Homestead Sports Complex
Encyclopedia
Homestead Sports Complex
is a baseball
training facility located less than three miles from downtown Homestead
, Florida
. The facility, seats 6,500 and expands to 9,000, and provides parking for over 3,900 vehicles.
A 200 bed dormitory facility located on the grounds of the Homestead Sports Complex complements the training facilities. The dormitories consist of 30 single rooms and 84 double rooms that are complete with restrooms, showers, dressing areas, a full service kitchen and recreational areas.
. The stadium was widely recognized as being state-of-the-art for the time period, as it included multiple practice facilities as well as dormatories for players. The Indians had previously played in the Cactus League in Arizona but had signed a deal to make Homestead their long-term Spring Training home. Cleveland was due to begin full-time play at the stadium in the 1993 season. In 1992 they had already began moving equipment and personnel to Florida. However, on August 24, 1992, Hurricane Andrew
made landfall in Homestead as a Category 5 cyclone
with winds reaching 165 mph. The stadium, directly in the path of the hurricane, was decimated. The Indians quickly began meetings with lawyers and eventually they exercised an "out clause" in the contract.
The city decided to immediately re-construct the stadium hoping that they could have it built for the 1994 Spring Training season in order for the Indians, or perhaps another team to use. However, without a spring facility for the 1993 season Cleveland was forced to look quickly for another home. The Boston Red Sox
had been using Winter Haven, Florida
's Chain of Lakes Park
as their training facility for 26 years. However, the Red Sox were moving to Fort Myers for the 1993 season, thus allowing the Indians to use Chain of Lakes as their spring facility in the meantime. However, knowing the situation that the Indians were in, the City allowed the team to use the stadium on the condition that they sign a 10 year contract. Cleveland had no other choice, so they signed the deal and left Homestead without a team.
The City decided to continue re-building the stadium, assuming that at some point in the future they could lure another team to use it as their spring facility. The stadium was re-constructed in a very short period of time, as the original blueprints were kept. However, after about five years without a tenant it started to appear that the facility may never be used as a home for baseball. In the meantime, new spring training facilities were constructed such as Roger Dean Stadium
in Jupiter, Florida
and Champion Stadium at Walt Disney World. The new stadiums began to surpass Homestead Sports Complex in terms of facility size and technology. The stadium had to look at other options in order to pay the nearly $450,000 per year in order to maintain it.
It was offered as a home for the US Soccer Federation to conduct its training, but they declined. In 1999 the facility was used as part of the filming of the Oliver Stone
movie Any Given Sunday
. In 2002 an HBO series called Baseball Wives
was to be primarily filmed at the Stadium, but the show was canceled before ever getting off the ground. In 2004, it served as the home of the Florida Thunder
, the city's Pro Cricket
team. Recently the facility has hosted local youth and adult sports on the training grounds but the internal workings of the stadium such as bathrooms, electrical and plumbing have gone into disrepair. The park had been used as a home for the City of Homestead's Fourth of July celebration until the Homestead-Miami Speedway took over the duties in 2010, attracting an exponentially larger crowd then ever before.
25.45161°N 80.43095°W
is a 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...
training facility located less than three miles from downtown Homestead
Homestead, Florida
Homestead is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States nestled between Biscayne National Park to the east and Everglades National Park to the west. Homestead is primarily a Miami suburb and a major agricultural area....
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. The facility, seats 6,500 and expands to 9,000, and provides parking for over 3,900 vehicles.
A 200 bed dormitory facility located on the grounds of the Homestead Sports Complex complements the training facilities. The dormitories consist of 30 single rooms and 84 double rooms that are complete with restrooms, showers, dressing areas, a full service kitchen and recreational areas.
History
In 1991 the City of Homestead built the Sports Complex at a price tag of 22 million dollars in order to provide a Spring Training facility for the Cleveland IndiansCleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
. The stadium was widely recognized as being state-of-the-art for the time period, as it included multiple practice facilities as well as dormatories for players. The Indians had previously played in the Cactus League in Arizona but had signed a deal to make Homestead their long-term Spring Training home. Cleveland was due to begin full-time play at the stadium in the 1993 season. In 1992 they had already began moving equipment and personnel to Florida. However, on August 24, 1992, Hurricane Andrew
Hurricane Andrew
Hurricane Andrew was the third Category 5 hurricane to make landfall in the United States, after the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 and Hurricane Camille in 1969. Andrew was the first named storm and only major hurricane of the otherwise inactive 1992 Atlantic hurricane season...
made landfall in Homestead as a Category 5 cyclone
Cyclone
In meteorology, a cyclone is an area of closed, circular fluid motion rotating in the same direction as the Earth. This is usually characterized by inward spiraling winds that rotate anticlockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere of the Earth. Most large-scale...
with winds reaching 165 mph. The stadium, directly in the path of the hurricane, was decimated. The Indians quickly began meetings with lawyers and eventually they exercised an "out clause" in the contract.
The city decided to immediately re-construct the stadium hoping that they could have it built for the 1994 Spring Training season in order for the Indians, or perhaps another team to use. However, without a spring facility for the 1993 season Cleveland was forced to look quickly for another home. The Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
had been using Winter Haven, Florida
Winter Haven, Florida
Winter Haven is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. The population was 26,487 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2007 estimates, the city had a population of 32,577, making it the second most populated city in Polk County...
's Chain of Lakes Park
Chain of Lakes Park
Chain of Lakes Park is a baseball field located in Winter Haven, Florida. The stadium was built in 1966 and holds 7,000 people. It was the spring training home of the Boston Red Sox from 1966 to 1992, after which the Red Sox relocated operations to City of Palms Park in Fort Myers, Florida.In...
as their training facility for 26 years. However, the Red Sox were moving to Fort Myers for the 1993 season, thus allowing the Indians to use Chain of Lakes as their spring facility in the meantime. However, knowing the situation that the Indians were in, the City allowed the team to use the stadium on the condition that they sign a 10 year contract. Cleveland had no other choice, so they signed the deal and left Homestead without a team.
The City decided to continue re-building the stadium, assuming that at some point in the future they could lure another team to use it as their spring facility. The stadium was re-constructed in a very short period of time, as the original blueprints were kept. However, after about five years without a tenant it started to appear that the facility may never be used as a home for baseball. In the meantime, new spring training facilities were constructed such as Roger Dean Stadium
Roger Dean Stadium
Roger Dean Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Abacoa community of the town of Jupiter, Florida. The stadium was built in 1998, holds 6,871 people, and features luxury sky-box seating, 2 levels of permanent seating, parking and concessions...
in Jupiter, Florida
Jupiter, Florida
Jupiter is a town located in Palm Beach County, Florida. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 39,328. The estimate population for 2009 is 50,606. As of 2006, the population had grown to 50,028, according to the University of Florida, Bureau of Economic and Business Research....
and Champion Stadium at Walt Disney World. The new stadiums began to surpass Homestead Sports Complex in terms of facility size and technology. The stadium had to look at other options in order to pay the nearly $450,000 per year in order to maintain it.
It was offered as a home for the US Soccer Federation to conduct its training, but they declined. In 1999 the facility was used as part of the filming of the Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...
movie Any Given Sunday
Any Given Sunday
Any Given Sunday is a 1999 American drama film directed by Oliver Stone depicting a fictional professional American football team. The film features an ensemble cast, consisting of Al Pacino, Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid, Jamie Foxx, James Woods, LL Cool J, Matthew Modine, John C...
. In 2002 an HBO series called Baseball Wives
Baseball Wives
Baseball Wives is a reality series. Created by Vh1 and set in Scottsdale, Arizona, the home of baseball's spring training, the show features the wives and girlfriends of talented baseball players from various teams....
was to be primarily filmed at the Stadium, but the show was canceled before ever getting off the ground. In 2004, it served as the home of the Florida Thunder
Florida Thunder
The Florida Thunder were a cricket team that played for the United States Pro Cricket league. It was one of eight founding teams in the league in 2004. This was the only year that the team played as the league was disbanded following the season...
, the city's Pro Cricket
Pro Cricket
Pro Cricket was a professional cricket league in the United States. It was operated by American Pro Cricket LLC , a private company independent of the ICC and the USACA. Kalpesh Patel served as Pro Cricket's chairman and commissioner....
team. Recently the facility has hosted local youth and adult sports on the training grounds but the internal workings of the stadium such as bathrooms, electrical and plumbing have gone into disrepair. The park had been used as a home for the City of Homestead's Fourth of July celebration until the Homestead-Miami Speedway took over the duties in 2010, attracting an exponentially larger crowd then ever before.
Future
It remains to be seen if the stadium will ever host spring training baseball. Given the age of the stadium and the condition that it currently sits in, it would be hard to find a tenant for the facility without spending large amounts of money on updates and improvements. A portion of the facility was sold and a company called Charter Schools USA will be building a school on the grounds.External links
25.45161°N 80.43095°W