Potential sites the Flying Squirrels could land in Henrico County

Henrico Citizen editor Tom Lappas ponders sites for a new baseball stadium in the suburbs.

July 22, 2015; 9:57 AM • by Trevor Dickerson

Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: the Richmond Flying Squirrels are looking for a new home.

After his plans for a new stadium for the team in Shockoe Bottom fizzled, Richmond Mayor Dwight Jones announced last week that he had met with Henrico County Manager John Vithoulkas and Chesterfield County Administrator Jay Stegmaier and that the three localities would work together to try to identify a potential landing spot for the region’s Double-A baseball team. In making his announcement, Jones indicated that the team’s current home on the Boulevard would not be on the table for a future site, because city officials remain committed to supporting a children’s hospital there.

City officials have said that all viable sites except the Boulevard remain on the table and will be considered by the three localities and team officials. Unknowns at this point include how much money (if any) each locality would invest in a stadium project and whether private developers would be involved.

Some of these sites make sense and have good access to highways and other major thoroughfares. But so does the current Diamond site. Personally, I hope we haven’t given up on keeping baseball in the city.