The Springfield City Council wants to approve state money to upgrade Hammons Field

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) – Hammons Field could see some significant improvements next season thanks to funds approved by the state of Missouri.

The state approved $3.5 million to upgrade the stadium. Now the Springfield City Council just needs to accept the funds.

“We are very excited to see what this offseason will look like as far as repairs to the stadium are concerned, and all of this has really been made possible through the cooperation of the city of Springfield with the state government,” said Dan Reiter, general manager of the Springfield Cardinals.

The upgrades are critical, but may not be visible to the average person. This includes HVAC and roof repairs, speaker upgrades and steel beam painting.

“Our stadium is over 20 years old and really had a lot of deferred maintenance that just wasn’t done. So the starting point for us and the city is to make sure our stadium is operational as a building,” Reiter said.

The stadium will also be making some improvements to the press box and seating.

“For a long time, the press level was really insular. It wasn’t used very much, but fortunately our new lease with the City of Springfield has made it a much more active area. We can achieve a lot with this renovation,” said Reiter.

The box seating upgrades include outdoor seating for those boxes that do not have them.

“The biggest benefit is that we will be adding outdoor seating. And what we’ve heard throughout the stadium’s history is that’s why people didn’t like having so many rental properties up there. They didn’t want to own it for a partial season as there was no option to sit outside. And I think that’s part of the baseball atmosphere that’s been missing, and this project will help restore it,” Reiter said.

Reiter says this will be the most upgrades they have ever made in an offseason.

“Thanks to this money from the state of Missouri that was really provided by the city of Springfield. This will be the biggest renovation season we have ever had. We will end up achieving more this off season than in any previous year owned by the previous landlord. So in Springfield Cardinals history, this is the biggest offseason of upgrades we’ve ever had. It’s exciting,” said Reiter.

Although many of these improvements, such as Even though upgrades, such as seating or scoreboard upgrades, are not visible to the public, they are still important, says Reiter.

“I think the most important thing is to remind people that it’s very similar to your home, some of the things you must have done to your home when it comes to roofs and HVAC. It’s not particularly exciting to invite friends over, but ultimately they are crucial to ensuring you have a healthy living environment. And a lot of these things that we do to the stadium, whether it’s HVAC, roof repairs, masonry, ceiling, all of those things are critical to making sure that this is a safe place for our guests to watch a baseball game,” said Equestrian.

And Reiter believes it represents an excellent tourism and residential addition to the city.

“It gives a lot of validity to our region. And I think when the city talks about quality of life, I feel like that’s the energy that’s being put into making sure that it’s good for the residents, that it’s good for recruiting future people to come here “We want to live here, we want to stay here, and that’s why we take it very seriously to manage every dollar we spend here positively,” said Reiter.

Hammons Field must complete these upgrades by June 1, 2025, although it is aiming for completion in March, before the start of the Missouri State University Bears baseball season.

The Springfield City Council will vote on whether or not to accept that money at Monday’s meeting, which will be held at the Regional Police and Fire Training Center on West Battlefield at 6:30 p.m.

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