The Diamond District's baseball war exposes a fundamental failure of planning and oversight. Richmond spent millions building a stadium without securing a binding agreement between the teams expected to share it.
Richmond managed to build a new baseball stadium. What it apparently could not do was secure an agreement between the two teams expected to use it.
Now the Flying Squirrels and Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) are embroiled in a bitter dispute, the Economic Development Authority (EDA) is threatening enforcement actions, lawsuits are mounting, and the old Diamond may remain in use despite the construction of its replacement.
The central question is simple:
Why did Richmond proceed with a major publicly financed stadium without first securing a binding agreement governing its intended occupants?
That question goes to the heart of the Diamond District's planning, execution, and oversight.
A Stadium Built on an Unfinished Deal
The new CarMax Park was intended to serve both the Flying Squirrels and VCU baseball while anchoring a much larger redevelopment project.
In October 2025, city officials publicly celebrated what appeared to be an agreement among the parties.
But there was a significant problem.
The operating agreement between VCU and the Squirrels was never finalized.
According to reporting by The Richmonder, the contemplated arrangement included substantial annual payments from VCU to the city and the Squirrels. Yet the financial and operational terms remained unresolved.
By January 2026, the Squirrels had ended negotiations.
Richmond had accomplished the expensive part: constructing the stadium.
It had not accomplished the essential part: ensuring the intended users could actually share it.
How does a city undertake a major public investment without first resolving a foreseeable and fundamental operational requirement?
The Baseball War Was Predictable
The disagreement has since escalated from failed negotiations into threats of lease enforcement and litigation.
The EDA has directed the Squirrels to remove their property from the old Diamond while simultaneously offering VCU an opportunity to negotiate continued use of that facility.
The authority has also raised the possibility that the Squirrels' refusal to resume negotiations could violate their CarMax Park lease.
The Squirrels dispute aspects of the EDA's position, and the underlying legal issues remain contested.
But the broader problem is unmistakable.
Richmond now faces the possibility of two baseball teams playing in separate stadiums after building a new facility intended to accommodate both.
That is not merely an unfortunate disagreement between tenants.
It is precisely the kind of contingency that should have been addressed before construction was completed and the stadium opened.
Where was the backup plan?
Who assessed the likelihood that negotiations might fail?
And who determined that Richmond could responsibly proceed without a completed operating agreement?
The EDA's Accountability Problem
The EDA played a central role in the Diamond District's financing, development arrangements, and stadium agreements.
It therefore bears substantial responsibility for explaining how the project reached this point.
The issue is not whether the EDA can now enforce contractual rights against the Squirrels or negotiate a separate arrangement with VCU.
The issue is why those measures became necessary.
If shared use was essential to the project's success, why wasn't a binding agreement secured as a prerequisite to opening the stadium?
If shared use was not essential, why was the project promoted around that expectation?
And if negotiations failed, what contingency arrangements had already been approved?
These questions should have been answered before the first pitch at CarMax Park.
Instead, Richmond is attempting to resolve fundamental operating questions after the public investment has already been made.
The Cost of Getting the Sequence Wrong
The Diamond District was supposed to deliver far more than baseball.
It promised housing, commercial development, new economic activity, and tax revenues that would help justify substantial public commitments.
But surrounding development has experienced delays, and the stadium dispute has generated additional uncertainty.
The Squirrels' ownership has sued the EDA over alleged failures associated with the development project. Separate litigation has further strained relationships among the parties.
Those lawsuits involve disputed allegations, and their ultimate financial consequences remain unknown.
Nevertheless, taxpayers deserve answers about potential litigation expenses, the financial consequences of maintaining arrangements at two stadiums, and whether the original revenue projections remain realistic.
Richmond should publish a comprehensive accounting of the project's obligations, outstanding disputes, and potential liabilities.
Taxpayers should not have to wait for a settlement, judgment, or financial shortfall to learn what the city's decisions may ultimately cost them.
Where Was City Council?
The EDA is a separate public authority, but its decisions involve public resources and carry consequences for Richmond residents.
City Council therefore has an obligation to demand meaningful oversight.
Did Council understand that the VCU-Squirrels operating agreement remained unsigned? Was it informed of the consequences if negotiations failed? Did it require a contingency plan?
And if Council knew these issues remained unresolved, why did it accept the risk?
Mayor Danny Avula inherited many of the Diamond District's original commitments. Nevertheless, his administration is now responsible for helping resolve the dispute and ensuring the city's financial interests are protected.
The public deserves more than another announcement that negotiations are underway.
It deserves an explanation of how the city arrived at this point.
Richmond Built the Stadium. Where Was the Plan?
The Diamond District's baseball war is not fundamentally about which team gets access to which stadium.
It is about whether Richmond's leaders adequately planned one of the city's most consequential development projects.
A new stadium was constructed. Public financial commitments were made. Economic benefits were projected. Yet a basic agreement between the intended occupants remained unfinished.
Now the EDA is threatening enforcement actions, the Squirrels are litigating, VCU may remain at the old Diamond, and Richmond is left managing a dispute that should have been anticipated long before opening day.
Perhaps the parties will eventually reach an agreement. Perhaps the courts will resolve their differences.
But neither outcome answers the original question.
Why did Richmond build the stadium before securing the deal?
Until City Hall and the EDA answer that question, the Diamond District will remain more than a baseball controversy.
It will stand as another example of Richmond making major public commitments before ensuring that the essential pieces of the plan are in place.
And once again, taxpayers are left wondering whether anyone was watching the scoreboard before the game began.
Brian K. Telfair | The Richmond Chronicle | Richmond, Virginia
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