The Washington Nationals moved a step closer to finding their next spring training home Tuesday when Palm Beach County commissioners voted to approve funding for a new stadium.
Commissioners voted 5-2 to allocate $108 million in tax revenue annually to a baseball complex to be shared by the Nationals and Houston Astros, the Palm Beach Post reported.
Palm Beach County has long appeared to be the favored spot for the teams, but they still haven’t agreed on a suitable site for the project. Nonetheless, Tuesday’s vote should help the process along.
“We are very thankful they took this step. It’s a critical step in the success of keeping major league baseball on the east coast of Florida. You can’t lose sight of that,’’ Arthur Fuccillo, a minority partner for the Nationals, told the Palm Beach Post.
“That was very important and that’s what they did today. They basically said we’d like Palm Beach County to become the home of Major League Baseball on the east coast of Florida for decades to come.’’
The Nationals have trained in Viera, Florida, since the franchise moved from Montreal in 2005. The Expos had moved into Space Coast Stadium in 2003. The Astros currently train in Kissimmee, Florida.
The St. Louis Cardinals and Miami Marlins train in Palm Beach County, sharing a facility in Jupiter.
• Marc Lancaster can be reached at mlancaster@washingtontimes.com.
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