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CAP Board advances downtown baseball-park commemorative application to site-selection
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Summary
The board voted to advance an application to commemorate the downtown baseball park (the “Pillbox”) to the site-selection stage after staff found the submission met subpart 2 criteria; staff noted historical consultant Pigeon Consulting raised questions about later site uses and broader urban-history context.
The Capital Area Architectural and Planning Board voted to advance an application to add a commemorative work marking the downtown baseball park site (sometimes called the 'Pillbox') to the site-selection stage.
Staff summarized the application (submitted 12/18/2024; revised 01/02/2025) and said the memorial would highlight the history of segregated baseball in Saint Paul — including the all-white Saints and the all-Black Gophers — and provide statewide historical context. Independent historical review by Pigeon Consulting found no major factual errors in the applicant's narrative but suggested additional contextual threads (including the later presence of a Purity Bread Company bakery on the site and the destruction of adjacent Old Central Park) that staff said may inform future interpretive decisions.
Staff asked the board to affirm that the application satisfies conditions in MR 2427 (standards for commemorative artwork) and to authorize staff to begin site-selection research and notify the Department of Administration. The board moved, seconded and approved the request by roll call. The chair recorded the vote as passing (roll-call ayes recorded; motion approved, recorded 11–0).
Staff emphasized that authorization to begin site selection does not conclude the review process: site research, candidate-site analysis with advisors, Department of Administration review and a final board vote would follow. Staff also told the board they have not yet begun site-research and will consult with the applicant and advisors on candidate sites if the application moves forward.
The applicant (Stu Thornley, according to the application materials summarized by staff) and the staff report and public-comment summary were attached to the board packet. Staff also noted the public-comment period produced 13 eligible comments (overwhelmingly positive with one objection).
