Kevin Costner Bringing Northern League Baseball to Lake County, Illinois

Published on February 3, 2009 under Northern League (NL)
Lake County Fielders News Release


(City Hall, Zion, IL) The City of Zion announces that it is bringing minor league baseball to a new stadium in Lake County, IL in the summer of 2010.

Academy Award winner Kevin Costner, whose lovable roles in the movies Field of Dreams and Bull Durham have forever linked him with baseball, is part of a baseball team ownership group that has been working with the City and one of the largest real estate developers in the world to bring a Northern League team to a new stadium only minutes northeast of Gurnee's Six Flags Great America and the Gurnee Mills Mall.

"I've seen many opportunities over the years to be involved in baseball projects, but this one is really special." says Costner. "The location, the people involved, and the chance to offer families in Zion and the surrounding communities a quaint and affordable setting for minor league baseball means everything. Like that unforgettable movie line says, 'This field, this game, is a part of our past. It reminds us of all that once was good, and what could be again.' Play Ball!"

"This project is shovel ready, will provide 300 permanent jobs, and will be a catalyst to attract and maintain even more jobs in this part of Illinois," said State Senator Michael Bond (D-Grayslake). Senator Bond chairs the Illinois Strategic Infrastructure Task Force, a bi-partisan, bi-cameral committee which is coordinating projects related to the federal economic stimulus plan and an Illinois capital budget.

The Lake County stadium project will be managed and developed by Panattoni Development Company, which has developed over 150 million square feet of major commercial real estate projects throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe in the last 22 years. The baseball team will be owned and operated by Grand Slam Sports & Entertainment, LLC of Deerfield, IL.

The Northern League currently has area teams located in Schaumburg, IL, Joliet, IL, and Gary, IN, as well as in Kansas City, KS, Fargo, ND, and Winnipeg, Canada.

Details of the stadium location, design, and financing will be provided by the City and its project partners in the weeks to follow, along with the various employment opportunities for the 300+ permanent jobs that the stadium will generate.

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