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The Design
The minute I walked inside ABC Supply Stadium in Beloit, Wisconsin, I could tell it was a facility designed by architects who hadn’t done a pro ballpark before. Or even a major college park. While it’s by no means an ugly stadium, it simply didn’t use the space in the way an accomplished sports architect would.
After looking around Fifth Third Park, I had that same feeling.
Again, it’s not an awful park. The fans in Upstate South Carolina will make great use of it for generations. There are just some troubling design decisions here that a Populous, Pendulum or HKS just wouldn’t make.
So before I start scrutinizing everything, let me list the names of the companies involved in the park’s design. Overland Group were the first architects. They were replaced by local firm McMillan Pazdan Smith, who got it across the finish line. Canopy was brought in to consult on the finishing elements like murals, the playground, furniture and the like. By no means do I think Canopy had anything to do with the placement of walls that conceal concession stands, the poor sight lines or the head-scratching choice of how spacious the concourse and entry plaza are. I don’t claim to know why the original designers were replaced, or what decisions were made by them versus the replacements. All I know is that some choices are puzzling to me.
Let’s talk about the use of space first. GM Jeffers rightly points out that for a long time when any new stadium was being planned, “there was a little bit of ego involved in how many seats can we put into the space. Throughout this process, we actually reduced the number of seats so we could make sure of intimacy and the feeling that you’re connected to other people. On a Tuesday night when there’s a lighter crowd, you still want to feel the fun and the energy.”
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Excellent. I love that thinking. Consequently, there are 3,500 fixed seats at Fifth Third Park, with room to accommodate 5,500 overall. My gripe, though, is that the footprint of the ballpark is too large for that number of people.
For example, the entry plaza inside the home-plate gate (which, remember, isn’t being used by a huge number of attendees) is enormous — plus it feels even bigger because the ceiling is two stories up (see the picture). Instead of talking about the square footage of all of that concrete you feel like you should be referring to the acreage. So while the seating bowl might be appropriately intimate, that sense is undermined by the mammoth entry plaza and concourses.
It may very well be that there is so much paved-over space on the main-concourse level because of the need for clubhouses and service areas one floor down. But if that’s true, that doesn’t change the rather odd ratio of seats to finished space on the main level. I just fear that some of the intimacy in the seats is undermined by the wide-open spaces on the concourse, particularly behind home plate.
For a different perspective, I asked Wyatt Sutton, the Spartanburgers’ promotions manager. He used to handle similar chores with Danville’s team in the Appalachian League. He likes the much larger platform at Fifth Third Park. “With the size, we can do much bigger things.”
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Another issue is with the sightlines. Brian Moore has attended baseball games at over 1,000 ballparks around the world, so his observations about a stadium carry a lot of weight in my book. And he didn’t like some things about Fifth Third Park. “Once you’re in a seat beyond the dugouts, you can’t see a third of either left field or right field,” he observed (see the picture he provided). “Plus there is a massive pole holding up the netting blocking your view.
“This simply wasn’t designed correctly if they wanted ticket-buyers to be able to see all of the field. Aren’t you paying for that?”
Valid point.
My final gripe is the way the concession stands behind the third-base on-deck circle were designed. My favorite food item at this park is the fried pizza at the Firebox Corner. However, the way the walls — load-bearing walls to be fair — were constructed along the main concourse completely obscure this stand. This is a shame.
There is an interesting story behind this concession area. Oakview Group manages the operations at 24 ballparks owned by Diamond Baseball Holdings, including the one at Hub City. I ran into Ken Goldbach, VP of Operations for Oakview, at another park they manage, Synovus Park in Columbus, Georgia. He told me that the hamburger stand at Fifth Third Park was initially planned to be in this spot in the infield, but when they decided to have the World’s Largest Toppings Bar (more on that later), there wasn’t room for it here.
So the burger stand was moved to the first-base end of the concourse, and the pizza concession was placed here — despite the fact that it is invisible from the concourse. Further, when they did this, there wasn’t room for the huge ovens normally required for a pizza operation, so they came up with the concept of folding over the raw pizzas and deep frying them. It was a stroke of genius because these fried pizzas are positively delicious. One of my favorite food items I’ve ever had at a ballpark. They’re just hidden — although Canopy’s murals on those walls direct fans to the spot.
Anyway, that’s it for my gripes. There really are a lot of things to like here.
The ground level, which most fans will never get to see, is phenomenal. Here’s where you’ll find the service corridors to get to the clubhouses and team spaces. This reminds me of Hagerstown’s Meritus Park with its fantastic areas for the players.
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A number of the park’s murals are along this hallway, including the Spartanburgers logos from the first page of this review. Whitty says Canopy took its cue from Jeffers “and his vision for how he wanted the building branded and laid out. On the team level, he wanted the story (to the players) to be you’re coming to the Spartanburgers, we’re the High-A affiliate of the Rangers, and every player who walks down this hall should feel like he can get to Arlington.” Consequently there are murals of the Rangers’ logo, and the big-league team’s recordholders.
Near the batting cages is what Whitty refers to as “the First Wall.” He explained that “with a new stadium, you have a couple of opportunities to do things a little differently. One of those is to memorialize all of your firsts.” So on one wall is the signature of the first player to hit a home run here, the first to have a stolen base, etc. Great touch!
Adds Whitty, “That’s a really fun, interactive way to bring this to life.”
As impressive as the ground level is, the upper level is even more so. The Milliken Club (above) and its outdoor patio and seating is exceptionally nice space. The patio doesn’t really have a view of the field, but many baseball teams have created group spaces in their stadiums that have no view of the action (Coors Field does this really well with its “cabanas”) — and people still love them. The indoor lounge can accommodate non-baseball events really well, plus the seating outside of the air-conditioned space provides a great view of the action. I prefer lounges like this to be behind home plate, but this will definitely do.
There are a dozen suites on this level, running from behind the plate all the way to the third-base end of the upper level, where there is a patio attached to the AFL Dugout Lounge. The pressbox and production room are behind the first-base on-deck circle.
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Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the upper deck isn’t on its inside. In fact, just about anyone you ask points to this feature as being the signature element of the park.
On the front of the upper-level roof, directly behind home plate, is a stunning sign spelling out the name of the city. “It truly is (our signature feature). It is already becoming iconic and it really is a staple for us. I think it represents what we’re going for,” said Jeffers.
While Canopy did an enormous amount of work on the look of the park, Whitty admits that they can’t take credit for the idea of that sign. “It was actually in the original rendering of the building. The Johnson family just really loved having the word ‘Spartanburg’ in that location. The whole (design) crew felt like this is going to be something that the community is really going to love.”
The sign, including the style of the lettering, was created by Younts Design of Baltimore, who was brought into the project by Canopy. Jeffers adds that he loves that the sign “is equipped with the technology of being able to change colors and flash and do all the things that make it a staple of the park.”
Younts, by the way, partnered with Canopy on the murals and displays throughout the park, and on the art in the suites. Everything is really professionally done.
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Back down on the main level, there’s a group area near the right-field entry gate called the Dr. Pepper Terrace (see photo). There are also eight concourse suites called Bo Boxes (since Bojangles sponsors them) that are for groups of eight.
Note that there isn’t a 360-degree concourse that you can take as a shortcut from one corner to the other.
There is a grassy berm beyond the bullpens in left field. In between there and the foul pole is the Chasers Corner group area. It offers both high-top tables and low tops, and allows fans to feel close to the field while still having a lot of space behind the seating area.
And the key word in describing anything about Fifth Third Park is space.
So there are a lot of positive features in the interior of the park, even if a couple of the design decisions strike me as questionable. So what is like to attend a game here? Read on.
The Essentials
It’s an enjoyable experience attending a Spartanburgers game. But what does it cost?
The city-owned parking garage adjacent to the left-field gate is where most people park. The $10 you pay goes to the city, not to the team. There are another half-dozen lots scattered around downtown that are within an 11-minute walk, some of which are free after 5:00 p.m.
The cost of admission is certainly reasonable, as a general admission ticket is just $5 on weeknights, plus another $2.40 in fees if you buy them online. That same GA ticket on Fridays or Saturdays is $10. Home plate reserved seats are either $19 or $20 (depending on how close you are to the field) on weeknights, and $20 or $24 on weekends. Infield reserved tickets are $14 on weeknights and $16 on weekends, and outfield reserved are $13 and $15.
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Apparently the Spartanburgers don’t make available the cost for their group tickets online, so you need to call them to inquire.
As I mentioned, my favorite concession item here is the deep-fried pizza at the (hidden) Firebox stand. They had two styles when I was there, pepperoni and margherita. Each is $12.95. The sign indicates that they are covered with fairy dust, which Goldbach admitted to me is grated parmesan. The taste and consistency is indeed magical.
If there is a signature food item here, it’s the (of course) Spartanburger, at the burger stand behind first base. For $14.95, you get a ground chuck patty procured locally (from the Brown Packing Company in Gaffney, South Carolina), pimento cheese, fried green tomato and crispy onions. See below for what that looks like before toppings.
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But the toppings for the burger are a big part of the story. You select your own toppings and condiments from their Topping Bar, which they claim to be the largest in the world. It is indeed impressive.
Items that caught my eye at the Ballpark Faves kiosk are the Carolina Slaw Dog for $7.95 (next time I come here, I’m trying this) and the pulled pork sandwich for $14.95. Bojangles is present with their signature fried chicken, and the Bruster’s stand down the first base line features “real ice cream” in cups, cones and helmets.
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This being South Carolina, it is eminently logical for there to be boiled peanuts. Down the third-base line is the Red Barn Concession tent with 16 oz. of pickles for $7 and boiled peanuts for $6 for 16 oz. and $9 for 32 oz.
A ballpark of this size doesn’t usually need two different, fully stocked merch stores, but Fifth Third Park does.
The store near the left-field entry features souvenirs and apparel that isn’t packed into the square footage so tightly, while the one behind the first-base on-deck circle is jam-packed with merch.
If bright neon green is offensive to your eyes, have someone else in your group do your shopping for you. Otherwise welcome to the ballpark store with the most brightly colored apparel you’ve ever seen.
Adult t-shirts start at $25, and heavyweight and specialty tees are $38 and $40. A sleeveless Hub City shirt is $38, and a really cute short-sleeve hoody is $75. Neon-green jerseys (see photo) are steep at $135, but they’ve been selling well. A high-quality polo by Under Armor is $80.
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They have one of the largest assortments of women’s shirts I’ve seen in the Minors. Similarly, their line of novelty items with the bright colors and cute hamburger logo blow other team’s selection away.
The assortment of caps is also strong, most of which are reasonably priced at $30 and $34. Since the South Carolina Gamecocks and Clemson Tigers are big in these parts, they have adorable Spartanburger caps with the school colors of those two schools.
And maybe because they are selling merch faster than they can restock it, I found it annoying that an amazingly high percentage of items on shelves and racks didn’t have prices on them. I hope they rectify that.
The children’s play area — designed by Canopy — is very nice. It’s down the third-base line. With the mascot, merch with lots of kid-appeal and young ladies rollerskating up and down the concourse, this is a great place to bring the youngsters.
I found nothing wrong with the sound system or the video board. Both more than pass the test of excelling at a new ballpark. And frankly my gripes about the use of space and a wall blocking an important concession stand do little to diminish the gameday experience at Spartanburgers games.
Summary
It appears there were some bumps in the road early in the transition from Kinston to Spartanburg, perhaps necessitating a change in the architect. But the team of folks that brought Fifth Third Park to fruition — Diamond Baseball Holdings, Johnson Group, the City of Spartanburg, Canopy, Robins & Morton (construction), and McMillan Pazdan Smith (the new architects) — really jelled into a cohesive unit.
Jeffers is complimentary of all of these entities, but he has special praise for Canopy. When I asked him to characterize their involvement, he called it “Crucial. I know they have partnerships with huge teams like the Dodgers, but we felt like a priority to them, which made us feel really special. I have a business to run, so I might not be able to think of the beautiful art pieces and murals that go on the wall, but they executed those things at a level that, to be honest, I wouldn’t have been able to do. They were crucial in making sure that this project was truly complete and not just a bunch of pieces. Those kinds of things make it so much more livable.”
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High praise, but I’ve known Janet Marie Smith (here’s an article I wrote about her) and her staff members like Jackie Riggleman for years. I’ve experienced the exceptional care they take with all that they do.
I appreciated the time that Riggleman (see photo of her with project lead John Whitty) spent with me during my visit to Fifth Third Park. She gave me insights into Canopy’s involvement in the murals, playground and history exhibits. And she was the one who recommended the fried pizza, which was truly a hit with me!
While fans have provided a lot of positive feedback thus far, you could justifiably make the case that they are just excited at having their own team and the enthusiasm will wear off.
The numbers don’t back up that there will be a fall-off, though. Jeffers reports that all 12 of the private suites sold out within a couple of weeks of going on sale — with five years being the minimum lease. “We also sold all of the seats in the Milliken Club as season tickets on multiple-year agreements. Down in the seating bowl, there is a waiting list for full season tickets. So there is really good energy, really good success for our beginning here.”
He explained that what he’s heard the most from lifelong Spartanburg residents “is when they come into the ballpark and look back at the downtown, they say they’ve never seen Spartanburg look like this before. It means a lot that I and my team can have an impact like that. We’re really motivated by those things to keep creating memories for them.”
Just don’t let Waze talk you out of crossing all of those railroad tracks in Hub City.
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