bleachers and stadium at Ballpark of the Palm Beaches The new $145 million spring training home of the Houston Astros and the Washington Nationals in Palm Beach County Florida. (Photo courtesy of The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches)

Filling bleachers with baseball fans is big business in South Florida and with the addition of a new two-team stadium, just goes to show the economic impact of sports in any community.

Starting in March, spectators will be singing "Take me out to the ballgame" in a brand-new facility in Palm Beach County - The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches - that will be the winter home for the Houston Astros and the Washington Nationals.

This $145 million-dollar facility has the capacity to hold 8,000 people with seating for 6,500. (The rest of the seating will be traditional spring-training style - visitors can sit on blankets on a grass berm overlooking the field. The ultimate in "green" bleachers. This was one of the alluring features of the Los Angeles Dodgers spring training facility in Vero Beach for decades. That was until the team moved to Glendale, AZ).

But there's more than just a stadium. There are six practice fields, a clubhouse, agility fields and even rehabilitation laps pools. The Ballpark complex is not just for baseball either - there is a 1.8 mile walking trail, 12-acre park, playground, baseball courts and seven multi-purpose fields for soccer, lacrosse or football.

Why all the fuss over spring training facilities? Just look at the money involved. According to an economic impact study implemented by the Palm Beach County Commission, this new facility will have an estimated $125 million ANNUAL impact on the local economy. That's right, every year visitors will flock to the stadium spending money on merchandise, food, gas, hotels and a bunch of other items.

In addition, the stadium will act like a magnet to give these visitors an opportunity to experience the overall wonders of Palm Beach County - the beaches, shopping areas and all the other amenities. That also includes all the TV and news coverage that will take place reporting about those teams…and the beauty of the surrounding area.

Those tourists will return for vacation. They may even move to Palm Beach. And you can be sure they will tell their friends.

In essence, Ballpark of the Palm Beaches is like a giant postcard for Palm Beach County.

Bleachers filled with Snowbirds equals big business

Gov. Rick Scott recognizes the potential of adding spring training facilities in Florida and kicked in some of the funding.

He had a bigger goal in mind. The reason why the Astros and Nationals have a new stadium is that the leases on their old facilities were expiring. There was some talk they would move to the other spring training mecca - Arizona.

But Governor Scott was determined to keep those teams here. Why? Because there are a total of 15 teams that have spring training facilities in Florida. You can imagine the incredible impact this has on the Sunshine State.

Those teams are the Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros, Miami Marlins, Minnesota Twins, NY Mets, NY Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Toronto Blue Jays and The Washington Nationals.

Now repeat the hundred-million plus economic impact in all those communities that host these teams across the state and you are talking about some serious dollars. Tax dollars generated as well.

There's also a major strategic beauty to the location of the Astros-Nationals facility in Palm Beach. Just up the road on I-95 in Jupiter, is Roger Dean Stadium, the two-team home of the Miami Marlins and the St. Louis Cardinals.

If you travel a little further up the interstate, you will also come to Tradition Field, home of the NY Mets.

palm beach baseball In Palm Beach County, fans will now be able to see FIVE Major League Baseball teams for spring training within an hour's drive

For die-hard baseball fans, what an alluring setup. A person could visit three spring-training stadiums and see FIVE Major League Baseball teams within an hour's drive. It's literally a "Multiple Field of Dreams" for avid fans.

Officials from Roger Dean Stadium estimate they bring in roughly 160,000 visitors during spring training. Tradition Field put Port St. Lucie on the national map and generates an endless amount of exposure for the community in the New York Metropolitan Area.

All this activity has also reportedly caught the attention of the Atlanta Braves which has a lease with the Disney sports complex in Orlando but have said they might relocate. They have indicated they are interested in talking to Palm Beach officials as well.

With all the media exposure that spring training receives nationally, people might not realize the year-long activities that take place at these facilities.

For example, most of the teams have their minor league teams play a full season in these stadiums. Floridians have a love affair with minor league baseball - it's easy to attend a game, the seats are not expensive and they get to see the future stars of tomorrow in action.

In addition, these facilities are also a magnet for high school and little league baseball.

In fact, the Ballpark of the Palm Beaches and Roger Dean stadium will host the Prospect Select Baseball tournament - one of the largest high school baseball tournaments in the nation.

Teams from not only the United States but Canada, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Dominican Republic and the Bahamas will be playing in the event which features different age groups. That's an estimated 200 teams and more than 3,000 athletes.

Imagine the economic impact of that event. Especially when you add in all the parents and families that will be sitting in those aluminum bleachers, and staying at local hotels, eating in restaurants and making local purchases. The tournament alone will generate an estimated $4 million in spending.

The overall point here is that on a macro-scale, one can see the incredible benefit of adding sports facilities. A tremendous number of dollars come into a community and are flipped several times over as they circulate through the economy. Workers get paid and spend their money on gas, haircuts, food, home repairs, etc. And taxes.

On a micro-level, even smaller communities can benefit from investing in creating or updating sports facilities. People come from out of town to see their youngsters play ball in tournaments. Local residents flock to the parks to participate in activities. Nice, clean facilities can attract people who are thinking about moving to a particular town.

Sports marketing is big business. As you can see in Palm Beach County with FOUR major league teams and another one up the street - that's a grand slam any county in the US would love to hit themselves.