Dickey-Stephens Park

[Architect]

Umm, how much do you know about baseball?

Or was that your best Zack Braff imitation?

Okay...one run (I edited my post!). I'm at work at 10:50...what can I say!

[theman]

8 - The interior of the restaurant looked pretty hookey, and no one was in there (in spite of the 8,000 in attendance).

There was no one in the restaurant b/c it's not open yet. It's not suppose to open until the end of the month and officials say it will be open Tues - Sat.

Do all of the pics of Bill Valentine that they say are in there add to the hokeyness?

[Architect]

There was no one in the restaurant b/c it's not open yet. It's not suppose to open until the end of the month and officials say it will be open Tues - Sat.

Do all of the pics of Bill Valentine that they say are in there add to the hokeyness?

Ah...I see. No, I was talking about the fact that there were twice as many lights in there as needed, and the general feel to me, granted looking through the window as I passed by, seemed pretty basic. And that may be just fine for this venue.

[EJC]

Ah...I see. No, I was talking about the fact that there were twice as many lights in there as needed, and the general feel to me, granted looking through the window as I passed by, seemed pretty basic. And that may be just fine for this venue.

Well the whole notion of Bill Valentine and "fine dining" just seems comical to me anyway. All in all, it sounds like a nice place if a bit underwhelming in architectural terms. I'm sure the average attendee will find it nice. And yes, having been to Redbirds games in Memphis, I can say that grass seating is a really fun experience. I just wish they'd add a playground like they have at Memphis. The kids absolutely love that.

[jcaruth]

8,000 seats would be too many. Trust me. In a month if there were that many seats, the place would look empty. I think that they made it the perfect size (capacity wise). The current seats will not be full for 99% of the games as is.

[EJC]

8,000 seats would be too many. Trust me. In a month if there were that many seats, the place would look empty. I think that they made it the perfect size (capacity wise). The current seats will not be full for 99% of the games as is.

Probably true. Will there ever be another sell out?

[skirby]

Well the whole notion of Bill Valentine and "fine dining" just seems comical to me anyway. All in all, it sounds like a nice place if a bit underwhelming in architectural terms. I'm sure the average attendee will find it nice. And yes, having been to Redbirds games in Memphis, I can say that grass seating is a really fun experience. I just wish they'd add a playground like they have at Memphis. The kids absolutely love that.

There is a pocket park planned at the corner of Broadway and Willow next to the ballpark. The mayor wants to include some sort of water feature for the kids. It will be enclosed with a wrought iron fence. I do not know if you will be able to enter it from the ballpark. There is also some open land between the park and Riverfront Dr.

[Aporkalypse]

Well the whole notion of Bill Valentine and "fine dining" just seems comical to me anyway. All in all, it sounds like a nice place if a bit underwhelming in architectural terms. I'm sure the average attendee will find it nice. And yes, having been to Redbirds games in Memphis, I can say that grass seating is a really fun experience. I just wish they'd add a playground like they have at Memphis. The kids absolutely love that.

I thought the interior of the restaurant looked really nice. LR needs good Italian and it could do really well if it is good. Hopefully Valentine found himself a good chef somewhere.

They toyed with the idea of adding a playground to the park at one point and are still considering it. I think it would actually make life easier for a lot of parents of toddler/preschool age kids but it's a bit hokey for a ballpark. It would have to be done very well.

I thought the green was overdone just as I thought it looked in the pictures. The siding on the dormer and skyboxes would look better painted the color of the brick.

I was a little underwhelmed by the beer garden area.

[EJC]

I thought the interior of the restaurant looked really nice. LR needs good Italian and it could do really well if it is good. Hopefully Valentine found himself a good chef somewhere.

They toyed with the idea of adding a playground to the park at one point and are still considering it. I think it would actually make life easier for a lot of parents of toddler/preschool age kids but it's a bit hokey for a ballpark. It would have to be done very well.

I thought the green was overdone just as I thought it looked in the pictures. The siding on the dormer and skyboxes would look better painted the color of the brick.

I was a little underwhelmed by the beer garden area.

I thought the restaraunt interior looked fine. Nothing outstanding, but not offensive either. Smaller than I thought it would be, but that's probably a good thing.

By Italian, I'm not sure what you mean...if we're in search of northern Italian, then yes, I'm all for it. Places like Capriccio are worth adding to. But beyond that, I think LR has plenty of the standard Italian merda.

The playground idea would be nice for a ballpark such as this where you are hoping to get families to go. It's a big hit at Memphis and some minor league ballparks as well. Not sure it's really hokey anymore, consider that Giant's ballpark in SF has one, the new Busch Stadium has one as well (along with some really cool items like batting cages). Probably too late now and it's not a big deal, but it's a nice feature for a minor league park where you are much more dependent upon family visitors than a big league park. Having said that, there are some open grass spaces beyond right field where folks were throwing baseballs and such. And in general, it's nice to have so much open space to check things out. Ray Winder always felt so crowded even when it was empty.

The green barn look is perhaps overdone. Oh well, I suppose it's just paint so we'll have to see how the ol' ballpark ages.

Once I had a beer, I didn't really care about the beer garden...

All in all, it's an immense upgrade from the old facilities, and sure some things could have been done differently, but it's a great experience, has more, and better concession options, has excellent viewing from everywhere in the park, and is wide open and easy to get around. We had a really nice time and will definitely go again.

[cozmosis]

What happened to the concept of the condos and hi-rises that were in the first artist renderings of the new ballpark? Warren Stephens' wallet go empty too soon? :-)

[skirby]

What happened to the concept of the condos and hi-rises that were in the first artist renderings of the new ballpark? Warren Stephens' wallet go empty too soon? :-)

The story was the ballpark took up to much space and WS gave more land to the city than was first planned.

[Aporkalypse]

The story was the ballpark took up to much space and WS gave more land to the city than was first planned.

As it turns out there will be a nice high rise next door at the Wyndham that will give the park an even more urban feel.

One of the high rises in the initial drawings was positioned perfectly to spoil the skyline view. I'm glad that didn't work out. There's plenty of land around the park to develop.

[skirby]

The first morning game at DS. A paid crowd of 7,700+ was announced.

[EJC]

The first morning game at DS. A paid crowd of 7,700+ was announced.

Wow, good for them, that's fantastic. I'm sure it will settle down to usual levels by next year or perhaps sooner. But hopefully the "usual" levels will be higher than previous years. We used to set records for Arena FB 2, but now the Twisters are not so well attended.

[Aporkalypse]

Some pictures, pirated from Travelerocity...

[theman]

One thing that can't be denied are the views of the Little Rock skyline from Dickey Stephens. That may be one of the best views in all of minor league baseball.

[Southron]

Great view, great location -- you guys have a real gem of a ballpark.

[Aporkalypse]

Good reviews from Ballpark Digest (5 balls)...

http://ballparkdigest.com/visits/dickey_stephens.htm

Some pictures...

[cocothief]

Great pics.

How is parking down there?

I think a couple of shade trees at the back of the grass seating area would be nice.

Probably a pain to maintain and establish though.

[Aporkalypse]

Great pics.

How is parking down there?

I think a couple of shade trees at the back of the grass seating area would be nice.

Probably a pain to maintain and establish though.

The trees might block that skyline view as well.

Parking's been much better than we thought. There's free parking a couple blocks away. Pay parking ($3-5) is plentiful.

[EJC]

The trees might block that skyline view as well.

Parking's been much better than we thought. There's free parking a couple blocks away. Pay parking ($3-5) is plentiful.

And free parking across the river in LR and you can just take the trolley if you want to add a little something different to your voyage.

[skirby]

I went to see the Travs tonight and there was standing room only at the game. There were a number of people who planned on going to the game but did not because of this. I was really disappointed with the view of LR after dark. Very few of the buildings had any lights. I hope that the Peabody will fix their ducks and Stephens will do something about putting lights on their building. I would also like to see some sort of lighting on the Statehouse Convention Center.

[Aporkalypse]

I went to see the Travs tonight and there was standing room only at the game. There were a number of people who planned on going to the game but did not because of this. I was really disappointed with the view of LR after dark. Very few of the buildings had any lights. I hope that the Peabody will fix their ducks and Stephens will do something about putting lights on their building. I would also like to see some sort of lighting on the Statehouse Convention Center.

Travelerocity said the Peabody is fixing the neon on the ducks, it was supposed to be ready this weekend but I guess it isn't. I agree, the skyline views are more impressive before dark.

There should've been more seats. If you can't sit in the empty seats in the reserved section people are going to be turned away on weekends unless they want to sit on the berm. Clearly it was built a bit small.

[theman]

I went to see the Travs tonight and there was standing room only at the game. There were a number of people who planned on going to the game but did not because of this. I was really disappointed with the view of LR after dark. Very few of the buildings had any lights. I hope that the Peabody will fix their ducks and Stephens will do something about putting lights on their building. I would also like to see some sort of lighting on the Statehouse Convention Center.

I agree. Outside of One Union Plaza and the Metropolitan Bank Bldg, the other towers downtown are pretty much dark. B of A has their sign lit, but the bulding is not. I wish they would light the building like it was when it was NationsBank.

I forgot that Acxiom leaves most of their lights on as well, but you probably don't get a good view of it from Dickey Stephens.

[EJC]

Travelerocity said the Peabody is fixing the neon on the ducks, it was supposed to be ready this weekend but I guess it isn't. I agree, the skyline views are more impressive before dark.

There should've been more seats. If you can't sit in the empty seats in the reserved section people are going to be turned away on weekends unless they want to sit on the berm. Clearly it was built a bit small.

Why don't we wait a season or two before we definitively state that it was clearly a bit small. I recall that Twister games were sold out at Alltel the first several games, but attendance is now at 1/3 capacity. Unfortunately, there will likely come a time when weekend attendance is well below capacity. Until then, those of us who went were happy to sit on the berm and enjoy a full crowd which makes the experience all the better.