Oregon Public Broadcasting

Beaverton officials appeared with business leaders and the Oregon Sports Authority Tuesday to launch a campaign to move the Portland Beavers’ baseball team west. Rob Manning has more.

The Beavers need some place else to call home well before Portland’s Major League Soccer team takes over PGE Park in 2011.

Beaverton entered the running after Portland sites fell through.

Beaverton Mayor Denny Doyle has advocated revitalizing downtown with an arts, or cultural center. He says a baseball stadium could do the same thing.

Denny Doyle: “This is a different kind of cultural magnet, you know the possibilities, with a private partner that could bring it on-line much, much quicker. I’m excited about it, and a lot of people I’ve talked to are, but again, it has to make sense."

The Beaverton mayor says he wants to hear from supporters and opponents, as baseball discussions continue.

Doyle says there are four possible sites for a new stadium – but he will only discuss one publicly. That’s a city-owned site near the struggling development called The Round.

No financing deal has been proposed yet.