A new survey gauging fan interest is riling up fans once again about the possible return of the Expos.
The online survey, which is collecting opinions until July 23, asks fans what kind of ballpark experience they’d like to have.
Ernst & Young (EY) is the firm in charge of crunching the numbers.
They’re working with a group of investors, including Montreal businessman Stephen Bronfman, to bring the Expos back.
The survey asks things like whether fans would like to have a brewery associated with the ballpark or what sort of children’s amenities should be available if fans want to come as a family, said EY partner William Jegher.
“It’s more a question of truly understanding if we’re going to spend a significant amount of money, what should we be spending it on.”
Expos fans of all stripes are getting behind the new initiative.
For Antoine Boulet, filling out the 20-30 minute survey is more of a duty and his contribution to the team’s comeback.
“We need people to fill out that survey. The more answers we get, the more chances we have to bring back this team,” Boulet told Global News.
Sports reporter Jeremy Filosa broke the news about the survey.
“There is a slight, very slight chance that if the Tampa Ray’s project falls through this fall, that the team may be back here as of next year,” Filosa said. “They want to make sure that they have all the information they need right now in case things start falling into place quickly.”
The Tampa Bay Rays baseball team has been facing low attendance, fueling rumours that the team could perhaps be relocated.
The Expos survey findings will be taken to a ballpark designer, the same group in charge of designing 23 out of the 30 existing ballparks in the Major League of Baseball. They will serve as a guideline to come up with the concept for the stadium that could house the Expos.
The survey opened on Monday and will close July 23.
So far about 12,000 participants have filled out the survey.