Worcester Business Journal

www.wbjournal.com • Worcester Business Journal • 2021 Economic Forecast 25 WORCESTER RED SOX WooSox face an uncertain year In what is supposed to be their inaugural season, the Worcester Red Sox are possibly looking at a delayed start, or an empty stadium P redicting the fate of any sports league's season during the coronavirus pandemic is likely futile. Minor League Baseball didn't attempt a 2020 season, and 2021 remains up in the air, along with the pace and effectiveness of any coronavirus vaccine. A few things are certain, though: any 2021 season not allowing for games to be played as normal would be very poor timing for the Worcester Red Sox. An on-time Polar Park Polar Park, the soon-to-be $132-million home stadium of the WooSox, appears to be improba- bly on track to open on time, for as soon as April. at's in spite of what project leaders said was a tight timetable to begin with, plus a seven-week stop in construction during the initial pandemic wave. Team and city officials have been stead- fast since then they plan to open on time. Only a second major COVID-19 wave that could halt construction again may be stopping them. A most unusual season It might seem hard to imagine a regular 2021 season, with a full schedule and full stadium. Alex Richardson Community relations assistant Worcester Red Sox It doesn't take a dedicated baseball fan to know the names of WooSox brass like Larry Lucchino and Dr. Charles Steinberg. ose guys have decades of Major League Baseball experience behind them, but they also have a staff below them on the ground in Worcester. Among them is Richardson, a 2019 Assumption University graduate and Worcester resident who helps the team get acquainted with its new neighbors in its new city. Richardson's job includes building relationships with corporate partners and nonprofits with which the WooSox can hold fundraisers, food drives or other events as they did in Rhode Island. "ere's a lot of ways that we're staying active," he said. Peter Dunn Chief development officer City of Worcester Dunn may be the city official with most oversight and influence over city-owned Polar Park itself, as well as helping to shape what the neigh- borhood around it will look like. Dunn, who was promoted to chief development officer in May, already helped establish the city's Downtown Business Improve- ment District, implemented its tax increment financing policy, and created a small business resiliency grant program aiding businesses during the coronavirus pan- demic. As the city administration's link to the Worcester Redevelopment Authority, which technically owns the ballpark, it's on Dunn to keep the $130-million-plus ballpark moving along and to stay abreast of everything slated to go up next door. Denis Dowdle President Madison Properties, in Boston Dowdle simply has more sway than anyone over whether Polar Park pays for itself as city officials maintain, and whether the ballpark can spur a revitalization of the surrounding neighborhood. Madison Properties first proposed in 2018 a mixed-use development with hundreds of thousands of square feet of offices, apartments, hotel rooms and retail – enough to imagine a nearly completely remade Canal District. Economic conditions haven't helped, and the project has been downsized slightly and delayed by a few years. Nonetheless, Dowdle, whose firm hasn't built a project of this scale before, remains a kingmaker of sorts who almost singlehandedly can make the ballpark a financial success for the city, or not. WooSox people to meet in 2021 BY GRANT WELKER Worcester Business Journal News Editor Major League Baseball played in 2020, but only with empty stadiums, a far shorter schedule and a calendar that kept changing as teams, with positive test results, had to reschedule games. ere was enough TV revenue in play for the majors to take on the season, but the economics are far different in the minors. e WooSox season could start late, allowing for a less-rushed construction schedule for Polar Park, or with few or no fans in attendance. Calling off the season entirely wouldn't be unheard of: the Worcester Railers have done the same, can- celing the season expected to begin in January. Related construction on hold A major mixed-use development slated to rise around Polar Park has already been pushed off and downsized. e city's bet that enough new tax revenue would come into Worcester's coffers that the ballpark investment – at least $132 million – would more than pay for itself has so far backfired. As the project stands today, the first building in the surrounding development wouldn't open until Sep- tember 2022, about a year and half behind sched- ule. Construction was slated to start this fall on that first building, but that's yet to happen; and a project that was hopeful to begin with has its work cut out of it with today's demand for retail, office space and hotel rooms. Polar Park could begin hosting Worcester Red Sox games as soon as April, though with much of the economy, its future will be determined in the coming year by how the coronavirus pandemic is brought under control. W W PHOTO/GRANT WELKER

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