Changes to CF at Target Field

[Seth Stohs]

You heard rumblings last week, but this morning the Twins announced the changes that will be happening in centerfield at Target Field. An upper level called Minnie and Paul's will be for everyone. A mezzanine level will be for season ticket holders, an all-inclusive location with great site lines. There is a link below to a web page with much more information and video.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is the press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Monday, Oct. 26, 2015

 

Minnesota Twins Unveil Plans for Multi-Level Centerfield Gathering Spaces at Target Field

 

Minnie & Paul’s designed to be a must-visit destination for all fans

CATCH will serve as all-inclusive premium season ticket venue

 

MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Minnesota Twins today unveiled plans to reconfigure Target Field’s centerfield seating area into multi-level fan gathering spaces featuring great sightlines as well as signature food and beverage options. The enhancements will be the most extensive renovations at Target Field to date and are designed to activate and energize a previously underutilized portion of the ballpark.

 

“The Twins are committed to continually improving Target Field with a focus on delivering the best fan experience in professional sports,” said Twins President Dave St. Peter. “We’re excited to unveil these unique spaces to our fans with a belief that they make the ballpark better.”

 

The upper level (Club Level) will be named Minnie & Paul’s and will be open to all fans. Minnie & Paul’s, a Twins-themed pub located under the ballpark’s iconic center field celebration sign, will also feature Minnesota-branded food options while serving as a stylish gathering space for fans of all ages.

 

The lower tier (Mezzanine Level) will be known as CATCH, an intimate all-inclusive club with limited access for approximately 120 season ticket members. The exclusive CATCH will feature great views of the field, unparalleled access to the latest technology and a vibrant entertainment experience. This new premium space will be all-inclusive with beverages and a variety of tapas-style foods included in the season ticket price. Season ticket per-game prices will range from $75 to $85 within CATCH.

 

“We’re thrilled to introduce this new and exclusive venue within the ballpark,” said Mike Clough, Vice President of Ticket Sales and Service for the Twins. “We are confident our season ticket holders will enjoy the intimate atmosphere and abundant amenities. Members of CATCH will enjoy its all-inclusive menu and great views of the game while enjoying the high end club experience in this vibrant environment.”

 

The renovations will be completed prior to the 2016 season and will become a destination for Twins fans and a popular location for events, private functions and meetings year-round. The Minnesota-branded food options within Minnie & Paul’s will be announced at the 2016 Target Field Food and Beverage Preview.

 

Because of the extreme demand for tickets and limited ticket inventory, a random selection process will take place to determine which fans will have an opportunity to purchase tickets within CATCH. Fans interested in purchasing season tickets in the exclusive CATCH must register at www.twinsbaseball.com/premiumCATCH by Wednesday, Nov. 18.

 

POPULOUS, the Kansas City-based sports architecture firm which led the design of Target Field, is also spearheading the re-design of the ballpark’s centerfield seating sections. Minneapolis-based Mortenson Construction will oversee construction of the new spaces with work slated to begin shortly.

 

www.twinsbaseball.com

 

 

[TheLeviathan]

As a parent.....not a fan. There is almost nothing child friendly at our ballpark.

[jokin]

You'd think that restoring the black spruce backdrop to bring back the original CF ambience would be a part of this plan.

[Seth Stohs]

 

As a parent.....not a fan. There is almost nothing child friendly at our ballpark.

 

Interesting point... one I hadn't thought before, but I think a very fair point. 

[BobAzar]

There doesnt need to be any more bars or any more "exclusive" areas, there are plenty of those at TF already. As a new parent, I agree that there should be something more family friendly, but I also want the focus of a ballpark to be on the game. I don't like how Kauffman has an entire area for kids (the Little K, mini golf, fountain park) where you cant see the game at all. 

This all just seems very unnecessary, and adding stuff for the sake of addition.

 

 

[Parker Hageman]

As a parent.....not a fan. There is almost nothing child friendly at our ballpark.

 

 

There's clearly a child in several of the renderings. 

 

[TheLeviathan]

Even the plaza is packed with people with nowhere to go. No mini field to play on. No quiet place to sit and play with other kids. Nothing child themed but the mascot.

 

But we have a dozen bars. C'mon.

[TheLeviathan]

There's clearly a child in several of the renderings.

 

Bringing your child to a bar doesn't make it child friendly.

[DaveW]

Dumb and pointless. Taking away more "cheap seats" in order to build yet another bar. Last I checked there were plenty of places to grab a beer at Target Field, also the "catch" section will only be sold to season ticket holders? Good luck with that, those seats are pretty terrible overall. If you want to build something new, do something original that is fun, whether it is for families or not, another "bar" featuring FRESH NEW FOOD! Is nothing new.

[DaveW]

 

 

As a parent.....not a fan. There is almost nothing child friendly at our ballpark.

This franchise and especially Dave St Peter has always been a fan of children *as long as they can take advantge of them while they are dying of cancer to run ads to build the new ballpark.

 

Teams are shameless in manipulating cities’ fears. In 1997, the Minnesota Twins even ran an ad showing a player visiting a child in hospital with cancer, and the tagline: ‘If the Twins leave Minnesota, an 8-year-old in Wilmar undergoing chemotherapy will never get a visit from Marty Cordova. Which is less like the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and more like the Make-A-Threat Foundation.

 

All true! But it actually turned out to be even worse than that, as the Minneapolis City Pages reported at the time:

   

Then there was the TV ad aimed at prodding fans to rally the legislature, which depicted Twins outfielder Marty Cordova going to see a sick child at the Minneapolis Ronald McDonald House. “If the Twins leave Minnesota, an 8-year-old from Willmar undergoing chemotherapy will never get a visit from Marty Cordova,” the announcer intoned, as the screen faded to black. To make matters even more repulsive, it turned out that by the time the ad aired, the patient had died.

 

Also, nobody had bothered consulting Twins outfielder Cordova, whose charity had sponsored the hospital visits, and who objected vociferously to being used for owner Carl Pohlad’s stadium shakedown. The ad was quickly pulled, the Minnesota state legislature declined to fund a new Twins stadium, and the team moved to — er, that is, kept on plugging away at getting public stadium money out of Minnesota, until finally the legislature gave in. That’ll show those lousy dead-cancer-kid-mongers, right?

 

 

[Mike Sixel]

How does this effect the site lines? I mean, we don't need more excuses for the hitters here.

 

As a guy that likes a beer at the game, I gotta say, I agree with the parents here. That place did not need more places to drink.

[DaveW]

 

 

Even the plaza is packed with people with nowhere to go. No mini field to play on. No quiet place to sit and play with other kids. Nothing child themed but the mascot.

But we have a dozen bars. C'mon.

They should have used the space and made an actual picnic area for people to sit and enjoy, with plenty of room to roam around and maybe even a big grass section for families to lay out/stretch out, etc.

[DaveW]

 

 

How does this effect the site lines? I mean, we don't need more excuses for the hitters here.

As a guy that likes a beer at the game, I gotta say, I agree with the parents here. That place did not need more places to drink.

It doesn't effect the site lines at alll, the "green" is still the green. Yankee stadium comes to mind as a place that has a food pavilion right above "the blacked" section of center field.

 

What it really ultimately comes down to is they are removing some of the cheaper and more affordable seats in the stadium. If you are so worried about having everyone in the expensive seats, how about you build a team that is actually a playoff contender.

[ashbury]

I've only been to TF a couple of times, and my memory is poor in any case: is it currently possible to walk the entire perimeter inside the ballpark, and will this new arrangement change that? That's a feature I love, at any ballpark that has it. Parks like Fenway annoy me - they don't even let you stroll around in the Green Monster anymore.

[DaveW]

 

I've only been to TF a couple of times, and my memory is poor in any case: is it currently possible to walk the entire perimeter inside the ballpark, and will this new arrangement change that? That's a feature I love, at any ballpark that has it.

I don't think it would change it.

[Kwak]

"Family-friendly" and "child-friendly" are euphemisms that have decayed beyond the point of being a mere cliche`, so one shouldn't be upset that DSP uses "blunt" language to announce this change.  MLB is a business (and always has been a business) and we all knew that.  Quite simply there is more cash to be wrung from adults at a ballgame than from children.  Also, there are many adults would prefer their entertainment in "child-free" locales (and horrors)--more exclusive (more expensive) venues to further their enjoyment.  Adding bars and more premium seats is designed to do just that (make more profit for the owners).  Cynical ? Yes.  But MLB is not worthy of any less than the raw truth.

[TheLeviathan]

Investing in families brings in plenty of money, not to mention builds future money paying fans.

[ashbury]

There's clearly a child in several of the renderings. 

Problem solved.

 

It was careless of them to photoshoop the same carefree moppet into two renderings, however. SHOOP DA WHOOP.

[Boom Boom]

The thing with adding bars... assuming that booze was available and plentiful enough that everyone was getting lubed up to their preference, you're really not going to make more money by adding more bars. There's a point of diminishing returns that I think we're quickly approaching.

[DaveW]

 

The thing with adding bars... assuming that booze was available and plentiful enough that everyone was getting lubed up to their preference, you're really not going to make more money by adding more bars. There's a point of diminishing returns that I think we're quickly approaching.

They make more money by adding bars because the operator of said bar pays the Twins a hefty fee (basically rent)

[Parker Hageman]

Investing in families brings in plenty of money, not to mention builds future money paying fans.

 

 

I agree somewhat with that aspect. I've visited numerous ballparks with unique spaces that are designed for kids to play in. The Saints have the area behind center with inflatable batting cages and whatnot. It's a great feature, to be sure, but I don't think it is wholly necessary to capture the next generation of fan. I was raised on Twins baseball in the Metrodome. We watched the game. There was absolutely zero to do besides that. 

 

As a parent myself, I find the open concourses and easier access to the bathrooms (and much better facilities to change my infant in) at Target Field to be well above and beyond what was available at the Metrodome.

 

I'd like something geared towards the kids -- maybe something more carnival-like on the plaza or somewhere in the gates -- but I'm not concerned that there isn't anything for kids to do in the stadium.

 

[Boom Boom]

They make more money by adding bars because the operator of said bar pays the Twins a hefty fee (basically rent)

Maybe, but all the alcohol vendors will be cannibalizing eachother and they all will make somewhat less.

[TheLeviathan]

That's fair Parker, I agree with that. My issue is that they took a space and chose "bar" as the thing the stadium needed.

 

Given the options already there, it seems like something more kid oriented might have been a better use of space.

[amjgt]

My biggest complain when it comes to beer/booze in the Stadium is that it's too hard to find GOOD beer. I realize "good" is subjective, but I think we all know I'm not talking about MGD. 

 

There aren't enough vending locations that carry "craft" beers and they seem to  move every year. 

 

Not sure how this new feature changes that, but maybe it will.

[Seth Stohs]

 

My biggest complain when it comes to beer/booze in the Stadium is that it's too hard to find GOOD beer. I realize "good" is subjective, but I think we all know I'm not talking about MGD. 

 

There aren't enough vending locations that carry "craft" beers and they seem to  move every year. 

 

Not sure how this new feature changes that, but maybe it will.

 

As Dave St. Peter said at a Winter Meltdown a year or two ago... MLB's relationship with a beer distributor whose headquarters is in St. Louis has a lot to do with this.

[Nick Nelson]

I understand the argument that this is not necessary a "family-friendly" renovation but this is a trend all around baseball. Modern stadiums have bars in the OF that provide a fun social atmosphere along with a good view of the game. We saw similar upgrades made to the Twins' spring training home in Ft. Myers last year.

 

I love it, personally. When I went to games this summer with friends or met up with people at the yard, I'd frequently hang out at the Barrio location in LF, but invariably ended up missing huge chunks of the games because much of that lacks sightlines to the field and even when you get up to the railing you are still tucked away in the LF corner. This is going to be a game-changer in that regard, and adds even more appeal to the plan of buying cheap/standing room tix then just standing at the bar and watching the game. 

[DaveW]

 

Maybe, but all the alcohol vendors will be cannibalizing eachother and they all will make somewhat less.

That's not the Twins problem.

[DaveW]

 

 

My biggest complain when it comes to beer/booze in the Stadium is that it's too hard to find GOOD beer. I realize "good" is subjective, but I think we all know I'm not talking about MGD. 

 

There aren't enough vending locations that carry "craft" beers and they seem to  move every year. 

 

Not sure how this new feature changes that, but maybe it will.

Supply and demand. Most people don't want to drink IPA's all day in 90 degree weather.

[Mike Sixel]

As if IPA was the only craft beer........

[dabecka]

Here's an outsider's perspective.  

 

I go to 5-7 Colorado Rockies games a year.  The team sucks and I was around before there was a huge ass bar/food/lounge area in the right field upper deck.  

 

To me, it was the best damn thing the Rockies have done since building Coors Field in the first place.  You can still easily watch the game from Right Field and the rails are packed up there, especially during good weather (even though the team sucks).  The sun sets in the left field and there is unobtrusive views of sunsets over the Rocky Mountains.

 

When the Rockies are down 5-0 in the 2nd inning and the games are lasting 3 hours, it's a great place to watch a game and gives an alternative for others.  They have a good burger joint and other food options as well as numerous colorado microbrews up there.  

 

I wouldn't worry so much about family friendly atmosphere.  There is a game going on after all and all sorts of food options around.  I think it's a great addition to the ballpark if those "cheap seats" went mostly unsold anyways, right?