Missoula advocates narrow sites and outline $1 million–$3 million plan to pursue minor‑league ballpark

Missoula Baseball Advocates outlined site‑selection and financing plans for a proposed minor‑league ballpark and scheduled another public meeting for Jan. 30, organizers said.

The group presented a narrowed list of five candidate sites after winnowing an original 13–14 possibilities and described a checklist of 13 evaluation criteria — led by the ability to accommodate a ballpark — used to score parcels. Ike Leland, a local architect and chair of the site‑selection committee, said the group visited sites and “ended up with about 13 or 14. After some more investigation, they eliminated themselves down to 8 sites,” and then five that remain under active consideration.

Why it matters: organizers said a new ballpark could attract an existing Pioneer League franchise or an expansion franchise, generate local spending and seasonal jobs, and require public decisions about how to allocate financing and whether to site the facility inside or outside city limits.

Financing and cost estimates Carl England, chair of the finance committee, said the group bracketed construction costs at roughly $1 million to $3 million for a new 3,000–4,000 seat park based on per‑seat estimates from other recent parks. “This isn't even an estimate. It's a bracket. It's not a hard number,” England said, stressing the figure is preliminary and excludes land costs. Committee members told attendees they did not yet know how much additional land acquisition would add; one…