CommunityAmerica Ballpark
Encyclopedia
CommunityAmerica Ballpark is a multi-purpose stadium
in Kansas City, Kansas
, home of the Kansas City T-Bones
of the independent American Association, and the temporary home of Kansas City Wizards (now Sporting Kansas City) of Major League Soccer
. It is located in the Village West
area at 1800 Village West Parkway. Many local area High School teams play at the ballpark and it is also the home of the Kansas City Kansas Community College
Blue Devils. It has also been used for concerts and some community events.
, a Kansas City area financial institution, which bought the naming rights to the park. The reported dimensions of CommunityAmerica are 300 feet (91.4 m) down the left field line (with an 18 feet (5.5 m) wall, affectionately known as "the Little Green Monster"), 411 feet (125.3 m) to left center, 396 feet (120.7 m) to dead center, 409 feet (124.7 m) to right center, and 328 feet (100 m) down the right field line. Walls are about five feet high, with the exception of the Little Green Monster and the bullpen area in left center.
The walls are about 10 feet (3 m) high at the bullpens, which are in center field and add a few extra angles and contours to the outfield. The playing and seating areas are completely surrounded by a 25 feet (7.6 m) wide concourse.
With the addition of bleacher seats in 2008, the park has 6,537 fixed seats, though its capacity (including the concourse, picnic area, right field grass berm, and center field party area) is usually considered over 7,500.
attendance, with the new seating configuration, regularly exceeds 8,000, and its record paid attendance was 10,385 on March 29, 2008. The 2006 Northern League All-Star game was held at CommunityAmerica Ballpark on July 18, with related festivities the day before.
Sporting Kansas City is playing its home games at the stadium while the team's new stadium is being constructed. Because of the current soccer presence, the Baseball configuration has taken an unusual step. In most natural grass fields the base lines where baserunners run between bases is dirt. However, CommunityAmerica Ballpark now sports dirt sliding pits just around the three bases, homeplate, and the pitchers mound. This is so grounds crews do not need to install excessive amounts of grass for each Wizards home game. On March 29, 2008, the Wizards played their first game at the ballpark and defeated D.C. United
2-0 in front of a sell-out crowd.
Before the start of the 2008 season, the left field berm area was replaced with permanent bleacher seats. Additional metal bleachers were added on the concourse running from behind the former left field berm to the bullpens in center field. This added 2,172 to the ballpark's fixed seating capacity
, raising it from its originally 4,365 fixed seats.
On June 3, 2007 the ballpark was the site of a world record
-setting performance of the Deep Purple
hit "Smoke on the Water
" by 1683 guitarists, in a publicity stunt for KYYS radio (now KZPT
).
Multi-purpose stadium
Multi-purpose stadiums are a type of stadium designed in such a way as to be easily used by multiple sports. While any stadium could potentially host more than one sport, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy that stresses multi-functionality over specificity...
in Kansas City, Kansas
Kansas City, Kansas
Kansas City is the third-largest city in the state of Kansas and is the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri, and is the third largest city in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The city is part of a consolidated city-county government known as the "Unified...
, home of the Kansas City T-Bones
Kansas City T-Bones
The Kansas City T-Bones are a professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Kansas, in the United States. The T-Bones are a member of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
of the independent American Association, and the temporary home of Kansas City Wizards (now Sporting Kansas City) of Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
. It is located in the Village West
Village West
Village West is a $573 million, retail, dining and entertainment development that opened in 2002 in Kansas City, Kansas. It is located at the intersection of Interstates 70 and 435...
area at 1800 Village West Parkway. Many local area High School teams play at the ballpark and it is also the home of the Kansas City Kansas Community College
Kansas City Kansas Community College
Kansas City Kansas Community College is a public two year community college located in Kansas City, Kansas. Kansas City Kansas Community College is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission, a commission of the North Central Association and the Kansas Board of Regents...
Blue Devils. It has also been used for concerts and some community events.
Description
The ballpark is named after CommunityAmerica Credit UnionCommunityAmerica Credit Union
CommunityAmerica Credit Union is a credit union headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, regulated under the authority of the Missouri Division of Credit Unions and the National Credit Union Administration of the U.S. federal government. As of December 31, 2010, CommunityAmerica had more than $1.7...
, a Kansas City area financial institution, which bought the naming rights to the park. The reported dimensions of CommunityAmerica are 300 feet (91.4 m) down the left field line (with an 18 feet (5.5 m) wall, affectionately known as "the Little Green Monster"), 411 feet (125.3 m) to left center, 396 feet (120.7 m) to dead center, 409 feet (124.7 m) to right center, and 328 feet (100 m) down the right field line. Walls are about five feet high, with the exception of the Little Green Monster and the bullpen area in left center.
The walls are about 10 feet (3 m) high at the bullpens, which are in center field and add a few extra angles and contours to the outfield. The playing and seating areas are completely surrounded by a 25 feet (7.6 m) wide concourse.
With the addition of bleacher seats in 2008, the park has 6,537 fixed seats, though its capacity (including the concourse, picnic area, right field grass berm, and center field party area) is usually considered over 7,500.
History
Ground was broken on September 4, 2002, and was completed in just over nine months by Titan Construction, opening June 6, 2003. Baseball had a record paid attendance of 10,345 on June 23, 2007. Major League SoccerMajor League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
attendance, with the new seating configuration, regularly exceeds 8,000, and its record paid attendance was 10,385 on March 29, 2008. The 2006 Northern League All-Star game was held at CommunityAmerica Ballpark on July 18, with related festivities the day before.
Sporting Kansas City is playing its home games at the stadium while the team's new stadium is being constructed. Because of the current soccer presence, the Baseball configuration has taken an unusual step. In most natural grass fields the base lines where baserunners run between bases is dirt. However, CommunityAmerica Ballpark now sports dirt sliding pits just around the three bases, homeplate, and the pitchers mound. This is so grounds crews do not need to install excessive amounts of grass for each Wizards home game. On March 29, 2008, the Wizards played their first game at the ballpark and defeated D.C. United
D.C. United
D.C. United is an American professional soccer club based in Washington, D.C. which competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having competed in the league since its inception, in 1996.Over the...
2-0 in front of a sell-out crowd.
Before the start of the 2008 season, the left field berm area was replaced with permanent bleacher seats. Additional metal bleachers were added on the concourse running from behind the former left field berm to the bullpens in center field. This added 2,172 to the ballpark's fixed seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
, raising it from its originally 4,365 fixed seats.
On June 3, 2007 the ballpark was the site of a world record
World record
A world record is usually the best global performance ever recorded and verified in a specific skill or sport. The book Guinness World Records collates and publishes notable records of all types, from first and best to worst human achievements, to extremes in the natural world and beyond...
-setting performance of the Deep Purple
Deep Purple
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members believe that their music cannot be categorised as belonging to any one genre...
hit "Smoke on the Water
Smoke on the Water
"Smoke on the Water" is a song by the British hard rock band Deep Purple. It was first released on their 1972 album Machine Head. In 2004, the song was ranked number 426 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest songs of all time, and in March 2005, Q magazine placed "Smoke on the Water"...
" by 1683 guitarists, in a publicity stunt for KYYS radio (now KZPT
KZPT
KQTH is a news/talk radio station in Tucson, Arizona. 104-1, as it is known by listeners, is branded as "The Truth". KQTH is owned by Journal Broadcast Group....
).