Caddo Parish Commissioners Thursday called for a meeting with Mayor Tom Arceneaux and the
Caddo Parish School Board over the future of Fair Grounds Field. The Commission’s Long-range Planning and Special Needs Committee voted unanimously to invite the mayor and School Board to its Nov. 7 meeting. The purpose would be to discuss new ownership for the endangered ballpark as presented by Friends of Fair Ground Field.
Members of the Friends group described their plan for new ownership for City-owned Fair Grounds Field at last week’s Caddo Parish Commission meeting. The plan, which Friends member Bill Robertson characterized as tentative for purposes of discussion, calls for the City, Parish, School Board, and a private entity to share in the facility’s ownership, renovation, and management.
Robertson told Parish Commissioners that Friends would drop its lawsuit against the City once new stadium owners pause demolition, allow reconstruction plans to take shape, and “commit to a safe
reconstruction process aligned with health guidelines.”
The health guidelines refer to a population of bats found at Fair Grounds Field and the threat of
toxic histoplasmosis from bat guano left in their wake. City officials have been warned to follow federal
and state directives for removal of bat guano before demolition, but businessman Linc Coleman of
Friends said City officials have not certified that the stadium is rid of the bats or their droppings.
Coleman warned Parish Commission members Thursday that Arceneaux could rush to sign a
demolition contract and then blame others if he is forced to delay demolition and the City incurs penalties.
“We are hopeful that the mayor will see the Parish’s interest in the stadium and agree to delay
demolition,” Coleman said.
Caddo Parish Commission President John-Paul Young authored a resolution supporting Friends’
campaign to restore the stadium. He told the Long-range Planning Committee Thursday that he needs
a mandate from the Commission before asking Caddo Parish to invest in Fair Grounds Field.
Friends of Fair Grounds Field describe a renovated ballpark as a place for youth, high school and
college baseball as well as other sports, plus outdoor events, such as concerts. Young said YMCA of
Northwest Louisiana officials told him they could arrange as many as 40 youth baseball championship
games at Fair Grounds Field. Caddo Parish recently donated $2 million to the YMCA to assist its renovation of the Little League ballfields adjacent to the BHP Billiton YMCA on Knight Street.
Friends member and architect Christopher Coe told Parish Commissioners that Fair Grounds
Field was constructed of cast-in-place concrete and is “as stable as can be.” He said much of the public
commentary about the facility is not based on facts.
“The reason the building is faced with demolition is that it has not been cared for,” Coe said.
“Anything built as well as that should be saved.”
Coleman said renovation of Fair Grounds Field could spur redevelopment of the entire 172-acre
Fairgrounds and surrounding inner-city neighborhoods like Queensborough and Werner Park.
Coleman described population loss in Shreveport as an “emergency,” with 30,000 people having
left the city in the last 30 years.
“Our city is hollowing out,” he said. “We need to save our inner city.”
Parish Commissioner Roy Burrell, who represents Queensborough and the Fairgrounds, echoed
Coleman’s remarks. “I’ve spent the last 25 years trying to create opportunities for economic development in this area,” he said. “(Rebuilding Fair Grounds Field) would help the city as a whole.”
Coleman said City officials in 2022 offered to donate Fair Grounds Field to the School Board for
use by area high schools, many of which do not have baseball fields. The idea apparently died when
Byrd High School built a baseball facility at LSU-Shreveport. Coleman organized Friends in mid-2022 after learning that the City planned to demolish the 38-year-old ballpark. City officials in the Adrian Perkins and Arceneaux administrations have declined to cooperate, including denying Friends’ access to the facility, refusing to release operating costs, and saying they do not want to encourage hope among Shreveporters for the ballpark’s restoration.
Coleman said Queensborough residents and private business owners have encouraged him to
pursue renovation despite opposition from the City. Friends asserts that the new ownership plan would satisfy Arceneaux’s desire to reduce Shreveport’s stake in the facility without the City completely forsaking its obligation to City taxpayers, whose tax dollars built Fair Grounds Field in 1986.
“The City’s role shrinks from 100 percent to 25 percent,” Coleman told the Parish commissioners.
Friends added that State and Federal dollars could be solicited to aid in redesign and reconstruction. The group said the Legislature allocated $20 million in capital-outlay funds earlier this year for ballparks, all in south Louisiana.
Friends has also contacted Major League Baseball, which has a program encouraging young African-Americans to play baseball by donating equipment and other assistance. Shreveport and Caddo Parish recreation programs have received MLB funds from the program, which is called “Nike RBI” for Returning Baseball to the Inner City.