Atlanta Braves unveil plans for North Port training site

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An artist’s rendering of a proposed North Port spring training site for the Atlanta Braves was on display Tuesday at a Sarasota County Commission meeting (Photo via Sarasota County government)

SARASOTA, Fla. — The Atlanta Braves showed off plans Tuesday for a spring training stadium complex in the West Villages section of North Port.

Braves Vice Chairman John Schuerholz was among the team officials who spoke at a Sarasota County Commission meeting about the proposed $75 million to $80 million project that would open in 2019.

The team and the county are in an “exclusive negotiating window” on the new spring home that would be paid for by the county, the West Villages development company and Florida’s Spring Training Retention Fund.

The City of North Port will also be asked to play a role in the talks, the county said in a fact sheet. The Braves would sign a 30-year lease and make annual payments to the county, which would own the complex once it’s finished.

Several steps remain before the project, which would include a 6,500-seat stadium, is officially green-lighted. Still, Schuerholz expressed optimism Tuesday.

“We are so excited … we know what it takes to be good partners,” he said.

The Braves plan to leave their current spring headquarters at the Disney Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando after 2018.

Collier County officials have considered making multiple runs at the team, but county commissioners rejected those proposals.

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