Jan 7, 2015 3 min read

The owner of the Washington Wild Things has entered into a cooperative agreement to put a Frontier League baseball team in Parkersburg, W.Va., if the city can build a multipurpose stadium.

The announcement of the agreement was made Tuesday by Parkersburg mayor Bob Newell.

The deal has been in the planning stages for more than a year. Parkersburg officials and the Wild Things first met to discuss the possibility of a Frontier League team for the West Virginia city in 2012.

According to the Parkersburg News and Sentinel, Stu Williams has agreed to commit Wild Things staff and resources to developing a plan, securing a franchise, operating and managing the ballpark and paying rent for the facility, which would be applied toward a financing package.

In return, Williams has been given exclusive rights to bring a team to Parkersburg, which has a population of 31,186 and is the third-largest city in West Virginia.

Funding for the ballpark, or its design and cost, has not been determined.

According to the newspaper, Parkersburg has agreed to acquire property for the ballpark and use revenue from hotel/motel taxes toward the acquisition and financing. That financing plan, however, must first be approved by city council.

“One thing we like about Parkersburg is it’s in the sweet spot of energy development,” Williams said Wednesday afternoon. “We hope to be at least as successful there as in Washington. We’ve done studies and have found the area has enough support for a team.

“For a community, it’s pretty evident what a type of drive for economic development a stadium can have in your city.”

This will be the Wild Things’ second attempt at putting a Frontier League franchise in West Virginia.

Williams and the Wild Things entered into an agreement with developer Genesis Partners in 2012 to put a team in Bridgeport, W.Va., for 2014, if a ballpark was constructed. The potential for state funding for that ballpark ended when the Pittsburgh Pirates announced it would move its Class A New York-Penn League affiliate to Morgantown, W.Va., this year in a new stadium that will be shared with West Virginia University. Bridgeport is only 34 miles south of Morgantown.

“I’m pretty sure that agreement has expired,” Williams said.

“The Parkersburg situation is different. This is a local government effort, led by the mayor and his team, to help revitalize the downtown area. We’re hoping that it will come to fruition.”

Williams said the Parkersburg team does not have to be an expansion team, meaning he also would have the option to relocate the Wild Things or purchase the Frontier Greys, the team operated by the Frontier League that plays all its 96-game schedule on the road.

Parkersburg was a charter member of the Frontier League in 1993. The Ohio Valley Redcoats played at Bennett Stump Field in Parkersburg’s City Park for six seasons before moving to Huntingburg, Ind., in 1999.