July 02, 2025

Future of aging Birdcage and Canaries future in Sioux Falls with Patrick Lalley (Sioux Falls Live editor and political reporter) from Orion Pub

1 hour 3 minutes

Bad news for those who were hoping for a new downtown baseball stadium in Sioux Falls: It isn't happening. Public sentiment and political forces in the city drove the Canaries owners' movement for that away, as the city-purchased "Riverline District," for now, is set to be occupied by a new convention center (with plenty of financial and political obstacles to overcome first).

Good news, though, for Canaries fans and baseball lovers: The current 61-year-old city baseball stadium on the Events Center campus took another step toward preservation and restoration last week when it became public that Mayor Paul TenHaken set aside $11 million for improvements to The Birdcage over the next five years in his Capital Improvement Plan.

Things like new field lighting, bathroom remodels, and sorely-needed visiting locker room and umpire room renovations are part of that plan.

The bigger picture — The Canaries and The Birdcage are a priority, at least to the current mayor, who will leave the actual execution of the plan to a new mayor and city council members once he is out of office in 2026.

In a world where the future is uncertain for minor league baseball nationally, there is still a place for it in Sioux Falls.

In an hour-long conversation, Happy Hour host and Canaries promoter/entertainer John Gaskins chats with Sioux Falls Live editor and political reporter Patrick Lalley — a lifelong Sioux Falls resident — about The Birdcage, the Canaries' recent three-year surge in on-field performance and ownership-funded ballpark improvements, the club and the sport's club's place in the community, and the last 30 years of sports facility politics in the ever-growing city.

First, a new arena. Then, a new baseball park. Build it downtown and they will come? We'll never know.

So, how did we wind up back at The Birdcage for the Canaries, and is it both the best spot for them and the best thing to occupy that space?

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