Great pix and commentary as always Rick

Great pics and wonderful commentary about traffic calming and that piece of Hwy 55.

As for your next study, you should check out how pedestrians will get from Washington Avenue in the warehouse district to the ballpark. Light Rail and Commuter rail, and 5th Avenue are going to be large impediments.

Agreed. Nice coverage. Your images have prompted me to stop by TF when i go to the game tonight, so i can get my own first hand account. Keep it up!

fans will walk up 3rd ave there, from washington and cross 5th right into the centerfield entrance, (carew gate, right?) 3rd is being renovated with a new street surface and wider sidewalks. you have those loading dock entrances to the bars and restaurants, it's going to be a great place to grab a bite and down a brew before and after a game. can it just be april 2010 already? we're set to experience a baseball renaissance in this town.

Thanks for the terrific update Rick! In regards to the design of the stairway leading down from the "Sky Walk," it seems as though they wanted to hide the stairway as much as possible from the 7th street view. I think they made a wise chose in how it was designed.

choice not chose, sorry

The city is also looking to narrow the lanes on 7th and 10th, reducing surface area maintenance and encouraging slower traffic speeds. There's considerable momentum to turn them into parkways.

Can someone remind me again how many clubs/restaurants there will be? Here's a list that I have. Let me know if i'm missing any or if i have listed something incorrectly. And what will the area behind homeplate (the part of the stadium that extends towards 7th street) be called?

metropolitan club-right field
town ball tavern-left field
bud party deck-left field
kirby and carew atriums-club level
champions club-under champions club seating

You forgot the 573 Club on the club level. It's my understanding that the club atrium areas will have seating with concessions nearby, but that the 573 club will have a more traditional feel.

I come from the Eagan area in the southern suburbs and currently drive down Hiawatha Avenue and follow 7th street into downtown when I go to the Metrodome.

Is there a better way to get to Target Field other than follow 7th street through the entire downtown? Anyone have any good suggestions/alternatives for the folks who currently take Hiawatha Avenue? Just curious what others may suggest. Thanks!

Mike, my suggestion would be to park at MOA and take the light rail to Target Field. Or part at Fort Snelling do the same. If you're taking Hiawatha all the way to dome, why not take the train it's the same route?

I live in S. Mpls near the light rail and I've already decided that in getting the Target Field, I won't ride it all the way to the stadium, but get off one stop before, at 5th St. and First Ave and then walk to TF (it's only like 3 blocks or so). I figure that will serve two purposes:

1. Avoid the crush at the platform at TF.
2. Can stop and get a beverage/food before or after the game.

The only problem with that plan Faber, is the train will already be full by the time it gets to you.

thanks jfh for the info. oh yeah i forgot about the 573 club. is that what the area by the homeplate entrance will be used for?

They are almost done planting trees in the planters along 7th Street. Nice to finally add a touch of green to the proceedings (aside from the weeds growing in the various dirt piles). I wish I had taken my camera on my lunch walk.

RICK FOR MAYOR!!!

Camden,

I've thought about the trains being full if I walk back to the 1st Ave./5th St. station AFTER a game. That's where the stop for beverage part of the plan comes into play. I can also see the Town Ball Tavern (isn't that the restaurant closest to the LRT?) doing great business after a game as people wait for the crowd to thin out on the train platform.

I know this is a little off topic but I keep hearing about how Target Field was built on some of the smallest square footage of any ballpark in the US and how that is going to be a detriment to the park. I was wondering if any other ballparks have a smaller sq. footage, and in what ways exactly you will feel the negative effects of the small size when you are a patron at the park? What additional things could they have built for the park that we're missing out on had the size of the land they were building on been larger?

yeahklye, how bout something smaller like RICK FOR TWINS PRESIDENT

Thanks Rick. Your update was much appreciated. You are kind of a big deal!!!!

The only park with a smaller footprint is Wrigley. I don't see it as a drawback though as it forced them to find practical solutions. It makes the park interesting (i.e. right field trapezoid seats), but for a practical reason. If you build it in a parking ramp, it should be a traditional bowl, round outfield. I think the only thing they're really losing would be a larger plaza, tailgating. But I'm happy it's a small site. You likely won't realize it so much once inside.

pawelk - the 573 club will be only for Legends Club members, but I don't know if there will be a direct entrance from outside the park. I don't think so, but never really looked into it.

I don't believe that being built on some of the smallest square footage will matter all that much. Obviously the biggest impacts are outfield and foul territory dimensions. The other considerations (additional restaurants, shopping, etc.) that you might lose with a smaller footprint, onsite parking don't matter to me.

Target Field looks very small when you see it from the outside. shoehorned into the space. But with the very clever use of the plaza in right field, I think the park will feel "bigger" and "intimate" at the same time and should feel larger than the Dome since you won't feel trapped inside a building.

Camden,

The only park with a smaller footprint is Fenway. The only park with less foul territory is Wrigley.

I don't know if it's been mentioned before but does anyone know where they are going to put the championship banners in TF.

What additional things could they have built for the park that we're missing out on had the size of the land they were building on been larger?

Per a post from the previous thread, thoughts of including a Twins Hall of Fame in the ballpark were scrubbed due to the lack of space. I think the club now plans to put one in across 5th Street, but it won't be the same as having it in the park itself. The other possible hang up with the small site is the lack of flexibility to expand or make alterations in the future.

It's inevitable that some feature or amenity will end up being forgotten in the design and need to be added later and/or that predicted usage by fans of some amenities will be more or less in actuality resulting in a need to rethink things. Some features get old and need to get turned over after a decade or so, just to keep the place from being old hat. The smaller footprint will naturally hinder things.

That said, I think Target Field has done very well to include as many amenities as possible without overdoing it and, out of necessity, using its given space as wisely and economically as possible. As has been mentioned, the oddly shaped right field stands and the field dimensions really are products of needing to fit the park on the given land rather than being ersatz quirkiness like the features of so many of the newer parks.

I would really like to see an express service to the park adapted into Light Rail. It's ridiculous to get on a full train at MOA and make every stop for 2-3 people to get off/on. I would think they could do a shotgun start run direct to the park without stops every 20 minutes or something to make LR more appealing. Then all the trains would make a full run through the stops again or something...

They should have built that double wide for this very reason. It's sad how inefficient LR is. I drive anyway since it's so slow.

The biggest thing that's missing is what Rick is talking about today: Room to walk around outside the stadium.

JCTwins,

I think an express train is a great idea but I totally disagree on how inefficient LR is. It might take me a little bit longer to get downtown to the dome on LR than driving from where I live near Minnehaha Falls park, but there is just SO much less hassle (stop lights, traffic, looking for parking). And it's cheaper. And I don't have to walk from a parking ramp. My wife and I go downtown FAR more often now than we did before LR.

Great posts today. Excellent insight folks.

My question is this: How much surface lot parking is/will be available within a 4-6 block radius from Target Field? I know there is some reserved to Twins personnel and the Champions Club Ticketholders where they have the large construction trailers placed right now. Personally I am willing to walk several blocks from a surface lot in order to avoid the ridiculously slow exit when the Parking Ramps (A, B, and C) are full which will be 99% of the time the first couple years at Target Field.

I know there are a few lots east of Target Center. I wonder if the Twins or a private interest has considered offering Valet Parking for an additional fee (like in front of the Graves 601). Ballpark Ninja aka OG Jeff I know you live in the North Loop what the options there? I can't wait to hit up Black Sheep for a delicious pie and walk the few blocks over for the ballgame!!!

This has been discussed, but here is a story from the Pioneer Press:

"The All-Star Game itself will be Tuesday. The Twins, who hosted the game in 1965 at Metropolitan Stadium and in 1985 at the Metrodome, have commenced the formal application process with hopes of landing the 2014 event at Target Field, which opens next season.

The Twins feel confident about chances of securing the 2014 event, but don't expect a final decision soon.

The Angels will host the 2010 All-Star Game in Anaheim, Calif., the Diamondbacks the 2011 game in Arizona.

A little birdie says Kansas City is the front-runner for the 2012 All-Star Game and the New York Mets the likely host for 2013."

Max, there's surface lot parking right across the street from the Nicollet Mall LRT station. A bit of a walk, though, and it'll probably be futile trying to get on the train at that point. Other wise, there's a few on Hennepin; next to the Shubert and on 4th, IIRC.

Hi all - long-time reader, first-time "poster." Big fan of the site - love the insightful updates, pictures, and friendly banter - keep up the good work! This is going to be a great park, and I'm brimming with anticipation for our seats along the 3rd base line next year.

Question - does anyone know if there will be a ticket-exchange program, akin to what's currently available in the dome? If so, which sections/ticket plans are eligible? You've probably already covered this, but I thought I'd check.

Thanks much

Adding on to my post from the last thread:

There was some question about the 310/311 sections - I am 99% sure I did not misunderstand - they are tentatively designated as family sections and alcohol-free. I even made the comment that it was very cool of the Twins to hold back such a prime upper deck location, rather than relegae the family section to the outfield areas. The Twins may decide to open these areas up to season tickets in future years, but for now there are no season tickets sales in those sections. There was also some discussion about the makeup and pricing of family deals, which brought to mind a whole bunch of questions I'd never previously thought of. I'd post the details oif I remembered them all, but the jist of things is that the Twins wants to keep a good value, offering something more than just a seat, but being mindful of total cost for a family. I suspect these seats will get snapped up quickly, but I applaud the Twins for taking family-friendly seating very seriously, as opposed to some teams that just repackage the seats no one wants anyway as family seats.

As to the picture policy comments, I'm not going to quote what I was told nor make public some of the pictures, because I specifically agreed not to. However, let's say that the "preserve the aha moments" is more of a side benefit of the policy rather than the primary goal. And I didn't push the point, but got the impression that the Twins aren't in full control on this. My opinion is that this is less unreasonable than I thought before (though it doesn't explain the grass photo issue, which is how I got involved in the first place).

One thing I forgot to mention - Legend's Club will have limited (drinks only) seat-side service, which is a change from what I was originally told when I bought my LC seats. It looks like there will be a multitude of food options and plenty of staff assistance for those that need it, but for me, having drink service is a terrific addition to the LC benefits.

I also spoke to a senior guest relations staff member at the Metrodome - he told me that staff is expected to increase from about 185 at the Dome to about 400 at Target Field. It wasn't clear to me what that staff covered in addition to ushers, etc., but that's about what I would expect, given the increase in the number of aisles and sections at TF.

Finally, to weigh in on a food question from long ago on what to do with the Dome Dogs. Assuming the new vendor will have the same product, why not just call them "Dome Dogs"? Everybody loves them and already knows what they are and it would be a subtle tribute to the Metrodome portion of the Twins history. Having been to a lot of parks, I happen to think that the Dome Dog and chips for $5 is one of the best food deals around and would hate to see it disappear.

I will get the pics of the model posted sometime this weekend.

Lots of fans attending Timberwolves games and other events at Target Center park in the LaSalle Ramp, Macy's Ramp, City Center Ramp, and Gaviidae Ramp as well surface lots and other ramps between Nicollet Mall and First Avenue. The distance from these ramps and lots to Target Field is not much greater than to Target Center. If folks are willing to walk that distance, often outside in winter weather, to the arena, then it figures that it will not be a big issue for people to walk not much further to the ballpark. I also think the A,B,and C ramps will mainly cater to folks who come in on 94 East and 394 East since they can drive right in (it will be interesting to see how the freeway traffic copes with the potential back ups). The lots and ramps listed above are more likely to cater to 35W and 94 West drivers, something that would theoretically disperse parking, a little bit.

Laying on express LRT and Northstar trains with limited stops would make a lot of sense if the ratio of game ridership to commuter ridership warrants it. My wife and I went to Citi Field last month, taking the subway to and from the park. We rode the express to the park and made 4 stops. Going home, due to getting confused in the crowded station, we boarded a local train that used the same route and made 17 stops. Although the trip through Queens on the elevated train was interesting, it was a long ride. We'd definitely have made sure to grab the express if we could have done things over. Now granted New York's Subway system dwarfs the LRT and Northstar lines in tracks, trains, and riders and the express trains exist for greater purposes than the two ballparks, but express runs can't hurt their ridership to those venues. If running express trains would increase ridership and thus reduce traffic snarls, then it's worth a try.

One other thing - the existing seat selection map says that over 80% of the Champions Club and Legends Club seats have been sold. Looking at the big seat map poster of those two sections the other day, it seemed to me that number is low and that more have been sold.

(Kind of reminded me of going into a new housing development and seeing sold stickers on the models - there was a Minnesota Twins logo sticker on each CC and LC seat sold).

There may be a little problem with getting the ASG in 2014. It's been reported that the Cubs are trying to get the ASG that year to coincide with the centennial celebration of Wrigley Field. The team's new owner, Tom Ricketts has proposed some renovations to attract the game.

I'll try to find a link to the story.

the top of the canopy is pretty much done

For those talking about Light Rail problems...there are renovations underway along the Hiawatha line to allow for 3 car trains (instead of the current 2 car trains). That alone will allow for a 50% passenger increase.

Did I also read somewhere that they designed the sidewalk along TF to allow for side loading, rather than from the center platform? If they stack up a couple longer trains, and load from the sidewalk, that should alleviate SOME of the problems that they have at the Metrodome.

You'd think the Twins would get it in 2014. For as much work as it took to get the stadium and the fact that they've had the paperwork entered.

Wait a minute, cops actually do something when they see a homeless person there? That's amazing.

Thanks for the update and lovely pics.

I highly doubt it Pikachu. The reason is that the American and National Leagues alternate years hosting the All-Star Game. Even years to the AL and odd years to the NL. This preserves the "integrity" of the game as it now carries added meaning with the winner's league getting home field advantage in the World Series.

Plus, Selig owes us an All Star Game big time.

See the 7th question in my link (click name - the Cubs.com mailbag from beat writer Carrie Muskat). She lists the 2014 All-Star Game to Wrigley as a rumor.

Moose

I should note that Muskat is not highly regarded by Cubs fans...

Moose

I think the Dome Dog is just average. There's nothing wrong with it, but nothing to really cheer about either. If the dog was sold on its own minus the cute name and without the bag of chips, no one would really care. The marketing and the generally poor Metrodome concessions make it stand out more. My sincere hope is that Target Field's concessionaire follows along the lines of Wrigley and US Cellular by offering a good Kosher dog sold right off the grill. Comparing those hot dogs to the Dome Dog is, to be honest, like comparing Wrigley Field to the Metrodome.

I wouldn't mind if Wrigley gets the 2014 All-Star game, just give the AL two consecutive All-Star games in 2012 (Boston for Fenway's 100 year birthday??) and 2013 (Kansas City) than give the Twins the 2015 All-Star game. It would coincide with the 1965 and 1985 games we hosted.

They AL always hosted in odd-numbered years prior to that 2006-2007 when the NL hosted back-to-back All Star Games.

I think it would be nice to go back to that rotation, but either way, I will be happy to see an All Star Game at Target Field within the next few years.

That was also broken in '50-'51 when Chicago (Sox) and Detroit hosted back-to-back. I like your idea Mike:

2012 Boston (100th Fenway)
2013 Kansas City
2014 Chicago (Cubs - 100th Wrigley)
2015 Minnesota

Plus that get 'em back on odd years for the AL.

Moose

Boy, 2015 would be a long time to wait to host the ASG.
I don't know if I agree with the 2012 in Fenway thing, as they just had the 1999 ASG. That's only 13 years. BUT, Pittsburgh (or as some of us like to say "Piss-burgh") only waited 12 years. Three Rivers hosted it in 1994, and PNC Park hosted in 2006...

In any event, a Home Run Derby at TF ought to be interesting...

Well when's the last time KC hosted an all-star game? Why not move KC to 2015 and twins to 2013? The state is already having one this year. It's not like KC is very different on TV. Yeah it's a great ballpark to attend, but not sure how profitable it would be, or exciting for the fans at home.

If they need to knock off an NL city in the near future, Cincinnati is a great bet. The Reds last hosted the game in 1988. The Dodgers haven't had the All Star Game since 1980, which is nuts when you think about it, although the Angels hosting the game next year could extend their wait. Hopefully the Twins won't have to wait too long.

freealonzo - how does a pedestrian get from washington ave to the ballpark?! it is called your feet. one foot in front of the other. ;-)

right on down 5th Ave N, 6th Ave N & 7th Ave N. i have walked to the ballpark site from washington ave via these streets on more than one occassion. all are pedestrian friendly and don't have a ton of car traffic.

if i misinterpreted your comment, please forgive me!

screw wrigley and screw the cubs. considering everything minneapolis and the twins have gone through to get this new ballpark built the ASG should be the twins to have in 2014 - no questions asked. don't care if it is the 100th anniversary of a stadium that hosts an absolutely futile team. if the cubs want it they can wait until 2015 or later. i am not interested in waiting 5 long years after the park has opened to host the ASG.

my only hope is that the HERC facility will have been torn down by 2014 or 2015. good riddance! the f-ing HERC is NOT something that we want to be showing off to the world.

Trees up on the plaza. I'll post pics tomorrow.

Somebody posted a few of these, but there are more. I want to see the entire dugout. From the Webcam you can see a logo on each side and then this "Twins" script in the middle. One is the "TC", I wonder if the other is too.

What do you think will go on the visiting dugout? "Minnesota"?

the no photo policy is pretty obvious to me. The we want to save the 'a ha' moments is kind of just a cover to not make mortensen seem like a bunch of jerks. No construction company wants you walking around their worksite taking pictures, it's a lawsuit waiting to happen. With rules and regs on worksites, construction companies are continually worried about getting fines from the gov't/OSHA, flak from unions for unsafe work environments, and also their image to potential prospective customers, and much more. Having an open photo policy means when someone gets a photo of something being done wrong, they are caught red handed, they would need to be worried at all times about everything being perfect and honest, having been in the construction business, for even the best companies, this is rarely the case. It's a bummer, but it's a reality. The are just covering their ass.

Like your plans for de-roading the area. That is one of the weak points to the stadium location. The surrounding area clearly was built for vehicular traffic, and not for pedestrians. I suspect the surrounding will be significantly altered to the favor of pedestrians over the coming years.

Keep in mind when you're looking at these plans that the LRT line will eventually circle around HERC and go southbound on Royalston to the Kenilworth Trail tracks and then west. LRT will roughly follow the red line you've drawn on Royalston, but only to the tracks. Just something to chew on when you're considering how this area should look.