Safe! Barnstormers successful in bringing people back to city
April 25, 2010

It doesn't matter if it was a run or a pass; the result was still a touchdown, right?

It was the wrong sport, but it seemed like the right analogy to use when asking Mayor Rick Gray about the impact of Lancaster's minor-league baseball team and Clipper Magazine Stadium on the city.

As the Barnstormers prepare for their sixth home opener Friday, April 30, the team and stadium are regarded as a success — in a unexpected way.

The selling point for a stadium here was the economic effect it could have. On game nights, presumably, city restaurants and stores would have a steady flow of customers.

Not so, says Gray.

"People think it brings people into the city, and they are right," he said. "But it is a different impact. Bars and restaurants near the stadium are helped, but that's it."

Economists have argued for some time that ballparks are not the economic powerhouses team owners and others make them out to be.

But Gray said, "Where it helped is with people coming into the city at night. ...They saw that the city is safe, and they come back." They are returning to visit restaurants and shops they first noticed on their way to the stadium, he said.

"Baseball is how many months?" the mayor asked. He credits the Barnstormers with bringing people into the city beyond the sport's season, by staging winter activities at the stadium.

'Definitely benefit'
Chris Ditzler, owner of Slugger's Pizzeria, 701 N. Queen St., opened his restaurant in November 2004 when Clipper Magazine Stadium, one block from his establishment, was being built.

"I love where I'm at," he said. "I don't regret my decision to open here whatsoever. ... I definitely benefit from [the stadium]."

He said people arrive at the stadium earlier on Barnstormer giveaway days, and his business falls off slightly. But it all balances out with better traffic on other game days.

He estimates that 50 percent of the customers he sees on a game night he sees again when the team isn't playing.

The neighborhood has vastly improved since the ballpark was built, he said, giving credit to the James Street Improvement District for painting and adding lights. Ditzler, who lives near the stadium, said the neighborhood was a bit intimidating before.

"If you didn't live near the stadium, I could see why you wouldn't want to come here," he said. "But it is safe and well-lit. The ballpark has enhanced the neighborhood, and the existing businesses have benefited."

'Sense of momentum'
Some development around the stadium might have been slowed because of the economy, but Harrisburg Avenue has seen a rebirth with the new YMCA, The Arts Hotel, Franklin & Marshall's College Row, the cleanup of Armstrong World Industries' tract, and the pending relocation of the rail yard.

And the more people on the street after and before games, the better people feel.

"You can't buy confidence," said Lisa Riggs, JSID president. "You have to have a community believing it is moving in the right direction; the sense of momentum, the sense of direction, you can't buy that. You won't invest unless you have confidence."

Since July 2005, the JSID reports, more than 1,500 building permits have been issued in the city's northwest and downtown, reflecting more than $350 million in construction-related activity. JSID's annual report states that the downtown and northwest residential market also continues to hold steady, with the median sales price of homes steadily rising from $90,000 just four years ago to more than $120,000 today.

The city's eclectic mix of retail expanded in the past year with 28 new businesses opening, the JSID reports, and 20 additional merchants renovated or expanded stores. Also opening was the Lancaster Marriott and the Lancaster County Convention Center.

In 2004-05 when the stadium was being built, people were concerned about parking and traffic nightmares, Riggs said. Those fears are gone.

Her message to the Barnstormers management: Keeping doing what you're doing.

In 2004-05, Riggs recalls people saying, " 'Can [the Barnstormers] sustain this past one year?' Here we are in year six, and they still have great attendance, even with a bad economy."

'Game is secondary'
Jon Danos, president of Keystone Baseball, owner of the Barnstormers, said he sees the impact on the county as well.

"This community and this city have embraced this team and made it one of the most successful in the country," he said. The Barnstormers play in the independent (no affiliation with Major League Baseball) Atlantic League with a caliber of play equal to classes AA and AAA.

"The quality of baseball is certainly in the mix," he added, "but the game is secondary at times. I have two 8-year-olds and a 6-year-old, and their primary objective is not to see the team win. It is bumper pool or the play area. The stadium is a community gathering place."

Danos said he'll leave the economics to the experts, but related one way he's seen people's perception of the city change.

"I'll never forget when I moved here, and I live in the county," he said. "Our neighbor said, 'We don't go downtown.' Now that neighbor comes downtown routinely to games."

Besides baseball, the ballpark has hosted a Boy Scout jamboree; an Easter egg hunt; graduations; a Sarah Palin campaign stop; concerts; job fairs; and the ice rink.

The ice rink has drawn about 15,000-20,000 people, hardly big business, but Danos said it was the first time many city residents had a place to skate.

The Barnstormers have kept a high profile in the community by repairing a baseball field for the Spanish American Lancaster Sports Association, helping to feedpeople at Water Street Ministries, collecting items for Toys for Tots and starting a "Reading With the Barnstormers," whereby children can earn a free ticket to a game by reading books.

The stadium has also been opened to charity fundraisers, and civic groups that run concession stands during games get a portion of the proceeds.

'Winning' destination
Danos said the team's goal is to keep the experience fresh. He believes that is why attendance has stayed steady, averaging more than 5,000 fans the first season and just less than 5,000 last year.

"All of our eggs are not in one basket of winning," Danos said. "Now, we want to win ... but it is really about being a destination for family entertainment and an affordable choice."

Keystone has taken a hit on advertising and catering in the recession. The bills are getting paid, though, as Keystone makes rental payments to the Lancaster County Redevelopment Authority.

The team has about 16 full-time employees, which is the same number as six years ago when it started. It also pays 25-30 players, and about 200 seasonal employees, Danos said.

The stadium's luxury boxes, which have 10-year leases, serve as the financial rock for the team. Only one company has withdrawn from its lease. Arlington Capital Mortgage went out of business.

Though season tickets are off about 10 percent compared to other seasons, Danos said Friday's home opener is close to a sellout.

Now about that football analogy demonstrating the success of a baseball team in the city…

"I'm not sure if the expectations were as clear as a pass play, but people fortunate to go to opening day that first year left walking on air," Riggs said. "They never thought Lancaster would have this.

"So I picture more a white board that was clear, and a good play was drawn up and it worked — the Doug Flutie 'Hail Mary' — and it scored."

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Eric G. Stark is a Sunday News staff writer. E-mail him at estark@lnpnews.com.