Project Manager: Debbie Russell
Latest Updates
Description: Development Plan for a Sports Village concept.
- March 2023 Update: The partnership that envisioned the soccer stadium has dissolved and those entities have turned efforts on different objectives. For Parks Tacoma, this has refocused the agency on its core deliverables as the parks and recreation provider for the city of Tacoma. Parks Tacoma, through its work on the 2015 Field Study (which is currently being updated) found, in part, that our community needs more access to high-quality Tier 1 fields for outdoor sports. The Heidelberg Sports Village project set in motion a siting study for a multifield sports complex, but was paused due to the pandemic. In all likelihood, Parks Tacoma will begin that process again within the next year or so. Specifically at Heidelberg, the park district remains committed to fulfilling the community vision for a sports village of sorts that serves the public with indoor and outdoor amenities. Funding has been assigned under its six-year capital program in 2023 and 2024 to advance planning for future athletic facilities at the Heidelberg location. In addition, Parks Tacoma is currently in conversations with the Tacoma School District in regard to the development of Tier 1 fields at Peck Field.
History of previous proposal
- In 2018, a partnership of the Seattle Sounders FC and Tacoma Rainiers, called The Soccer Club of Tacoma, shared its interest in working with Parks Tacoma and the City of Tacoma to bring new professional sports franchises and a stadium to the community.
- The partners equitably shared the cost and scope of a study to assess the feasibility of the proposed Heidelberg Sports Village concept.
Components of this project
- Stadium: Development of a 5,000-seat soccer stadium, with the Tacoma Defiance and Reign FC as anchor tenants, and otherwise hosting high school and Parks Tacoma activities.
- Mixed-Use Development: The potential for a mixed-use commercial/residential development on the Heidelberg/Cheney campus that could leverage the soccer stadium and Cheney Stadium as the core for renewed economic development in Central Tacoma.
Previous Project Updates:
- September 11, 2020: The Draft Feasibility Study has been received and is under review. A letter of intent between project partners has been completed. The planning for this proposed project has been delayed due to Covid-19 related impacts.
- March 9, 2020: Board of Park Commissioners voted 4-1 to approve the nonbinding LOI and continue negotiations.
- March 3, 2020: Tacoma City Council voted 8-1 to approve the nonbinding LOI and continue negotiations. View the Agenda
- February 13, 2020: The parties announce that a third component of the original feasibility study, an 8-field sports complex, is no longer part of the stadium and mixed-use development project. Parks Tacoma will pursue the sports complex independently and has formed a steering committee to evaluate potential sites. Learn more about the Athletic Fields Siting Project
- February 2020: The City, the park district, and The Soccer Club of Tacoma negotiate a nonbinding Letter of Intent (LOI) that sets the terms for what a future stadium agreement must include, and identifies the remaining areas to negotiate. Letter of Intent (draft), HSV Presentation to Committee of the Whole (2-3-20)
News
Public meeting Nov. 4, 2019: Proposed land use designation change
Proposed Land Use Designation Change For Heidelberg-Davis Sports Complex Your input is needed. Come share your comments about the proposed land use designation change. Monday,…
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Heidelberg Sports Village Feasibility Study
A little over a year ago, a joint venture between the Tacoma Rainiers and the Seattle Sounders FC (the Soccer Club of Tacoma), The City of Tacoma and Parks Tacoma hired indepe…
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Parks Tacoma moves ahead to explore feasibility of professional soccer stadium with city, Seattle Sounders, Rainiers
The Parks Tacoma Board of Commissioners on Dec. 11, 2017 gave Executive Director Shon Sylvia the go-ahead to explore possible partnerships for the development of a professiona…
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