The Chicago Cubs have held Spring Training exclusively in Mesa, AZ since 1979 and have called HoHoKam Park in Mesa their Spring Training home since 1997. But it looks like the Cubs will be abandoning HoHoKam soon. Could Mesa be next?
A report from SpringTrainingOnline.com indicates that the Cubs have rejected plans to renovate HoHoKam Park in favor of building a completely new Spring Training facility. The Cubs would prefer a campus-like setting where the training fields and Spring Training ballpark are all together. Currently, the training facilities at Fitch Park and the Spring Training stadium at HoHoKam Park are separated.
If the Cubs remain in Mesa, the most likely area for a new Spring Training facility is on the west side of town near the airport and I-10. But remaining in Mesa is anything but a sure bet.
There has also been talk about a possible move to the Gila River Indian Reservation. According to a spokesman for the tribe, the talks have only been preliminary and no plans have come before the tribal council. But the point is that the Cubs have options, even if they choose to stay in Arizona.
But will they stay in Arizona? Not if the City of Naples, Florida has anything to say about it. A group in Naples that includes the Collier County Economic Development Council, the Naples City Council, Fifth Avenue Advisors (a diversified financial services firm), Esmark (a company involved in steel production, healthcare, oil, aviation, sports management, etc.), have met with Cubs brass about a possible 120 acres development that the group says will provide the Cubs with a state-of-the-art Spring Training facility and will enhance the development plan of Collier County.
The Naples group has deep pockets, as well as a commitment from the State of Florida for $7 million to attract or keep a team in the Sunshine State for Spring Training. They’ve vowed not to use any local taxes for the project.
David Moulton of the Naples Daily News believes that Naples has a real shot at landing the Cubs. He points out that even after the folks in Arizona had made their pitch, the Cubs still made arrangements to visit Naples. Also, Moulton is encouraged by the fact that one of the first things Tom Ricketts did as new owner of the Cubs was to fly to Naples to look at land for a Spring Training facility. Moulton thinks that the Cubs prefer Naples. He also thinks it helps that 15 of the last 18 (soon to be 16 of the last 19) World Series champions have their Spring Training homes in Florida.
Arizona Phil, contributing writing over at The Cub Reporter, thinks that the Cubs are using Naples as leverage to get what they want in Arizona. Phil is an astute observer of the Cubs, particularly their operations in Arizona, and his belief is that the Cubs will stay in Arizona, but move to the Gila River Indian Reservation. His reasoning is sound.
“The movement of MLB clubs has been strictly Florida to Arizona for the past 15 years, and with all 15 MLB Arizona teams soon to be located in the Phoenix metro area (when the D’backs and Rockies move from Tucson to their new combined facility on the Salt River-Pima Reservation in 2011), I can’t see any club going from Arizona to Florida. If anything, I would say at least one more team (probably the Houston Astros) will move from Florida to Arizona in the near-future. Florida just cannot compete with the shorter travel distances between Arizona’s ST sites/Minor League complexes and Arizona’s more-predictable weather.”
As I’ve stated previously, I’d prefer that the Cubs move to Florida. My reasons are selfish (it’s better for me), but I do think that the package in Naples is extensive. I also think a move to Florida gives the Cubs an opportunity to change the way they do things. Tom Rickett’s can start with a clean slate and a move to Florida could be a catalyst for a cultural shift within the organization.
Whatever the Cubs decide, it appears certain that in a few years they will have a new Spring Training home. Whether that new home is in Mesa, on the Gila River Indian Reservation, in Naples, or somewhere else is yet to be determined.
