The Bakersfield Blaze is continuing efforts in giving their fans something exciting to look forward to.

They’re moving forward with plans for a new, state-of-the-art ballpark at Bakersfield Commons, where northwest and southwest Bakersfield come together.

Bakersfield Commons is a planned mixed-use community located at the intersection of Coffee Road and Brimhall Road.  There are also plans to advance its first phase of retail development in connection with the ballpark.

The surrounding retail center is in the planning stage and construction is anticipated to start in 2014.

According to the new ownership group, groundbreaking for the stadium will begin in the first quarter of 2013, with the ballpark set to open in 2014 before the start of the season. It will be built on 15 acres at the northern end of the Bakersfield Commons site.

The new park will have about 3,500 seats, and will include modern amenities such as luxury suites and special event space for groups and families, picnic areas, and a children’s playground. The Blaze will relocate from Sam Lynn Ballpark, where the franchise started in 1941.

Last year, new owners Gene Voiland and Chad Hathaway purchased the Blaze, and they committed to find a location for a modern ballpark that would deliver a first-rate experience for the community.

“Bakersfield Commons is a spectacular location for the new ballpark, which we intend to be the finest Class-A ballpark in the country,” Voiland said.

“By connecting a new state-of-the-art stadium to a unique retail district, we are creating a family destination that will be extremely attractive for everyone in Bakersfield.”

“We actually started on this process before we closed on the team, when we bought the team last year,” said Hathaway.

“We bought the team with the idea we would have a new venue, “ said Voiland while further elaborating,

“Baseball is so different than what it used to be in the past, now it’s more about family entertainment.”

“Before we made the decision to buy the team, I actually heard something where one of the other Cal League team we visited made the comment that if more than half the people know the score after the game’s over, you’ve failed.

“So it’s very different than when I was a kid, when you went to watch baseball, you went to watch baseball.”

“But we have different families now, mom and dad both work most of the time, and so you’re taking kids who are probably younger than normal, but they’re going not only to watch a baseball game, but to be entertained. And so you look at the new parks, they have lots of bounce houses, lots of kids games, so the kids go straight to all that and never watch the game.”

“Sam Lynn was built for how baseball used to be, so we knew we had to have a different location.

“So we looked around and whenever you start something like this you kind of draw circles to see where your fan base is. It just came down that right in the middle of it is the (Bakersfield) Commons.

“We have 450,000 people within a half hour, and so we had the idea to talk to the people that own the Commons.” Said Voiland.

According to Hathaway, the blueprint for the new stadium is expected to be finalized by the end of the year.

“We have a very firm idea of our concept, it’s going to be a modern ballpark,” said Hathaway, and when asked about the new park facing the sun as Sam Lynn does. Hathaway responded with.

“If we did that, they should run us out of town.”

Hathaway explained about the cat-walk and where the old scoreboard used to sit, and if they thought about re-creating that in the new park, he went on to mention that he likes the manual scoreboard and thinks it’s kind of cool but added.

“There will be a jumbo-tron, I can tell you that,” saying that jokingly and added “We don’t want to get hammered too bad during construction, we can’t afford it.

“We’re not building a high-end exclusive stadium, we’re building a place for families, and families of all demographics and income levels that should be able to afford going to a game.”

They intend to keep the ticket prices near the same price they currently stand, while also expanding and improving the product.