Ballpark supporters: Where have they been?

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — We’ve heard a lot lately from those against building a tax-funded ballpark in the Port City, but not much from those who support it. Thursday, we asked them why they have been MIA.

At Wilmington City Council meetings, there are always at least two or three people who speak out against the stadium, but not many have come forward to rally support.

Jim Hundley, the spokesperson for the Wilmington Ballpark Coalition, says he hopes to start more of a grass roots campaign to support their effort and City Council’s push to move the project forward.

“We’ve not been speaking publicly about it. We’ve been working kind of behind the scenes with the business community and the people that support it,” Hundley said. “It’s going to take a lot of people to get this done, but we still remain optimistic and think it’s a good deal for the city.”

John Hinnant, the executive director of Wilmington Downtown Inc., says both those for and against the stadium will make a more prominent stance once more facts come out.

“What is this whole package going to look like? How much is it going to cost? What’s the site going to be?” Hinnant said. “Now that some of the details are starting to get finalized, until we know all the details, it’s hard to advocate for something you don’t know about. I think they’re taking a more strategic approach in the sense that it’s better to have the details and better to have the information. It’s better to have the city work through the process.”

WWAY also spoke with Chris Fernandez, the founder of Portcitybaseball.com. He says they are still here and still talking with people and businesses to get on board in supporting a stadium.