New plans were announced for The Field of Dreams Movie Site in Dyersville on Thursday.
Six months after purchasing a controlling interest in the iconic site, the new owners of Go The Distance Baseball LLC have unveiled their vision to preserve the cornfield setting while building a premier youth baseball and softball destination for players, families, fans and tourists from around the world.
The master plan provides $80 million in private investment to expand the site and build nine new ballfields, dormitories for teams and a hotel, among other phased improvements.
The development builds on the momentum of last summer’s Major League Baseball game at The Field of Dreams Movie Site and a 200 percent increase in the number of boys’ and girls’ baseball and softball teams registered for tournaments in Dyersville this summer.
Upon adding nearly 100 acres to the original 190-acre footprint of the former Lansing family farm and movie site, the master plan includes nine new baseball and softball fields for boys and girls, team dorms and a boutique hotel – all slated to be completed in phases by the end of 2023.
Additional phases through 2025 include a 100,000-square foot fieldhouse, an outdoor concert amphitheater, RV park, a large park inclusive for children and adults with disabilities and jogging trails through the cornfields.
The new fields will be located in the northeast quadrant of the property extending west along the northern border, with the dorms and fieldhouse located on the east side.
COO Dan Evans, a longtime executive for five MLB franchises, says they are committed to preserving the romantic experience of the Field of Dreams, including the views, the baseball diamond, the farmhouse and the cornfields.
Dyersville Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Jacque Rahe says it’s exciting to get to this point – more than 30 years after the movie was filmed at the Don Lansing farm back in 1988.
Jacque’s husband, Keith Rahe, serves as the President and CEO of Travel Dubuque. While the field has always drawn in visitors, the Major League Baseball game at the movie site last summer really put the Field of Dreams in the national spotlight – and for that, he says he’s grateful.
Once the phased development is fully complete, the private development alone will create approximately 170 new full-time equivalent jobs and events hosted at the site will result in more than $25 million in direct annual spending. Area residents may also benefit from member access to the indoor fieldhouse and training facility for year-round recreation.
They hope to start work on the new additions this summer.
images courtesy of Go The Distance Baseball, LLC
