Despite being only 23 miles (37 km) from an abundance of activities in Washington, D.C., the residents of Waldorf might have a reason to stay home with their families. Well, to stay local, anyway. Peter Kirk of Maryland Baseball LLC brought the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs baseball team to Waldorf in 2008. The American professional baseball team is part of the Liberty Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. The team’s home is the Regency Furniture Stadium.
“Regency Furniture Stadium is different from many other stadiums in that it is a complete family entertainment venue. While the game being played and the team’s success on the field is very important to our organization and our most passionate baseball fans, our business strives to be the best place in the area where your average family of four can come for an inexpensive night out,” said Paul Braverman with the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs.
For the project, ATAS International Inc. supplied 10,235 square feet (951 m2) of 0.032-aluminum Belvedere (BWC374) corrugated wall panels in Sandstone and 10,848 square feet (1,008 m2) of 0.032-aluminum Belvedere(BWC374) corrugated wall panels in Redwood.
Built on about 40 acres (16 hectares), the4,100-seat stadium includes skyboxes, a picnic area, children’s play area, wide concourses, generous number of restroom facilities,security, first aid stations, ATMs, fan information center and concession stands.
Opening night was May 2, 2008, and the Blue Crabs have had two winning seasons since then. According to Braverman, that record might have something to do with the stadium design. “The stadium meets the players’ needs by simply being comfortable. The clubhouse facilities here are some of the best in this league, or other comparable leagues, solely because there is plenty of room for 25 to 35 players, coaches, trainers and staff. A common complaint throughout our league is a cramped clubhouse, or worse, one that is in disrepair. Certainly a correlation can be made between our players’ comfort at their workplace and their level of play on the field. Happy players usually approach the game with more optimism, and it will show in their performance.”
General contractor: Skanska Building USA, Rockville, Md.
Architect: Maryland Stadium Authority, Baltimore
Installer: J.P. Park Associates Inc., Springfield, Va.
Distributor: Bradco Supply Corp., Lorton, Va.
Metal wall panels: ATAS International Inc., Allentown, Pa., www.atas.com
