About two dozen New York Mets fans cheered the St. Lucie County commissioners Tuesday for approving a deal with the team for $57 million in renovations to First Data Field in St. Lucie West.
Team and county officials worked through the holiday weekend to resolve construction and cost issues that had threatened to derail the project and upend the three-decade-long relationship.
The deal will enable the Mets’ construction manager to obtain permits and start work by March 1, county records show. The project is expected to be mostly completed in time for spring training next February. “I’m very happy,” said Chris Tarlov, who wore a Mets shirt to the commission meeting. “It’s important they were able to reach that agreement. They’re a big part of our community. It’s part of our identity.”
As recently as Feb. 14, a Mets official had threatened to declare the county in breach of the latest facilities use agreement, which expires in 2042, and revert to the previous deal, which expires in 2023. That would have set the stage for the team to move.
But by Tuesday, most of the angst surrounding the negotiations had subsided and County Attorney Dan McIntyre declared the deal “fair, competitive and reasonable.”
The deal establishes the maximum price for the renovation project and governs what will be built, McIntyre said. St. Lucie County will provide $55 million and the Met will provide $2 million.
“We’d always had what I call a marriage with the Mets and this is a home renovation,” said Commissioner Frannie Hutchinson. The team and the county were like spouses bickering over the renovation details.
“It wasn’t that they were going to actually walk because I remained very confident that that commitment was there,” Hutchinson said.
St. Lucie County owns 7,000-seat First Data Field and the surrounding baseball facilities and leases them to the Mets. The complex opened in March 1988 in the St. Lucie West section of Port St. Lucie.
Port St. Lucie Mayor Gregory Oravec, who wore a Mets cap to Tuesday’s commission meeting, said the stadium deal maintains the Mets as part of the city’s foundation.
“I think we all had concern,” Oravec said about the team’s future in Port St. Lucie. “I think the frustration bubbled over publicly. I was happy to see that everyone took a step back, thought about what was in everyone’s best interest, and is moving forward with the original vision.”
St. Lucie County and the Mets agreed to the renovation project in November 2016 as part of a deal to keep the team in place through 2042.
The project originally included the construction of a concourse around the outfield, but the county scrapped that feature last July after cost estimates came in $6 million over budget. Among the other items cut were minor league locker rooms and softball fields.
The centerpiece of the renovation will be a new, expanded main concourse, said County Administrator Howard Tipton. The elevator system will also be upgraded so more fans can get to their seats faster.
The major league locker rooms, concession stands, restrooms, ticket offices and team store will be renovated, county records show. In addition, there will be a walkway to a left field party deck.
First Data Field will open a 14-game Grapefruit League season on Feb. 23 when the Mets host the Houston Astros. The last home game is set for March 24 against the Washington Nationals.
Several members of the Mets Booster Club said they moved to Port St. Lucie because they love the Mets and would consider following along if the team relocates.
“My main concern was them leaving,” said Jim Fertitta, president of the 300-member booster club. “I’ve got people in the booster club who retired from New York who moved down here for the Mets. It’s a big part of the city.”
Pam Laminsky, who moved to Port St. Lucie from New York 12 years ago, said she’s been a Mets fan since the team started playing in 1962.
“I have a room in the house with all my Mets memorabilia,” Laminsky said. “I just love the team, I love their camaraderie and how accessible they are to the residents of Port St. Lucie.”
“Our friends come from all over the country to come down to spring training,” Laminsky said. “If the Mets weren’t here – which occupies a great deal of my time – I would put the house for sale and follow the team wherever they were going.”