The city of St. Paul announced Thursday morning that it has finalized its construction contract with Minneapolis-based Ryan Companies US, Inc., for the Lowertown Ballpark project in downtown St. Paul.
The $63 million ballpark, which will be the new home of the St. Paul Saints, is slated to open in the spring of 2015.
“We’re getting the site ready for construction,” Brad Meyer, a spokesman for the St. Paul Parks and Recreation department, said during a Thursday morning conference call with reporters. The former Diamond Products building on the site has been demolished.
The city and Ryan have hammered out an agreement on the second part of the contract, which is worth $43.8 million and covers final design work and the construction of the stadium. The $9 million first portion of the contract covered demolition, site work, and the bulk of the design work for the project.
The remaining $10 million of the budget covers land acquisition, legal fees, and other project costs. Under the contract, Ryan Companies will be responsible for any cost overruns. Ryan was officially selected in early 2013 to design and build the ballpark.
The state of Minnesota provided a $25 million grant for project construction, plus $2 million in environmental cleanup grants and a $1 million loan. The city of St. Paul is providing $24 million, including a $5 million internal loan. The St. Paul Saints are kicking in $11 million to the Lowertown Ballpark.
A recent $748,100 grant from the Metropolitan Council for environmental cleanup will cut the outstanding balance on a city internal loan to the ballpark project to $4.2 million.
Paul Johnson of Minneapolis-based real estate firm Nelson, Tietz & Hoye, who serves as the owner’s representative on the project for the city of St. Paul, said that money from potential naming rights deals or other environmental funding could help pay back the city’s internal loan.
Earlier this week, some St. Paul Saints fans lamented steep price increases for some of the seats in the new ballpark. A block of four tickets behind home plate that cost $1,580 at Midway Stadium will cost $4,900 in the new ballpark. However, 40 percent of the seats in the new ballpark will cost the same—or less—in the new park.
View recently released renderings of the new ballpark here.