Segra Park, formerly known as Spirit Communications Park, is a

baseball park A ballpark, or baseball park, is a type of sports venue where baseball is played. The playing field is divided into the infield, an area whose dimensions are rigidly defined, and the outfield, where dimensions can vary widely from place to pla ...

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...

. It is the home of the

Columbia Fireflies The Columbia Fireflies are a Minor League Baseball team based in Columbia, South Carolina, and are the Single-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball. Their home stadium is Segra Park. The team was previously known as the ...

, a Minor League Baseball team playing in the

Carolina League The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 unti ...

. It opened in 2016 and can seat up to 9,077 people.

Background

Columbia was without minor league baseball since the

Capital City Bombers Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...

relocated to Greenville, in 2004. Plans were approved to build a new stadium to attract a Minor League Baseball team in 2014, with Spirit Communications, a local telecommunications company, buying the naming rights. Developers broke ground on Spirit Communications Park on January 6, 2015.

Architectural Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings o ...

firm Populous built the stadium, with an estimated 8,500 capacity, on a budget of $37 million, with $30 million coming from public funds, $7 million from the team. The

Savannah Sand Gnats The Savannah Sand Gnats were a minor league baseball team based in Savannah, Georgia. They were a member of the A-level South Atlantic League. The Sand Gnats were an affiliate of the New York Mets in their final nine seasons. The team relocated ...

of the Class A

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

announced in May 2015 that they would move to Columbia for the 2016 season, and be known as the

. Their first game at Spirit Communications Park, on April 14, 2016, was a 4–1 victory over the

Greenville Drive The Greenville Drive are a Minor League Baseball team based in Greenville, South Carolina. They are the High-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox and are a member of the South Atlantic League. They play their home games at Fluor Field at the West En ...

attended by 9,077 people. In its first season, ''Ballpark Digest'' named Spirit Communications Park it's 2016 Ballpark of the Year. It's the first time that a stadium has received the honor in its first year since

Fluor Field at the West End Fluor Field at the West End is a 6,700-seat baseball-only stadium in Greenville, South Carolina, that opened on April 6, 2006. Designed by architectural firm DLR Group, it was built as a new home of the Greenville Drive baseball team, the High-A ...

, home of the

did in 2006. On September 7, 2018, the ballpark hosted the United Music Festival hip hop concert with

Ludacris Christopher Brian Bridges (born September 11, 1977), known professionally as Ludacris (, homophonous with 'ludicrous' in American English), is an American rapper, actor, record producer and record executive. Born in Champaign, Illinois, Ludac ...

Flo Rida Tramar Lacel Dillard (born September 16, 1979), better known by his stage name Flo Rida (, ), is an American rapper and singer. His 2007 breakout single " Low" was number one for 10 weeks in the United States and broke the record for digital dow ...

Nelly Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, actor and entrepreneur. He embarked on his music career with the hip hop group St. Lunatics in 1993 and signed to Universal ...

, and

Ying Yang Twins The Ying Yang Twins are an American hip hop duo consisting of Kaine (born Eric Jackson on December 16, 1978) and D-Roc (born Deongelo/D'Angelo Holmes on February 13, 1979). They are not twin brothers. They did the windows to the walls song. The ...

. Originally known as Spirit Communications Park, the facility was renamed Segra Park in January 2019 following the merger of Spirit Communications and Lumos Networks Corp into Segra.

References

External links

Official website
{{Carolina League Ballparks Minor league baseball venues Baseball venues in South Carolina Buildings and structures in Columbia, South Carolina Tourist attractions in Columbia, South Carolina 2016 establishments in South Carolina Sports venues completed in 2016 Populous (company) buildings Carolina League ballparks