Chase Field upgrade nod to retain Diamondbacks

Article posted by Coliseum, July 2^nd, 2025

Image: Chase Field, Beyond My Ken, CC BY-SA 4.0

The Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs signed legislation recently that funds up to $500 million in renovations to the Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona (US) – the home of the Major League Baseball (MLB) team Arizona Diamondbacks.

‘ESPN’ stated that the Bill, which won bipartisan support in both of the State’s Grand Old Party (GOP, also known as the Republican Party)-controlled Chambers, will use the sales tax revenue from the stadium and the nearby buildings for infrastructure upgrades over the next 30 years including improvements to the air conditioning systems and the stadium’s retractable roof.

The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona (US). The Diamondbacks compete in the Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League West Division. The franchise was established on March 9^th, 1995 and began play in 1998 as an expansion team.

The 48,519-capacity Chase Field, formerly the Bank One Ballpark, is a retractable-roof stadium in downtown Phoenix, Arizona (US). It is the ballpark of the Major League Baseball (MLB) team Arizona Diamondbacks. It opened in 1998, the year the Diamondbacks debuted as an expansion team.

‘ESPN’ further stated that the team said it will also contribute $250 million for the renovations at the stadium which is located in downtown Phoenix and is surrounded by the small businesses and the restaurants that see a boost of activity during the baseball season.

The legislation is one of a handful of bipartisan deals that Hobbs, a Democrat, prioritized negotiating during the session. She says the funding is a responsible use of the taxpayers’ dollars, will provide good-paying jobs and ensure the Diamondbacks do not leave Phoenix.

Attendance at the games has increased since the team’s 2023 run to the World Series where the Diamondbacks lost to their peer team – the Texas Rangers. This season they are averaging 31,420 fans per game – the highest in two decades.

Hobbs tweeted on X, “I’m not going to let Arizona lose the Diamondbacks.”

Derrick Hall, President and head honcho of the Diamondbacks, praised Governor Hobbs and said the team will now turn its attention to extending its lease with the Maricopa County.

The Bill cleared the Legislature on June 23^rd after months of debate that included the question of whether the Diamondbacks could potentially leave unless a public funding deal was reached.

The other MLB teams have threatened to leave the Host Cities if they did not get public financing.

New York (US)-based the Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league in North America. It is often considered to be the highest level of professional baseball in the world. There are two leagues that make up the MLB: The American League, also called the AL, and the National League, also called the NL. There are currently 30 teams in the MLB, 29 from the United States and one from Canada, the Toronto Blue Jays.

The MLB team Oakland Athletics, for example, complained for years about their former home ground – the 63,000-capacity Oakland Coliseum in Oakland, California – and an inability to gain Government assistance for a new ballpark. Now, the team is bound for Las Vegas where a groundbreaking ceremony was held this month for a $1.75 billion ballpark that is expected to be completed in time for the 2028 season. The State of Nevada and the Clark County approved up to $380 million in public funds for the project.

And last year the voters in Jackson County, Missouri, rejected an attempt to extend a sales tax that would have helped fund a ballpark for the MLB team Kansas City Royals and stadium renovations for the National Football League (NFL) team – the Kansas City Chiefs. The lawmakers in Kansas are trying to lure the teams with Government subsidies and Missouri is trying to keep them with its own financial incentives.

The Diamondbacks have spent nearly three decades in their downtown ballpark which is owned by the Maricopa County Stadium District (a public entity responsible for managing and overseeing various sports and entertainment venues). In 2017, the team sued the district over funding for repairs and sought to remove a contractual clause preventing the team from looking into other stadium options.

A perennial problem has been the park’s air conditioning system and its ability to keep it cool in triple-digit Summer heat, Hall said.

The fans of the American country music star Morgan Wallen bemoaned the heat at a 2023 Summer concert at the Chase Field despite the retractable roof being closed. The concession stands ran out of water and some people simply left.

The Chase Field was one of the first MLB stadiums to have a retractable roof. Now, seven out of the 30 teams play under one including the Milwaukee Brewers, the Toronto Blue Jays, the Texas Rangers, the Miami Marlins, the Houston Astros, and the Seattle Mariners. The Chase Field also has a small swimming pool in its right field, one of its most recognizable features.

The funding from the Legislature will not mean upgrades to the pool, or to the stadium suites, the latter of which was a sticking point for the Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego. She got on board after the Bill was updated to prevent funds from being used for the suites and a cap was placed on how much money the City would contribute for a land deal should the Diamondbacks break from the Stadium District, according to the Gallego Chief of Staff Seth Scott.

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