Red Sox officials yesterday "downplayed talk of
development plans that would greatly expand Fenway Park
rather than finding a new site for it," according to
Vaillancourt & Cassidy in the BOSTON GLOBE. Red Sox VP John
Buckley: "It's premature to talk about any specific plan."
Buckley did "concede" that the team is considering plans to
build a 49,000-seat stadium by expanding Fenway Park over
the nearby MA Turnpike, as well as another plan where Fenway
property would be enlarged by taking over other nearby
properties. A plan put forth by the city's Redevelopment
Authority has the team adding new skyboxes, new upper-deck
seating along the first and third-base lines, expanding the
bleachers and preserving the "Green Monster" in left-field,
with work to be done over three years in the off-season.
Another plan would build over the MA Turnpike and include an
adjacent entertainment complex. Vaillancourt & Cassidy note
the team has "serious reservations" about both expansion
plans, as there are estimates that rebuilding Fenway on site
could raise construction costs by more than a third and take
four years to complete (BOSTON GLOBE, 2/11).
