A ribbon-cutting to be held Tuesday could mark a new era of entertainment in La Plata County. The event will celebrate a series of new gates installed around Ward Lee Field at the county fairgrounds.
The seemingly insignificant infrastructure upgrade allows thousands more people to attend events on the baseball field which, because of the fire code, was only able to host about 1,800 people before the improvement. Now, up to 7,000 people can attend events on the field.
Jim Turner, a production manager in La Plata County, said he has eyed the field as a potential location that could rival the facilities at Telluride’s Town Park.
As proof of concept, Turner was determined to host Lyle Lovett at the venue, which he successfully did in July 2022.
But in order to do so, he had to have 80 feet of fence removed from around the field to bring it into compliance with the fire code.
“I’ve been looking at this for years,” Turner said.
He approached County Commissioner Matt Salk and Fairgrounds General Manager Emily Spencer, who both supported the idea.
“What I thought was totally fantastic about this process was that a private citizen, Jim Turner, had an idea and he worked directly with and helped Commissioner Salka and me, as the fairgrounds manager,” Spencer said. “… That was how it all should work – the community works with government.”
The cost of the improvements is modest, just $7,700 from the fairgrounds budget, but Turner is wildly optimistic about the outcome.
“Durango now has the best concert venue between here and Telluride,” he said.
Turner is already on the lookout for bigger acts that might draw a crowd. The Lovett show was attended by 3,000 people, he said – already far more than the 600 that can be seated in the Community Concert Hall at Fort Lewis College, which co-hosted the event with KSUT radio.
Spencer said she, too, is excited about expanding the use of the field, which sits mostly unused after the baseball season ends in July.
“We’re going to be able to serve the community in a way we could never safely do before,” she said. “It’s really exciting.”
The public is invited to attend the ribbon-cutting at 2 p.m. Tuesday at Ward Lee Field.
rschafir@durangoherald.com
