Im a relocated cards fan myself as I'm living in Orange County, CA. I havent made it to Denver to see a game, but sounds like thats a trip I may have to make.

Many people put the blame squarely on the Cardinal's shoulders. They see it as all just a way to get the city to agree on building a new stadium. Some say that DeWitt is going to be selling the team soon and that it will never be built, but he just named his son President of the team, so I think they are staying put.

No development in St. Louis ever goes smoothly. There have been some great plans for the riverfront, Soulard, and other surrounding areas for decades, and none of them have come to fruition. Washington Avenue has seen tons of improvement, but they are getting a little "loft happy" IMO. Downtown St. Louis doesn't even have a large grocery store, and people are supposed to want to move back into the city? Especially now, with the housing market and all, they could have a real tough time filling all those renovated buildings.

But anyway, I still think that Ballpark Village will undoubtedly get built, there are just a ton of questions left to be answered. How much of the original plans will be included? What tenants will it house? And most importantly, WHEN?

I found a comprehensive rundown of all that has happened with Ballpark Village. Just follow the link

http://badcentury.blogspot.com/2008/03/what-happened-to-ballpark-village.html

is planning on putting in a store downtown.

http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2008/02/18/daily26.html

St. Louis seems to be lacking in basic services in general, and this is a step in the right direction.

Ballpark Village could be huge for the area, although I worry about its attraction when the Cards aren't playing. Kind of like Union Station, whose biggest draw is its parking lot. It will be built after everything thing is ironed out, its too lucrative a property.

www.urbanreviewstl.com

Search for ballpark village for interesting thoughts.

to the fact that I'm not going to like Ballpark Village, whenever it does come into fruition. The franchising fees are going to be so high that only restaurants/ bars like ESPN Zone/Hard Rock/ Bar [City Name]/Jillians/etc will be there, ie places that are in every other touristy part of towns elsewhere.

And, honestly, St Louis doesn't need another hotel/retail/eatery district that will become irrelevant after fifteen years. Build a nice hotel, the Cardinasl HoF, a Cards-centric sports bar and a family restaurant, throw in some parking and a nice park and call it a day. If they do something low-key, high quality, it will do well. If they rush something and make it generic (ie the new stadium) it will underwhelm, yet again.

A little off topic, but since you're comparing Dnever to STL, thought I'd ask...are there are Cardinals bars in Denver? My sister lives out there and is starved for contact with her fellow RedBird fans. Would love to have a place to watch games occasionally.

I heard centenne (sp?) backed out now

New jobs would help, but it has never seemed like this is a major concern of city leaders.

what years???
im an alum myself...
i actually just wrote a column for my college paper about this...ill post it but keep in mind its pre final edit
on you lancers on you lancers on to victory...: )

When Major League Baseball’s All-Star game comes to St. Louis in July of 2009, one highly anticipated landmark will not be there. Ballpark Village, an eight-acre crevice where Busch stadium II used to be, is turning into quite a disaster.
In 2002, The St. Louis Cardinals headed up a plan stating that Ballpark Village would be finished by August, 2011. The St. Louis Cardinals organization is responsible for the development of this project. There was a specific start date for construction in this plan, however, there is a three million dollar penalty for every year after 2011 if the project is not finished.
Six years later, construction on Ballpark Village has not begun. "DeWitt’s Crater" is still just a huge, muddy hole in the ground. A few companies, including the Clayton based Centene Corp., have announced plans to build in Ballpark Village, but nothing has happened since September of ’07 when Centene announced their move.
In February 2007, the second plan for the development of the area known as Ballpark Village was released and approved by the St. Louis Board of Alderman. This plan involves Cordish, a Baltimore based development firm. Under the guidelines of the 2007 plan, Ballpark Village will be developed by the St. Louis Cardinals and the Cordish Co. The construction must begin within an 18 month period after the bonds for the project are issued. The deadline for this plan is March 31st, 2014, and carries the same penalties as the original plan.
I ask the question, "How much longer will we have to wait?" I already had mixed emotions about getting rid of the old stadium, but this whole situation makes me angry. How can the city of St. Louis let this eye sore continue?
I remember my first Cardinals game. It was against the San Francisco Giants in 1996. I remember getting autographs from the Andy and Alan Benes. I remember my last game at Busch II. It was a game against the Brewers that went into extra innings. I feel like all my pleasant memories of Busch stadium II are slowly disappearing, and turning into a hole that resembles the grave of Old Busch.