BIG LEAGUE UTAH TOUCHES THE BASES
Big League Utah Coalition members gathered at Murph ’ s Restaurant during a trip to Atlanta to learn more about sports-anchored developments . Dale
Murphy , the restaurant ’ s owner , is a member of the BLU coalition .
In August , Big League Utah ( BLU ) conducted an economic feasibility study through a third-party company to gather essential insights for a possible Major League expansion . The results were “ incredibly favorable ” and demonstrated a robust , diverse economy with the highest median income of any potential expansion market and the sixth highest in all of baseball right now .
With the same third-party company , the coalition also launched a public survey to gather community insights on a potential stadium . The survey received an overwhelming response rate , illustrating the excitement for baseball in the Beehive State .
“ We had over 15,000 respondents to that , including the business community ,” noted Steve Starks , CEO of the Larry H . Miller Company , at the Silicon Slopes Summit Event . “[ The third-party conducting the survey ] said that of all the market studies they ’ ve ever done , they ’ d never seen a response from a market like that for baseball .”
In addition to the overwhelming community support , many respected analysts and reporters have recognized Salt Lake City as a leading candidate for expansion . The city has received praise for its well-funded and civically connected pitch to build a ballpark , reimagine a district and bring a Major League team to Utah . Described as a “ sleeper pick ” in a sense , analysts agree that Salt Lake City has made a compelling case and jumped to the forefront of the Western expansion race .
One such analyst is former Cy Young winner and ESPN Analyst David Cone . Following the news that the Tampa
Bay Rays are set to receive a new stadium , the five-time World Series champion took to his podcast to give his predictions for where the potential expansion teams may land .
“ Expansion will be on the horizon , we will get two new teams , and Nashville will be one and Salt Lake City will be the other ,” said Cone .
As Big League Utah positions Utah as the leading contender for Major League expansion , the coalition welcomes all passionate business and community leaders to join the team .
Learn more at bigleagueutah . com
Steve Starks joined Entrata ’ s Adam Edmunds to discuss bringing Major League Baseball to Salt Lake City and the impact it would have on the state and community .
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