High Point Enterprise reports on last night’s presentation by proponents of the planned $45 million downtown baseball stadium.
The 200 or so people who turned out at the downtown YMCA were mostly satisfying their curiosity:
Many people who attended the meeting told The High Point Enterprise that they came because they are curious and, for the most part, hopeful about the stadium’s potential impact on the city.
Yvonne McDonald studied a map in the meeting room on one of the many easels, which bore displays that provided various information about the proposal. McDonald lives off of Montlieu Avenue not far from the stadium site.
“I’m just curious about what will happen,” she said. “But I’m hopeful about it and hope it would increase my property values and would be good for the city.”
Bernard Williams came to the hearing because his church, Redeeming Love Word Ministries, is on N. Main Street in the proposed stadium’s vicinity.
“I hope it will draw people out,” said Williams, who now lives in Winston-Salem but 10 years ago resided in High Point.
Sue Fairchild has dueling interests in the stadium proposal. She lives in a neighborhood adjacent to the proposed site and also operates a bed and breakfast in her neighborhood.
“I think it’s a great idea,” she said, though she came to the meeting to learn more about how the city might handle issues such as traffic and trash collection after events. Still, she hopes the stadium can be built and that it would benefit her bed and breakfast by drawing guests.
Note the Enterprise’s sidebar regarding the stadium’s public meetings schedule. The public hearing before the City Council is scheduled for Nov. 20—pretty tight for a 2019 first pitch, as is the timeline right now. Understood that the council has already voted to allocate $15 million for the land. But what happens if the majority of citizens speak out against the stadium during the November public hearing?
