The Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community is seeking $100 million in federal stimulus funds to build a baseball spring-training complex for the Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies. The facility would be built on 140 acres of tribal land in Maricopa County near Scottsdale.
The 2009 federal stimulus package allocates $2 billion for projects sponsored by Indian communities. The Scottsdale facility would be the first spring training complex on tribal land.
The two teams currently train in Tucson. They are scheduled to move to the Phoenix area in 2011, where 13 other Major League Baseball teams currently train.
An aquarium attraction is also being considered, said Salt River President Diane Enos. The Salt River Community has some 9,000 members
The proposed facility, which would be built on a former golf course, includes 12 baseball fields and an 11,000-seat stadium. The tribe is building a 15-story casino hotel, which is to be open in spring 2010, adjacent to the site.
