Riverfront Stadium is ’95% complete.’ Here are specifics of what to expect opening day
Walk around parts of Wichita’s newest, most prized possession and find unearthed dirt and rock.
Step inside and find one of the best minor league baseball stadiums in the country, set to bring affiliated ball back to Kansas for the first time since 2007.
The Wichita Wind Surge, the new Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins, released the name of its downtown ballpark Thursday. With about 30 days until opening day, Riverfront Stadium is “95% complete” and is scheduled to get done in time for opening day, Wind Surge owner Lou Schwechheimer said.
“We’re actually ahead of schedule,” Schwechheimer said. “We’re on budget, and we’re on time. We’re ready to open this ballpark, and I think the people of Wichita, the surrounding area and all of Kansas and the region are going to be blown away with what they actually see.
“We have 300 people working on site every day. That’s 3,000 man hours a day of work. ... There is no clock. When you’re this close to opening day, the key is to keep the critical path agenda straight.”
Riverfront Stadium’s southeast corner, just past the right field foul pole at McLean Boulevard and Maple Street, can scare some fans when they drive by. Schwechheimer said the exposed dirt and excavating equipment is for phase 2 of the development around the Delano District with a hotel and riverfront baseball village set to come in over the next few years.
It won’t look the same on March 15 when the city of Wichita expects to deliver a certificate of substantial completion or on opening day April 14, but Schwechheimer said the Wind Surge’s first focus was on completing the stadium.
Here are some specifics:
Riverfront Stadium will seat 10,025 people with 22-inch seats and 36 inches between rows. The minimum capacity for a minor league stadium is 10,000. Schwechheimer said comfort was a premium.
With 32-foot-wide concourses, Schwechheimer said he believes 12,000 people can fit inside the ballpark for baseball games, about 18,000 for concerts.
A grassy berm will run around the left field foul pole for families to sit and watch the game for just $10. The Fidelity Club is above it, at the top of the stadium down the third-base line. Twelve suites tower over the first-base line. And in the outfield, a party deck and one of the largest video boards in minor league baseball mirror each other.
“A lot of people like to hang out, have a beer and gather at the ballpark,” Schwechheimer said. “We’ve got a lot of gathering places that allow you to do just that. There will be flat screen TVs. There will be grills and bars set up. We wanted it to be a fan-friendly ballpark where you can stretch out and connect with people in the community, and you don’t even have to like baseball.”
There are three entrances — Delano, which features a large runway heading toward left field off Sycamore Street; Maple, that comes up behind home plate; and McLean, which comes in from right-center field.
Parking is a “fluid situation,” Schwechheimer said. The city of Wichita and the Wind Surge are continuing to work on a finalized parking plan, but Schwechheimer said it could and likely will change throughout the season based on feedback and which entrances are used most frequently.
The Wind Surge followed an aggressive build timeline, and president Jay Miller said this ballpark was a “design build,” meaning “you build it as you go.” This is Miller’s sixth ballpark construction, and he said this was his first design build.
“I like this process,” Miller said. “We’re putting things in, taking things out of the plan, so you can get it right.”
The city of Wichita is pleased with the progress of the stadium. Scot Rigby, assistant city manager and director of development services, said the stadium will be complete by March 15 though the exterior and work along the roads, particularly McLean Boulevard will not.
But come opening day, Wichitans will see a sound investment.
“It’s no different than if you’re buying a new house,” Rigby said. “When you move in, you may say, ‘There is a little bit of landscaping left to be done,’ but you’re moving in because all the toilets flush and the water works. You’ve done that final inspection.”
Individual game tickets are available on the Wind Surge website. As of Saturday morning, opening day tickets are sold out except for $10 seating on the berm. All seating in the bowl goes no higher than $15.
“We want to do it right,” Schwechheimer said. “Not only for today but for generations to come. ... Wichita has finally said, ‘We want to be the next great midwestern city.’ We want to do the right thing because as we share our vision for this riverfront, we’re doing it for our kids, too.”
This story was originally published March 7, 2020 at 1:39 PM with the headline "Riverfront Stadium is ’95% complete.’ Here are specifics of what to expect opening day."