Ripken company issues deadline

Ex-Orioles star says Aberdeen has not met obligations to upgrade park

“My brother and I ... have great respect for everyone who lives and works in this beautiful part of Maryland.”

Cal Ripken Jr.’s sports management company said his firm should take over management of non-baseball events such as weddings, concerts and fundraisers at Ripken Stadium, and claims the City of Aberdeen has not fulfilled its obligations to upgrade the city-owned ballpark.

In a letter to city officials this week, Tufton Professional Baseball LLC, owned by the former Baltimore Orioles great and his family, demanded the city fulfill its obligations to improve the home of the Aberdeen Ironbirds minor league team.

The Oct. 3 letter, signed by Cal Ripken, seeks a response from city officials by next Tuesday to avoid “legal action against the City of Aberdeen to protect our contractual rights.”

The city and the Ripkens have been locked in a long-running dispute over management of non-baseball events at Leidos Field at Ripken Stadium, which some city officials say is a financial drain. Arguing the ballpark is underutilized, the city named a new vendor in February to schedule and operate nonbaseball events at the stadium.

Aberdeen City Manager Randy Robertson declined to comment Friday afternoon, and Mayor Patrick McGrady did not return a message seeking comment.

Ripken Stadium opened in 2002. The IronBirds, owned by brothers Cal and Bill Ripken and affiliated with the Orioles, have a 20-year lease at the stadium that ends in 2022.

Tufton previously handled not only the Ironbirds operations there, but also the booking of other events that werenotbaseball related, keeping that revenue and paying the city an annual fee under a deal that expired Dec. 31.

After the deal expired, the city hired another company, Huntley Sports Group, in February to take over non-baseball events, hoping to bring additional activity to the stadium — and more revenue to the city. The city has said in the past that it has more than $2 million outstanding bond debt from the stadium’s construction.

The hiring of Huntley strained relations between the city and the Ripkens, and in his letter to city officials, Cal Ripken, who serves as president and CEO of Tufton, reminded the city that “almost 20 years ago, we joined hand-in-hand to bring a state-of-the-art minor league stadium to the City.” He also noted that he and his brother “personally invested more than $6 million in the stadium.”

John Maroon, longtime representative of Tufton and the Ripkens, said Friday there would be no further comment beyond the contents of the letter. But in comments over the summer, Maroon said the company contends Aberdeen officials had not fulfilled “capital improvements and major maintenance obligations.”

In 2016, a consultant’s study identified about 50 repair and enhancement projects the stadium would need over10 years, with an estimated price tag of about $3.2 million.

“Our attorneys have been talking, but the city has resisted acknowledging important improvements that are necessary to maintain the stadium,” Maroon said in July. “With regard to events our position remains unchanged. We continue to believe that the Tufton group is best positioned to manage all events at the stadium. A single manager would be in the best interests of the citizens of Aberdeen and would produce the most money for the city.”

This week’s letter from Ripken references effort in September “to mediate our disputes,” but says they “failed to produce any resolution.”

The letter states that Tufton and the Ripkens want the city to “honor its obligations to undertake capital improvements, major maintenance, and replacements” at the stadium; acknowledge that the city has recouped its 2000 investment in the stadium; “confirm Tufton’s unilateral right” to renew its lease contract for another 20 years, 2023-2042.

“As you know, my brother and I were born and raised in the City of Aberdeen and have great respect for everyone who lives and works in this beautiful part of Maryland,” Ripken wrote.

In the letter, Ripken later states: “Although I wish our lawyers did not have to do so, they are prepared to take legal action against the City of Aberdeen to protect our contractual rights, unless the City and Tufton can reach a mutually acceptable resolution by the close of business on Tuesday, October 9, 2018.”

Cal Ripken Jr., in letter to Aberdeen officials