Final Round Of Renovations Taking Place At Fenway Park

Lucchino Hopes Fenway Improvements  Help Lure All-Star Game To Boston

The Red Sox Thursday announced that their Year VIII Fenway Park improvements have gotten underway. The offseason work includes the addition of about 560 seats and additional standing-room-only areas in the Right Field Roof section, repairing and waterproofing of a large portion of the lower seating bowl and expansion of the Budweiser Right Field Roof Deck. The offseason projects are being overseen by Struever Bros. Eccles & Rouse of Baltimore (Red Sox). In Boston, Brian Ballou notes Fenway "has largely held onto an old-style aesthetic," and "by design there will be not much change to Fenway's appearance after the current renovations." The renovations are "part of a nine-year project that has cost more than $100[M], all private money." Red Sox President & CEO Larry Lucchino: "We are in the eighth inning of a nine-inning game with respect to improvements to Fenway Park." Lucchino added that he "hopes the improvements will help attract another All-Star Game to Boston, particularly in 2012, when the park turns 100." Lucchino: "We do have an interest, and it has been expressed to Major League Baseball." Although seats will be widened as part of the renovations, officials said that "as many as 350 additional tickets will be available each game over last year, but capacity will remain at 39,928." Red Sox Senior VP/Planning & Development Janet Marie Smith added that the renovations "are expected to be complete by mid-March." Meanwhile, Lucchino said that Fenway "could be viable for another 40 years." Lucchino: "We've been spending a lot of time thinking about what's happening with other ballparks, especially in New York. We'll be watching closely how that affects their revenue. There is no reason why we couldn't play here for sometime to come, but ultimately, it will be rebuilt just like any other park" (BOSTON GLOBE, 11/7). Lucchino: "We are committed to Fenway Park -- short-term, middle-term, long-term. We're going to be here. No thought has been -- or is being given -- to a new ballpark. The thought is to complete the renovations and improvements of Fenway Park and then move on and make modest improvements from time to time on various issues going forward" (MLB.com, 11/6). Smith said, "This will be the first ballpark to reach 100." But Smith added that it will take "until 2010 to completely restore the 96-year-old park" (BOSTON HERALD, 11/7).