Ballparks: Eugene's Civic Stadium

Only 10 other Minor League ballparks have been around longer, making it fair to say Civic Stadium still epitomizes old-fashioned baseball at its best. Built in 1938, the all-wooden park has seen plenty of famed players take its field.

Players such as Mike Schmidt, Greg Luzinski, Larry Bowa, Mike Sweeney, Bruce Chen, Tom Gordon and Khalil Green have all spent time in Civic Stadium, now home to the Eugene Emeralds, the San Diego Padres' Class A affiliate.

"Virtually every West Coast player has played here at some point," said Emeralds media relations director Bryan Beban. "Most guys came through in our Triple-AA days, but there's been so many great players to come through here."

Originally built for football and track and field, the ballpark was constructed under former president Franklin D. Roosevelt's Works Project Administration. The total cost came in at $12,000 with most of the labor paid by the government and the lumber donated.

As Civic Stadium is built with old-growth timber, Beban said some have seen the solid wood beams and told him the wood itself is worth more than the land the ballpark sits on. The wooden grandstand covers all of the bleachers and some of the box seats.

In 1955, the Emeralds were born but it was in 1969 they moved to Civic Stadium after playing 14 seasons in Bethel Park.

Distance-markings from old track-and-field meets can still be seen underneath the box seats, which were added in '69 when Westgate Park, the former stadium of the Padres, was torn down.

Along with the original Padres box seats came two light stands, which remain today despite new box seats being installed in 1985. While Civic Stadium is nestled among neighborhoods of Eugene, Ore., Beban said the stadium is the focal point of the city.

"In fact, we've been here so long the community has grown and formed around the park," said Beban. "It's surrounded by homes from the '40s, and there are mountains as part of the backdrop."

Though the Emeralds focus on family-fun entertainment for fans, the importance of family is evident in their front office. While Beban serves as media relations director, his father, Bob, is the president of the club and his stepmother handles the accounting.

Civic Stadium's menu offers traditional fare but the burritos from local chain Burrito Amigo are by far the best seller. Ice cream from Prince Puckler's provides the perfect post-burrito dessert.

Before teams could order specialized mini-helmets, the Emeralds would scoop ice cream into mini-helmets with Major League club logos. A large scoreboard in the concourse would allow fans to change the order of the helmets as the standings would change.

Civic Stadium's football history also reaches to its early days. High schools would play football games there before schools received their own fields. As a result, said Beban, many Baby Boomers who now come to watch Emeralds games played football on the same field.

"We're so different than the cookie-cutter ballparks," said Beban. "Ours is naturally old and historic."