-Dade County approved
financing of construction for the Marlins new $634 million ballpark.
Miami-Dade County will pay a majority of the construction costs and
will own the stadium. The Marlins will contribute $120 million to
the project and will borrow $35 million from Miami-Dade County.
Fans of the Marlins
can now look forward to April 2012 when they can go to games at a
baseball only stadium and no longer have to worry about having to
set through rain delays. The Marlins ballpark has a futuristic
design that looks forward and breaks away from the traditional retro
ballpark design. A brick facade will not be found here. Instead, the
exterior will consist of white stucco, silver metal and glass. The
three panel retractable roof will prevent any rain delays and open
or close in 13 minutes. When open it will sit behind the first base
grandstand on the west side of the ballpark. Here, on the outside,
will be a giant gathering plaza for fans to mingle before games.
Inside, the ballpark will seat 37,000 fans, the smallest in MLB. The
main three tier grandstand will stretch from foul pole to foul pole.
Additional seating will be located in both right and left field.
Several unique features will be found beyond the outfield. This
includes a beach and swimming pool in left field, and a signature
water feature in centerfield. Two HD video/scoreboards will be
located at the ballpark, one in centerfield and the other near the
left field foul pole. Fans will be able to see the Miami skyline
beyond the stands in left field. The ballpark will have many
amenities including a Taste of Miami food court, 42 luxury suites,
eight party suites and numerous other entertainment areas. Official
groundbreaking occurred on July 18, 2009. Construction of this
ballpark will likely lead to the rebirth of the franchise, which
will be renamed the Miami Marlins in April 2012.
As of November 2009: Concrete is being poured for the super columns that will
support the retractable roof on the south side of the stadium. The
130 foot tall north track super columns have been complete.