In 2004, the Philadelphia Phillies moved out of Veterans Stadium and into their brand new ballpark, the beautiful Citizens Bank Park. The new ballpark sits on 21 acres of land and sits 23 feet below street level with a roof extending 134 feet above the field. The park was painted with 11,600 gallons of paint and 450,000 bricks were hand-laid by construction workers over the entire process. It's less than 50 feet from home plate to the backstop, and only 51 feet from 1 st or 3 rd base to the stands, giving fans an amazing in-game experience. The outfield fences also stand at varying heights, all the way from six feet in dead center to 19 feet in "the angle," located just left of dead center into left center field.
There are currently 15,500 parking spaces available, and by the end of the 2004 season, there will be another 5,500 spaces available due to the resurfacing of the lot where Veterans Stadium once stood. Citizens Bank Park also boasts the largest video display board in the entire National League, measuring approximately 2,750 square feet. The total construction costs of the park were $346 million with the Phillies paying for $172 million and the public tax payers covering the other $174 million. Renovations made in 2006 and 2007 have enlarged the stadium's overall capacity to nearly 43,700. The Philadelphia Phillies are lucky to play in such a state of the art venue with prime seating and box office ticket sales skyrocketing out the roof.
