Putting cows on the front page since 1885.
Putting cows on the front page since 1885.
The seats will be replaced at Peoples Natural Gas field, home of the Altoona Curve, in 2024. The seat replacement is part of a $2.4 million renovation project at the minor league baseball stadium.
Most of the project will involve renovations to parts of the stadium that the fans don't see, such as locker rooms. The photo above shows new concrete flooring freshly poured to accommodate the expanded training and locker-room facilities.
While most of the work in the Altoona Curve's $2.4 million renovation will not be visible to fans, part of the project will be - an upgrade to all stadium seats in 2024.
Another improvement visible to fans will be the addition of a second elevator to move people between the first, second and third floors of the stadium.
As part of the renovation project, all the stadium's regular seats will be replaced for 2024, according to General Manager Nate Bowen. Bowen said that the green seats currently in place were installed in 1999, when the stadium opened.
"While it's a testament to the durability of that product, it is time to replace the current seats," Bowen said.
He said that the seats in place are beginning to fade after years of exposure to the sun and weather. Also, repair and replacement parts for the seats are getting hard to find.
The seats that will be replaced are the fixed green seats familiar to Curve fans. Special seats, swiveling seats and bleachers are not being replaced, he said.
The renovations are part of a $2.4 million project intended to keep the Altoona Curve baseball organization current with the standards set by Major League Baseball for minor league teams like the Curve.
Many of the improvements will not be visible to fans. Much of the work is being done to the operational parts of the stadium to improve the training facilities for the athletes. The work includes expanding the weight room and the indoor batting and pitching practice room, new locker rooms for women and for visiting coaches and changes to the existing home team locker room, including a new kitchen area. A new video room for the home team is also being created.
Upgrades and extensions of plumbing, HVAC and sprinklers are included in the project.
Bowen said that the project involves a physical expansion of the existing facilities. To accommodate the expansion, the Curve is using space under the stadium seating area that was previously unused, an unheated area with a gravel floor usually used for storage of items that could withstand moisture and temperature changes.
The improvements coincide with the Curve's 25th anniversary season, but were sparked by MLB requirements, according to Bowen and David Lozinak, Curve chief operations officer.
The website BaseballAmerica.com stated that the changes required to minor league stadiums by Major League Baseball include "larger clubhouses, brighter stadium lights, covered batting and pitching tunnels."
For example, Bowen said, the Curve's existing indoor batting and pitching area does not have a ceiling high enough to meet the new standards. To meet the standards, the Curve is clearing up the ceiling of the indoor batting and pitching area by raising sprinkler pipes and installing new lighting. The area will also get new turf and will be repainted, he said.
All minor league stadiums are required to comply with the new requirements.
The Curve is paying for its renovation with a grant from the Pennsylvania Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP).
According to the Pennsylvania Office of the Budget, the RACP is "a commonwealth grant program administered by the Office of the Budget for the acquisition and construction of regional economic, cultural, civic, recreational, and historical improvement projects."
Projects under the RACP are supposed to have "regional or multi-jurisdictional impact" and "generate substantial increases or maintain current levels of employment, tax revenues, or other measures of economic activity."
All the renovations but the new stadium seats are scheduled to be complete by March 14, with the Curve's opening day set for April 6. The new seating will be installed for the 2024 season.
On April 6, the Curve will take on the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, an affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays, at 6 p.m.
Bowen and Lozinak said that the time-frame is tight but that they expect all work to be done in time for opening day.
The Blair County Ballpark, now called Peoples Natural Gas Field, opened in 1999.
For more information about the Altoona Curve, including the 2023 schedule, visit https://www.milb.com/altoona.
Publisher's Note: The Morrisons Cove Herald has again partnered with the Curve to offer Herald readers tickets to Curve games. Please watch the Herald's print and online editions for ways to win free Curve tickets for the 2023 season. The Herald's website is at https://www.mcheraldonline.com
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