CHESTERFIELD • City officials say a mega-project along Highway 40 that emerged Friday has the potential to transform the western edge of St. Louis County into a destination for youth sports teams from here and across the Midwest.
“I think it’s going to be an economic boom for not only Chesterfield, but for the region,” said Bridget Nations, a Chesterfield council member and the executive director of Project 64 West, a nonprofit promoting economic growth along the Interstate 64 (Highway 40) corridor.
Nations’ enthusiasm came as additional details about the multi-faceted “Chesterfield Dome Complex” began to trickle out Friday.
An investment group led by nonprofit executive Dan Buck and St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny proposes to build on 30 acres of property fronted by North Outer 40 Road, approximately 1.5 miles east of the Daniel Boone Bridge.
Large enough to accommodate simultaneous baseball, football, volleyball, softball and basketball games, the dome will act as the centerpiece of a complex that includes 50,000-square feet of office space, a nonprofit center, medical services, restaurants, a 220-room hotel, a theater, zip lines and a climbing wall.
The estimated cost of the project is $42 million.
Buck said by telephone Friday afternoon that his development group would provide a comprehensive overview of the “Chesterfield Dome Complex” at Nov. 16 media rollout.
Buck, a former television newscaster, founded the Buck Innovation Group marketing firm after stepping down as the vice president for philanthropy at SSM Heath Care in 2015.
The BASE (Baseball And Softball Education) Foundation, a group promoting teamwork and emotional health for players and parents alike, will be a nonprofit partner in the venture. Matheny will focus on that aspect of the project, Buck said.
Big Sports Properties LLC along with the Buck Innovation Group and the BASE Foundation are listed as the primary developers of the projects. Buck-owned Big Sports Properties will manage the property.
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Buck said the campus would operate as a “social enterprise,” a fiscal model in which profits generated by the hotel and other revenue-producing businesses in this instance will be used to support the nonprofit youth sports side of the venture.
Still to be determined are details of an agreement with the potential to provide Chesterfield with an annual payout of $250,000 for the lease of the 30-acre dome site to Big Sports Properties.
The developers and city have agreed on a 120-day deadline to reach an accord on the lease terms.
Chesterfield Mayor Robert Nation said Friday that the project would not be dependent on the Tax Increment Financing formula.
Chesterfield itself will partner in the development through the purchase of 22 acres adjacent to the dome site.
Big Sports Properties will oversee operations on the outdoor athletic fields the city intends to install on the tract.
Nation said the city will draw the $2 million purchase price for the adjoining land from excess fund reserves and the municipality’s park budget.
Negotiations between Chesterfield and the Buck investment group got underway earlier this year. The deal could culminate in the construction of what City Director Mike Geisel characterized as “largest indoor sports facility in North America.”