More than 2,500 fans welcome baseball stadium

Sandy Hurley initially wasn’t planning to attend the “Fayetteville Fans First Look” unveiling of the downtown baseball stadium because of the rainy weather.

But as noon approached Saturday when the event would begin, she felt compelled to be there. And there she was, the wife of 48 years of the late former Mayor Bill Hurley, in the front row of a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new $40.2 million Segra Stadium, which will be home to the Fayetteville Woodpeckers, a Class A-Advanced minor league affiliate of the Houston Astros.

Behind her was a crowd of about 1,600 waiting to get into the stadium that stretched from the steps of the stadium to Hay Street. To stay cool in the humid weather, many were waving fans passed out by a city employee with photographs of Mayor Mitch Colvin and the city council.

“I’m excited,” Hurley said, pointing out that during all their years of marriage her husband repeatedly told her he wanted to see a minor league stadium built in downtown Fayetteville. “This is exactly what Bill wanted. I just had this strong feeling I needed to be here today. I felt like it was kind of a nudging from Bill.”

After years of planning and investing in the project, city officials opened the 5,200-seat and 6,000-capacity stadium to the community.

More than 2,500 people walked into the stadium by 2 p.m., according to counts from the city’s Fire Marshal. The stadium was open to the public until 3 p.m.

Attendees liked what they saw.

“We’re very excited about it,” said Robyn Nolette, who attended the event with her son, Andrew, 8. “This is is way bigger and grander than I thought it was going to be when they initially talked about it. This is upscale. I grew up with the Fayetteville Generals at the J.P. Riddle Stadium, so that’s what I kind of envisioned in terms of the ball field, so this far exceeds that.”

As people walked up to the steps of the stadium waiting for the event to begin, the 82nd Airborne Division Band Performed. The band also marched on the field and played songs after people walked in.

The event started out with speeches from local, state and federal elected officials, who stood atop the steps to the stadium and smiled. Among the crowd were the entire Fayetteville City Council, Cumberland County Commissioners, state Rep. John Szoka and U.S. Rep. Richard Hudson.
Mayor Mitch Colvin told the crowd that in 2016, city officials went to Houston, Charlotte, Durham and other communities that have had successful minor league baseball teams that spurred economic development in those cities. He said the trip inspired this city to do the same.

“We said, ‘Why not Fayetteville?’” Colvin said. “We deserve what everyone else has. We are just as good or better of a community as any of these places that we’ve seen. I have to acknowledge the fact that it took a little bit of vision and it took a lot of nerve. We burned a lot of political capital. But today, we will see our returns, because right beside us we are seeing over $60 million worth of private investment that has already been committed to our city. That means jobs. That means increased tax revenues, and the citizens of Fayetteville will have — most importantly — a place to spend quality time with their families.”

Councilman Jim Arp, who chaired the city’s Baseball Committee, praised everyone involved in the project “for bold leadership.”

“Without their vision, goals and hard work, we wouldn’t be here today,” Arp said. “And we wouldn’t be witnessing the transformation of our city today.”

Mark Zarthar, president of the Fayetteville Woodpeckers, said opening night is Thursday at 7 p.m. against the Carolina Mudcats.

“We’re going to put on an absolute show on opening night and for all 70 home games this season,” he said.

Cumberland County Board of Commissioners Chairwoman Jeanette Council praised city leaders for their determination and “single-minded focus” in getting the stadium built.

She said the board is proud to be a partner in helping to fund the stadium, putting the county’s property tax revenues from a special downtown taxing district toward the project.

The heavier rains held out until the last speaker, Rep. John Szoka. When the rain started to come down, people pulled out their umbrellas. A ceremonial red ribbon was cut and people headed into the stadium. As people walked through the stadium doors, they were given a bag from the city with a commemorative magazine section titled: “Home run. The Return of Professional Baseball to Fayetteville.”

Inside the stadium, the jumbotron was on.

The Boston song “More than a Feeling” belted out over the stadium speakers.

Season ticket-holders searched for their seats to check out the view.

People who attended the event got to see the stadium from the stands, but not the outfield stands. The upstairs field club level also was closed to the public as the final inspections are being done.

James Coffey was walking with children to find his season-ticket seat along the third base line.

“It’s really great,” he said. “This is nice. I’ll be here for the first game. I got my ticket. Hopefully, they’ll have most of it done by then.”