Dodgers won’t be fielding construction crews during the off season

November 2, 2009 Leave a comment

The Dodger’s ambitious plans to renovate and expand the stadium won’t be making any progress during the off season. The Los Angeles Business Journal writes that the Dodgers have put off upgrading the Loge Level as part of off-season renovations that have already brought wider concourses and new food concessions to the Field Level. The improvements are part of a far larger, $500 million project to add a museum, restaurants, shops and parking garages to the stadium property on the eastern edge of Echo Park by 2012, the ballpark’s 50th anniversary. But, as The Eastsider reported in June, the Dodgers have remained fairly quiet about their Next 50 Plan, raising doubts they will meet their self-imposed deadline.

The Business Journal article said the delays are probably related to raising money in today’s tight financial markets. But one economic consultant told the Business Journal that owner Frank McCourt’s messy split up with his wife, Jamie, might have put many major decisions and projects on hold:

“When families are in turmoil either because of divorce, death or sometimes it’s illness, large capital projects tend to get frozen,” said Larry Kosmont, an L.A. economic development consultant who counts high-net-worth families and large private companies among his clients. “With privately held companies, when key members are in turbulence, the large projects generally get put aside and they don’t have a reschedule date. They are just put on hold – period.”

Photo by West End/Flickr