PRESS RELEASE December 18, 2009
MR. AND MRS. JONES GO TO WASHINGTON
From: Committee to Commemorate Old Yankee Stadium
Christmas has come early to the Bronx; Gate 2 at The House That Ruth Built is alive and well, standing proudly and defiantly (must be that Edison Concrete) as the rest of the Stadium slowly crumbles around her. She still serves as a reminder of and a portal to thirty-seven American League Pennants and twenty-six World Championships.
On Monday, December 14, representatives from the Committee to Commemorate Old Yankee Stadium walked the streets of the Bronx (specifically, 161st Street and River Avenue) as well as those of the Nation’s Capital, seeking funding, landmark status, and assurance that the Gate, which is original to the old Stadium (1923), will go untouched until all structural inspections, preservation cost estimates, and evaluation and analysis of those estimates have been conducted. After extensive review of its originality, aesthetic and architectural worth, and its great historical importance, the Design Commission of the City of New York recommended that the City’s Parks Department redo its preliminary plan to include Gate 2 as a monument in the new park.
Chris and Cindy Jones (Committee to Commemorate Old Yankee Stadium) traveled to Washington, DC last Monday, armed with press releases, letters, and photographs…ammunition as well as evidence of the Gate’s historical, architectural, cultural, and spiritual importance…and spoke with the offices of individuals and staff members of organizations whose support of the preservation effort could make a difference.
Chris and Cindy’s visit and correspondence(s) were also about requesting federal stimulus funds for this “shovel-ready” project, as well as for historic preservation funds for this preeminent historical site (as stated above). The Committee, to garner additional funds, has also initiated a Volunteer Worker Program and a Commemorative Brick Drive, much like the one at Citi Field’
Their trip was also a preliminary step toward application for Federal land marking and funding for the old Yankee Stadium site.
Mr. and Mrs. Jones spoke with individuals at the National Park Service (Historic Preservation Program); the office of United States Senator, Charles Schumer (New York); Congressman, Jose E. Serrano (New York’s 16th District); and Adolfo Carrion, former Bronx Borough President and currently White House Director of Urban Affairs. Ironically, the office of Jim Bunning, former Major League pitcher, 1996 inductee into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, and United States Senator from Kentucky, was down the hall from that of Senator Schumer, and information regarding Gate 2 was left for him as well.
The Committee to Commemorate Old Yankee Stadium has also contacted the Steinbrenner Family and Mayor Bloomberg and requested that they supply the needed funds (if they don’t accept/approve/apply for the proposed funding).
Contact Information for MR. AND MRS. JONES GO TO WASHINGTON
Chris and Cindy Jones, Committee to Commemorate Old Yankee Stadium
13722 Long Cove Place
Midlothian, Virginia 23112
Chris: chris_jones86@comcast.net
(804) 639-9472 (Home)
(804) 441-2112 (Cell)
Cindy: cin_jones@comcast.net
cindy_jones@ccpsnet.net
(804) 639-9472 (Home)
(804) 426-9911 (Cell)
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