Snow, cold delay work on Sarpy stadium

Progress at the site of Sarpy County's planned 6,000-seat baseball stadium for the Omaha Royals has run afoul of Nebraska's harsh winter.

In early December, contractors stopped excavation work on the $26 million project west of Papillion. Snow and subzero temperatures dashed the county's ambitious plans to finish the grading, pour concrete and have the stadium seating bowl completed by Christmas.

Three major snowstorms, separated by bone-chilling cold, hit in just a few weeks. Snow drifted into mounds around dozens of pieces of construction equipment that sat idle along Nebraska Highway 370. Contractors, already working under a tight schedule, lost more than a month.

“We would have liked to have done some of the field walls and liked to have started the concrete seating bowls,” said Stan Meradith, principal architect for the DLR Group.

His firm's agreement calls for the stadium to be built by March 15, 2011, about a month before the start of the Royals' 2011 baseball season.

Despite the unusually harsh winter, architects, contractors, representatives of the minor league baseball club and county officials say the stadium will be done on time.

No contingency plans are being discussed. If contractors cannot meet their deadlines, no fallback plans exist for a Rosenblatt Stadium encore.

“That is not even being discussed,” Meradith said.

He said the stadium could be substantially completed as early as late this fall.

“By no means are we behind the eight-ball,” Meradith said. “You have to anticipate winter weather like this when you are building in Nebraska.”

If everything goes according to plan, smaller minor league baseball stadiums can be built in about nine months.

In early November, actor and Northern League baseball team owner Kevin Costner broke ground for an 8,000-seat minor league stadium in Zion, Ill. His club, the Lake County Fielders, scheduled its first home game for June 11.

“That is a fast-track construction, and it shows you can build a stadium in a short period of time,” said Gary Anderson, public relations consultant for the Sarpy County stadium.

Excavation at the Sarpy stadium site began in October. Moving forward, contractors and architects have less wiggle room for unexpected delays and problems, said Sarpy County Board member Tom Richards.

“At this stage, I am not horribly concerned. I don't think they are that behind,” Richards said. “I have a lot of faith in the architect, the DLR Group and the contractor, Weitz construction. They feel they can still honor the construction date.”

Construction on downtown Omaha's $128 million stadium for the College World Series remains on schedule.

The Web site for TD Ameritrade Park details the schedule and targeted completion dates, offering monthly progress reports and photos.

Steel erection began in August and should finish in March. Concrete for the concourses, suites and press box levels began in October and should finish in February. The field is slated for installation in August. Completion is set for April 2011.

In Sarpy County, Meradith hopes to have his ballpark's final design plans by late February. After that, the county and the public will have a better sense of the construction schedule.

Last week's relative warm-up allowed contractors to build a new access road connecting the 31-acre site to Nebraska Highway 370. Limited excavation and grading work has resumed.

Workers hope to pour the stadium's concrete footings around Jan. 25. The steel framing would go up next, perhaps in March.

Weather permitting, Sarpy County Administrator Mark Wayne expects significant construction to be evident to motorists on Highway 370 in the coming weeks.

“As long as it's in the mid-20s during the day, they can still pour the concrete,” Wayne said. “Eventually, they will start to catch up.”

Contact the writer:

444-1056, john.ferak@owh.com

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