Thunder Bay may lose major baseball tournament if funding not approved

The City of Thunder Bay and local organizers of the city's planned hosting of the 2017 18U Baseball World Cup are waiting on a pair of funding decisions that could decide whether the international tournament comes to the Lakehead or not.

The two venues slated to host the games featuring top junior-aged ballplayers Port Arthur Stadium and Baseball Central need over $2.1 million in work to bring the playing surfaces up to standard for international play, according to a consultant's report commissioned by local organizers.

• Thunder Bay baseball fields need work before under-18 championships: report

The city has already committed $334,000, and this week, council agreed to fund another $722,000 out of the Renew Thunder Bay fund.

Administration told council it's waiting for the result of a $983,000 funding application submitted to the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation, while tournament organizers the Thunder Bay International Baseball Association is seeking $100,000 from FedNor. The association is also paying $20,000.

If support from the higher levels of government doesn't materialize, especially from the province, city engineering director Kayla Dixon told CBC News that city staff would recommend withdrawing as host, "just based on the burden around the city's capital."

Council was told Monday there is $21.6 million in the Renew Thunder Bay fund.

'A major world event'

Coun. Larry Hebert, who also serves as president of the local organizing group, didn't take part in council's funding discussion or vote on Monday, citing a conflict of interest, but said Tuesday that he's optimistic the provincial and federal governments will support the city.

"I think because it's a major world event and was successfully run in 2010, I think there's a lot of potential support out there," he said.

Thunder Bay hosted the tournament six years ago.

A funding decision from the NOHFC is slated for August 4; Hebert said he expects FedNor's answer will come around the same time. Work to upgrade the fields has to be done by the end of May, 2017, so international baseball officials can inspect them.

'A great tourism opportunity'

Administration's report shows the city can expect to see a $4.5 million economic impact from the games, but Hebert said equally valuable is the chance to sell the city worldwide.

International media coverage will be "a great tourism opportunity for Thunder Bay, in terms of showing off what we have," Hebert said. "There's a lot of hours to fill up when you're producing a show that's going to handle 50 baseball games over a 10 day period."

Hebert said he remembers how many people from other countries were impressed back in 2010 with things like air quality in the city.

"It's a real eye-opener when you take so much for granted, and then some of the beautiful sights around Thunder Bay, they couldn't believe how picturesque, how blue the sky is."