Domed ballpark planned in Incheon

Article posted by Coliseum, August 31^st, 2022

Image: Incheon Asiad Main Stadium, Korea.net, CC BY-SA 2.0

The South Korean retail giant Shinsegae Group announced recently that it will work with Incheon (City in South Korea) to build a multipurpose domed stadium in the Western metropolitan City.

‘TheKoreaTimes’ stated that Shinsegae currently owns the Incheon-based team of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), the SSG Landers.

The Korea Baseball Organization is the governing body for the professional leagues of baseball in South Korea. The KBO was founded in 1981 and has governed two leagues: The KBO League and the KBO Futures League since 1982.

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The SSG Landers are a South Korean professional baseball team. The team was originally established as the SK Wyverns but was renamed as the SSG Landers in 2021 after Shinsegae acquired the team from the SK Group. They are a member of the KBO League. Based in Incheon, they play their home games at the 23,000-capacity Incheon SSG Landers Field in Incheon, South Korea.

‘TheKoreaTimes’ further stated that the Shinsegae Vice-Chairman, Chung Yong-jin, and the Incheon Mayor, Yoo Jeong-bok, met at the Incheon City Hall to discuss their partnership over the construction of the new domed ballpark in the Cheongna district of the City around 30 kilometers West of Seoul.

South Korea currently has one domed baseball stadium: The Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, home of the KBO club Kiwoom Heroes.

The Gocheok Sky Dome is a domed baseball stadium located in Gocheok-dong, Seoul, South Korea. It is the home ballpark of KBO club Kiwoom Heroes. The stadium is primarily used for baseball and has a capacity for 16,744 spectators for baseball games.

Shinsegae said the new domed ballpark will have about 20,000 seats. During baseball offseasons or on days when the Landers are on the road, the multipurpose venue will host K-pop concerts, esports competitions and international exhibitions and trade fairs, the group said.

Yong-jin said in a statement released by Shinsegae, “By acting quickly on our plans for the domed ballpark, we’ll make sure Incheon will be ahead of other municipalities in opening the era of a domed stadium. This will also help develop Incheon into an international City.”

Added Jeong-bok, “I hope the City of Incheon and Shinsegae will work together as partners in the regional development.”

SSG Landers Manager Kim Won-hyong welcomed the news of the new dome, saying it will help eliminate uncertainty and unpredictability when it comes to playing during inclement weather – “The biggest advantage of having a domed ballpark as your home is that players will be able to stick with their routines to prepare for games without being affected by the weather conditions. During monsoon seasons, players are exposed to injury risks because of slippery and wet fields. The domed ballpark will get rid of those dangers.”

Multiple rainouts cause major schedule disruptions in the KBO each year, leaving teams scrambling to play makeup games in the late days of the season. Starting rotations get messed up in such situations, a cause of headache for Managers who already have so much on their plate.

Added Won-hyong, “I think the domed ballpark will also make life more comfortable for fans. I hope we will see a stadium that can satisfy everyone.”

The Landers’ current home, the Incheon SSG Landers Field, opened in 2002.

Shopping Mall

‘Posts English’ stated that apart from the domed ballpark, the City of Incheon will also boast the Shinsegae spearheaded shopping mall – Starfield Cheongna – construction on which will start soon and is expected to go on stream in the year 2027.

Mayor Jeong-bok and Yong-jin met at the Incheon City Hall recently and agreed to comprehensively cooperate and promote various projects being promoted at the Cheongna International City in Incheon.

‘Posts English’ further stated that the Shinsegae Starfield Cheongna, which will be built on an area of 165,000 square meters (about 50,000 pyeong) in the 6-14 area of Cheongna-dong, Seo-gu, will be a shopping mall which will boast added attractions. The project cost is about 1.3 trillion won. Around 4,000 jobs are expected to be generated.

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