Dickey–Stephens Park facts for kids
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 Dickey–Stephens Park
Dickey–Stephens Park
Location within Arkansas##Location within the United States
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| Location | 400 West Broadway Street North Little Rock, AR 72114 |
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| Coordinates | 34°45′19″N 92°16′21″W / 34.755215°N 92.272582°W |
| Owner | City of North Little Rock |
| Operator | Arkansas Travelers Baseball, Inc. |
| Capacity | Baseball: 7,300 (5,800 fixed seats) |
| Field size | Left field – 332 feet (101 m) Left Center – 360 feet (110 m) Center Field – 400 feet (120 m) Right Center – 375 feet (114 m) Right field – 330 feet (100 m) |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | November 30, 2005 |
| Opened | April 12, 2007 |
| Construction cost | $40.4 million ($57 million in 2022 dollars ) |
| Architect | HKS, Inc. Taggart Foster Currence Gary Architects, Inc. Witsell Evans Rasco |
| Structural engineer | Jaster-Quintanilla & Associates |
| Services engineer | Smith Seckman Reid Inc. |
| General contractor | Hensel Phelps/East-Harding |
| Tenants | |
| Arkansas Travelers (Texas League) (2007–present) | |
Dickey–Stephens Park is a cool baseball park located in North Little Rock, Arkansas. It's the home field for the Arkansas Travelers, a professional baseball team that plays in the Texas League. This stadium can hold up to 7,300 fans, with 5,800 comfy seats and extra space on grassy hills called berms.
The park first opened its doors in 2007. It was built to replace an older stadium called Ray Winder Field. Dickey–Stephens Park is named after two famous pairs of brothers from Arkansas. These are baseball legends Bill Dickey and George Dickey, and successful businessmen Jackson T. Stephens and W. R. Stephens.
Contents
Building Dickey–Stephens Park
How the Park Was Paid For
Most of the money to build Dickey–Stephens Park came from the public. About 83% of the cost was paid by the people of North Little Rock. In August 2005, voters approved a temporary sales tax increase. This tax helped raise $28 million for the park over two years.
Another $5.6 million was expected to come from money the ballpark earned. Private donations also helped. Warren Stephens gave $440,494 and donated land worth $6.3 million. The North Little Rock City Beautiful Commission also contributed $15,000.
Designing and Constructing the Stadium
The ballpark was designed by a company called HKS, Inc. from Dallas, Texas. The main builders were a team-up of Hensel Phelps Construction and East-Harding Construction.
Construction officially began on January 26, 2006, after a special groundbreaking ceremony in November 2005. The building process took 426 days to complete. The stadium was finished on March 27, 2007, ready for its first season.
First Game and a New Safety Rule
Dickey–Stephens Park opened for its first game on April 12, 2007. The Frisco RoughRiders played against the Arkansas Travelers. The RoughRiders won the game 6–5, and 7,943 fans were there to watch.
Later that year, in July 2007, a sad accident happened at the park. A coach for the Tulsa Drillers, Mike Coolbaugh, was hit by a fast-moving baseball during a game. This tragic event led to an important safety change in baseball. Major League Baseball (MLB) decided that all base coaches must wear helmets during games. This rule started in the 2008 MLB season to help keep coaches safe.
Images for kids
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Entrance to the ballpark in December 2008
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Field and grandstand from center field in July 2009
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Field from grandstand behind home plate in July 2009
