Harbor Park
Encyclopedia
Harbor Park is a stadium
along the Elizabeth River
, in downtown Norfolk, Virginia
, USA. It has been rated the best minor league stadium by Baseball America. It is primarily used for baseball
, and is the home field of the Norfolk Tides
minor league
baseball team. The Tides are the International League
AAA farm team for the Baltimore Orioles
. Harbor Park opened on April 14, 1993 and seats 12,067 people. Seating includes 9,000 lower deck seats, 2,800 upper deck seats and a 300 person capacity picnic area. The stadium also features 24 luxury skyboxes with seating for 400, and a 225 seat full-service restaurant with a panoramic view of the field from the first base side. A record crowd of 14,263 was reached August 31, 1996.
The field is made of natural grass and features a state of the art irrigation and drainage system. The dimensions are 333 feet in left field, 410 feet in center field and 318 feet in right field.
During Major League Baseball
's search for a new home for the Montreal Expos
, Norfolk submitted a proposal which would have expanded Harbor Park to temporarily accommodate a major league team. Norfolk's bid was rejected and the Expos eventually became the Washington Nationals
.
On March 30, 2007, the Washington Nationals
played an exhibition game against the Baltimore Orioles
. The game was sold out two weeks before the game.
On October 28, 2008, Barack Obama
had a rally here.
On December 16, 2008, the city of Norfolk approved a plan by the Tides to build a right field party deck behind the home bullpen. The deck will hold 400 standing people persons and will not add seats to the park, although it would increase standing room area for overflow crowds. The right field fence moved in 20 feet, to accommodate the deck, changing the right field foul line length to 318 feet. The changes were completed by March 15, 2009, two weeks before an Orioles–Nationals exhibition game.
The concert band piece Harbor Park Holiday, written in 1996 by Norfolk native James L. Hosay, was written about Harbor Park.
http://www.worldstadiums.com/stadium_pictures/north_america/united_states/virginia/norfolk_harbor1.jpg
http://a960.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/122/l_46d0f56fdf0c24f2ed270efaeed52df7.png - seating chart
http://a338.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/8/l_9806e1aa928a5837e77ac148b9575119.jpg - Hurricane Isabel
Stadium
A modern stadium is a place or venue for outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit and view the event.)Pausanias noted that for about half a century the only event...
along the Elizabeth River
Elizabeth River (Virginia)
The Elizabeth River is a tidal estuary forming an arm of Hampton Roads harbor at the southern end of Chesapeake Bay in southeast Virginia in the United States. It is located along the southern side of the mouth of the James River, between the cities of Portsmouth and Norfolk...
, in downtown Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, USA. It has been rated the best minor league stadium by Baseball America. It is primarily used for baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
, and is the home field of the Norfolk Tides
Norfolk Tides
The Norfolk Tides are a minor league baseball team in the Triple-A International League. They play at Harbor Park in Norfolk, Virginia. Since 2007 they have been a farm team of the Baltimore Orioles; prior to that, they had a 38-year affiliation with the New York Mets.-Franchise history:The...
minor league
Minor league
Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities. This term is used in North America with regard to several organizations competing in...
baseball team. The Tides are the International League
International League
The International League is a minor league baseball league that operates in the eastern United States. Like the Pacific Coast League and the Mexican League, it plays at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball. It was so named because it had teams in both the United States...
AAA farm team for the Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...
. Harbor Park opened on April 14, 1993 and seats 12,067 people. Seating includes 9,000 lower deck seats, 2,800 upper deck seats and a 300 person capacity picnic area. The stadium also features 24 luxury skyboxes with seating for 400, and a 225 seat full-service restaurant with a panoramic view of the field from the first base side. A record crowd of 14,263 was reached August 31, 1996.
The field is made of natural grass and features a state of the art irrigation and drainage system. The dimensions are 333 feet in left field, 410 feet in center field and 318 feet in right field.
During Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
's search for a new home for the Montreal Expos
Montreal Expos
The Montreal Expos were a Major League Baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec from 1969 through 2004, holding the first MLB franchise awarded outside the United States. After the 2004 season, MLB moved the Expos to Washington, D.C. and renamed them the Nationals.Named after the Expo 67 World's...
, Norfolk submitted a proposal which would have expanded Harbor Park to temporarily accommodate a major league team. Norfolk's bid was rejected and the Expos eventually became the Washington Nationals
Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals are a professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals are a member of the Eastern Division of the National League of Major League Baseball . The team moved into the newly built Nationals Park in 2008, after playing their first three seasons in RFK Stadium...
.
On March 30, 2007, the Washington Nationals
Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals are a professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals are a member of the Eastern Division of the National League of Major League Baseball . The team moved into the newly built Nationals Park in 2008, after playing their first three seasons in RFK Stadium...
played an exhibition game against the Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...
. The game was sold out two weeks before the game.
On October 28, 2008, Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
had a rally here.
On December 16, 2008, the city of Norfolk approved a plan by the Tides to build a right field party deck behind the home bullpen. The deck will hold 400 standing people persons and will not add seats to the park, although it would increase standing room area for overflow crowds. The right field fence moved in 20 feet, to accommodate the deck, changing the right field foul line length to 318 feet. The changes were completed by March 15, 2009, two weeks before an Orioles–Nationals exhibition game.
The concert band piece Harbor Park Holiday, written in 1996 by Norfolk native James L. Hosay, was written about Harbor Park.
Pictures
http://www.landmarkdg.com/pix/kp_hp_big.jpghttp://www.worldstadiums.com/stadium_pictures/north_america/united_states/virginia/norfolk_harbor1.jpg
http://a960.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/122/l_46d0f56fdf0c24f2ed270efaeed52df7.png - seating chart
http://a338.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/8/l_9806e1aa928a5837e77ac148b9575119.jpg - Hurricane Isabel