Payne Park facts for kids
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Payne Park in 1936
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| Address | 2050 Adams Lane |
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| Location | Sarasota, Florida |
| Coordinates | 27°20′03″N 82°31′45″W / 27.3340696°N 82.5290683°W |
| Public transit | Sarasota County Area Transit |
| Owner | City of Sarasota |
| Type | Stadium |
| Genre(s) | Baseball |
| Field size |
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| Acreage | 29 |
| Surface | Grass |
| Scoreboard | Yes |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | October 18, 1923 |
| Opened | February 1, 1924 |
| Renovated | 1950, 1962 |
| Expanded | 1962 |
| Closed | April 1988 |
| Demolished | November 1990 |
| Construction cost | $18,000 ($226 thousand in 2021 dollars) |
| Tenants | |
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Payne Park is a cool place in Sarasota, Florida. It used to be a famous baseball field from 1924 to 1990. Today, it's a fun public park that covers 29-acre (0.12 km2) of land.
The land for the park was a gift from Calvin Payne and his wife, Martha, back in 1923. They donated 60 acres (0.24 km2) to the city. Now, people use Payne Park for all sorts of outdoor activities and events.
History of Payne Park
The Baseball Years
The baseball field at Payne Park was built in 1924. It quickly became a popular spot for professional baseball teams. Many famous teams used it for their spring training.
Teams like the Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox, and New York Giants all played here. The Los Angeles Dodgers even held their spring training games at Payne Park in 1959. Imagine seeing these legendary teams play!
The original baseball field was quite large. From 1924 to 1962, the distance down the foul-lines was 375 feet (114 m). The center-field was even further, at 500 feet (150 m).
Over the years, the ballpark got some upgrades. In 1951, the city added 600 more seats. This meant over 4,000 fans could watch the games. The press-box, where reporters worked, also got bigger.
A famous painting by Norman Rockwell called The Rookie shows the Red Sox' locker room. This locker room was right here at Payne Park in 1957.
In 1960, the Chicago White Sox moved their spring training to Sarasota. To make them feel at home, the park's dimensions were changed in 1963. The foul-lines became 352 feet (107 m) and center-field was 415 feet (126 m). These new measurements matched the White Sox' home stadium, Comiskey Park.
Payne Park also hosted a big international event. It was one of the places for the 1974 Amateur World Series. This was a major baseball tournament, and it was the only time it was held in the United States.
The very last major league spring training game at Payne Park was on March 30, 1988. The Chicago White Sox played against the Texas Rangers. After that, a new stadium, Ed Smith Stadium, was built. Payne Park stopped being a professional baseball venue in 1989. The old ballpark was torn down in November 1990.
Payne Park Today: A Public Space
The City of Sarasota transformed the old baseball field into a brand new public park. It reopened on October 6, 2007. This amazing 29-acre (0.12 km2) park cost $8.8 million to build. The money came from a special county tax.
Today, Payne Park is a fantastic place for everyone to enjoy. It has a cool public skateboard park where you can practice your tricks. There's also a fun Frisbee golf course. You can walk or ride bikes on the tracks that wind through the park.
The park features beautiful lakes and a cafe where you can grab lunch or a refreshing drink. In 2012, the city added even more fun. They opened a circus-themed playground, which even includes a small waterpark! It's a perfect spot to cool off on a hot day.
