The Kansas City Wizards are optimistic their new home at CommunityAmerica Ballpark in Kansas City, Kansas will be completely ready for the Wizards season opening clash with D.C. United on March 29.
The intimate stadium has served as the sole home of the Kansas City T-Bones, a Northern League baseball team, since that team's inaugural season in 2003. Over the past months, however, many alterations and additions have been done to make it an appropriate host of top-level soccer as well.
"I think it's going to be great. The field will be great, it will be intimate, and we're going to have a real home-field advantage, which is the first time this franchise has ever had that," said Wizards head coach Curt Onalfo. "I look forward to having four games at home to start the season."
The extensive list of renovations begins with the addition of lighting standards to distribute the lighting more evenly throughout the playing field, which will stretch west to east in the soccer configuration, corresponding to the third base line across part of center field to right in baseball mode. Other technological upgrades include adding fiber-optic lines and wireless internet capabilities for use by the media.
The most visible changes though have occurred in the approximately 2,172 additional seats added via eight new sections, most of it along the left-field area and the concourse above it. It is here that the Wizards supporters' section -- the Cauldron -- will be located. That location, which is in construction and on time, will give them opportunity aplenty to add a high-spirited feel to each match and to hassle opposing goalkeepers. The number of those getting the closest view of the action in the fieldside reserved seats has been increased from 85 last season to 300 this year.
On the actual field that both teams will share, arrangements and alterations have gone well.
"The conversions from soccer to baseball and baseball to soccer have been solidified with the T-Bones' grounds staff," said Wizards vice president Greg Cotton. "The T-Bones graciously allowed us to move from an all-dirt infield to just have sliding pits in their infield, so that will actually help the conversion process. It will be a logistical challenge, but with our grounds staff and their grounds staff, I'm confident we'll be able to get them done."
And at least one more alteration is coming. During an April 13-May 14 away stint for the Wizards, the 70-yard by 110-yard field surface will be converted from bluegrass to Bermuda.
The increasingly soccer friendly stadium will also undergo changes in fan amenities, particularly when it comes to the available food and the game-day experience, says Cotton.
"We're putting the final touches on our concessions plan, kind of a re-branding into more of a world theme. That's coming along well too, so we're guardedly optimistic we're going to be flying by March 29th," he said.
The world theme will come in handy if the Wizards are able to bring in two or three international teams for exhibitions as they plan.
It's so far so good for the team's complex move into their new home for the next two seasons, and the Wizards are working to assure things continue to go well in anticipation of 10,385 visitors a game.
"The most challenging things are the same issues when we were working out of Arrowhead with the Chiefs' staff, and that is just meshing the two organizations. The T-Bones have been great to work with and they are top-notch people, but [we] are two different organizations with two different goals," Cotton said. "We continue to work on that; it's a priority for us. At the end of the day, we're both going to benefit from it, so we're both going to work hard at it to get it done."
Meanwhile, the Wizards, their owners, OnGoal LLC, and developers Lane4 Property Group are awaiting approval from the state of Missouri for the final part of the financing plan before going forward with a development that includes a permanent home for the Wizards in south Kansas City. As soon as that approval is gained, it will be full steam ahead for a new soccer-specific complex.
Bob Rusert is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
