This was a great move by the NCAA and the city of Omaha. College baseball has come a long way in the past 20 years, but I'm not quite sure if the CWS could maintain the crowds that Omaha gets if it were to move to another city.
The new stadium actually has more to do with the NCAA than the city of Omaha. The NCAA would prefer an stadium with nearby hotels, an open concourse, and a better area for fans outside of the stadium that is free of alcohol. Omaha could have remodeled Rosenblatt for about 1/3 the price of a new stadium, but word around town was that Omaha would get a 5 maybe 10 year extension at best. Oklahoma City, Orlando, and Indianapolis were 3 cities that have nicer stadiums that the NCAA would consider if Omaha opted for a Rosenblatt renovation. The new stadium itself isn't going to be much bigger than Rosenblatt. Currently, Rosenblatt seats about 23,000 people and the new stadium would seat 24,000 with set aside for expansion to 30,000. I do agree that Rosenblatt is the symbol of the CWS and it will be dearly missed. At the same time, it was necessary for Omaha to do this in order to get a 20 year extension on the CWS. When it's all said and done, 60 years in the same venue for an NCAA championship event is pretty impressive...
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