Riverfront Stadium (Wichita)

Riverfront Stadium is a baseball park in downtown Wichita, Kansas, United States. It serves as the home ballpark of the Wichita Wind Surge of the Texas League. The team relocated from the New Orleans suburb of Metairie, Louisiana, after the 2019 season.[7]

Riverfront Stadium
Riverfront Stadium
Location within Kansas
Location275 S. McLean Blvd.,
Wichita, Kansas
United States
Coordinates37°40′53″N 97°20′45″W
OwnerCity of Wichita
OperatorWichita Wind Surge
Executive suites12[1]
Capacity
  • 10,025 seated
  • 12,000 (baseball)
  • 18,000 (concerts)[1]
Record attendance7,908 (May 11, 2021; Wichita Wind Surge vs. Amarillo Sod Poodles)[2]
Field sizeLeft field: 340 ft (100 m)
Center field: 400 ft (120 m)
Right field: 325 ft (99 m)[3]
Construction
Broke groundFebruary 13, 2019[4]
OpenedApril 10, 2021[5]
Construction cost$75 million[6]
ArchitectDLR Group[6]
Schaefer Johnson Cox Frey Architecture
Structural engineerProfessional Engineering Consultants[6]
Services engineerProfessional Engineering Consultants[6]
General contractorJE Dunn/EBY[6]
Tenants
Wichita Wind Surge (PCL/DAC) 2020–present

History

Riverfront Stadium was built on the site of the former Lawrence–Dumont Stadium, a minor league ballpark in use from 1934 to 2018.[7] It has a total seating capacity of 10,025 people with 6,000 in fixed seating in addition to luxury suites and a grass berm in right field.[6][7][8] When not used for baseball, the city plans to use the facility for sports festivals, high school football, concerts, and an ice rink in winter.[7] The new ballpark will share hosting of the National Baseball Congress World Series with Eck Stadium at Wichita State.[9] The NBC World Series was played entirely at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium from 1935 until 2018.[10]

Ground was broken for the ballpark in February, 2019. A topping out ceremony, marking the placement of the last steel beam, was held on August 7, 2019.[11]

The stadium name was announced on March 6, 2020.[8]

The ballpark was built to host the Wichita Wind Surge, a Triple-A team of the Pacific Coast League. However, a combination of the cancellation of the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic and Major League Baseball's realignment of the minor leagues for 2021, resulted in the team dropping down to the Double-A Texas League without having played a Triple-A game.[12]

On April 10, 2021, the Wichita State Shockers baseball team hosted the University of Houston in the first game played at Riverfront Stadium.[5]

See also

Former baseball stadiums in Wichita:

References
  1. Barber, Hayden (March 7, 2020). "Riverfront Stadium is 95% complete. Here are specifics of what to expect opening day". The Wichita Eagle. Archived from the original on March 9, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  2. "Wichita Wind Surge Game Information" (PDF). Wichita Wind Surge. Minor League Baseball. June 6, 2021. p. 9. Retrieved June 12, 2021.
  3. "2021 Minor League Baseball: What's New, What's Changed & More". Baseball America. April 27, 2001. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  4. Spedden, Zach (February 13, 2019). "New Wichita Ballpark Breaks Ground". Ballpark Digest. August Publications. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  5. Terhune, Ellen (April 10, 2021). "Thousands of fans turn out to watch Wichita State in Riverfront debut". KWCH. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  6. Lefler, Dion (December 11, 2018). "City Hall Picks Team to Design, Build Wichita's New Minor League Baseball Park". The Wichita Eagle. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
  7. Lefler, Dion (January 23, 2019). "First Look: What Wichita's New Ball Park Will Look like and What Will Be in It". The Wichita Eagle. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
  8. Barber, Hayden (March 6, 2020). "Wichita Wind Surge's new downtown stadium has a name". The Wichita Eagle.
  9. Spedden, Zach (July 29, 2019). "Future NBC World Series to be Split Between Ballparks". Ballpark Digest. August Publications. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
  10. Barber, Hayden (August 12, 2018). "History made at final NBC World Series in Lawrence-Dumont Stadium". The Wichita Eagle. Archived from the original on August 13, 2018. Retrieved September 6, 2018.
  11. Spedden, Zach (August 8, 2019). "Topping Out Ceremony Held for Wichita Ballpark". Ballpark Digest. August Publications. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
  12. Eldridge, Taylor (December 1, 2020). "Wichita's baseball team will drop to Double-A, source says; no MLB announcement yet". Wichita Eagle. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
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