Jackson Field is a baseball stadium in

Lansing, Michigan Lansing () is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is mostly in Ingham County, although portions of the city extend west into Eaton County and north into Clinton County. The 2020 census placed the city's population at 112,644, makin ...

, home field of the Lansing Lugnuts minor league baseball team. The

Michigan State Spartans The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic teams that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 23 varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan warrior named Sparty, and the school colors are green and wh ...

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

team also plays select home games at Jackson Field. The stadium is situated in downtown Lansing in the Stadium District on a relatively narrow strip of land between and below Larch and Cedar streets. It is primarily used for

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

, though it has also hosted an ice skating rink, an outdoor movie theater, a haunted house, and served as a concert venue for the annual

Common Ground Music Festival The Common Ground Music Festival is an annual week-long music festival that takes place in downtown Lansing, Michigan. The July festival, which began in the year 2000 and attracts 50,000-plus people each year, is located at the Louis Adado River ...

. Due to the dimensions of the city block in which the stadium was constructed, the right and left field fences 'notch' sharply into distances of at each foul pole.

History

The stadium replaced a block of storefronts along Michigan Avenue. Originally budgeted $10 million for construction, the construction costs rose slightly to $12.8 million.

Groundbreaking Groundbreaking, also known as cutting, sod-cutting, turning the first sod, or a sod-turning ceremony, is a traditional ceremony in many cultures that celebrates the first day of construction for a building or other project. Such ceremonies are ...

for the stadium took place on April 3, 1995, and it was officially opened exactly one year later on April 3, 1996 as Oldsmobile Park. Its first game was between the

teams of the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

and

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It ...

. Two days later, the Lansing Lugnuts had their first game at the venue against the Rockford Cubbies. On February 22, 2010, Lansing mayor Virgil Bernero announced that the stadium would be renamed

Thomas M. Cooley Law School Western Michigan University Cooley Law School ("Cooley") is a private law school in Lansing, Michigan and Riverview, Florida. It was established in 1972. At its peak in 2010, Cooley had over 3,900 students and was the largest US law school by enr ...

Stadium, a result of the park's new sponsorship agreement. In March 2010, Lansing-based

Jackson National Life Jackson National Life Insurance Company (often referred to as simply Jackson) is a U.S. company that provides annuities for retail investors and fixed income products for institutional investors. Jackson subsidiaries and affiliates provide specia ...

Insurance Company purchased the rights to name the field "Jackson Field" for 1 year. Thus, the full name of the venue was Jackson Field at Thomas M. Cooley Law School Stadium. On March 12, 2014, a $22 million renovation proposal for the stadium was announced named The Outfield. It would include $11 million in public bonds for renovation of the actual stadium structure including new turf, and updated locker rooms, concessions and new box seats. $11 million in additional private investments which would include 80 apartments, a year-round bar and grill, and a new scoreboard. The proposal also includes the city negotiating a new contract with the team which is proposed to bring in an additional 25% revenue for the city. On September 1, 2020, the stadium announced an official name change to Jackson Field after a 7-year naming rights agreement was signed with

Insurance Company.

Other uses

Rugby

On October 19, 2018, the

and

Michigan Wolverines The Michigan Wolverines comprise 29 varsity sports teams at the University of Michigan. These teams compete in the NCAA's Division I and in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except women's water polo, which competes in the NCAA inter-divisio ...

had their rivalry match, the Battle for the Mitten, at Cooley Law School Stadium. Michigan State defeated Michigan 25-15.

Soccer

On October 25, 2018, the newly planned Lansing Ignite soccer team announced it would begin playing its home games at the stadium. The Ignite ceased operations after just one season.

Field dimensions

*Left field: *Left-center: *Center field: *Right-center: *Right field:

References

External links

Cooley Law School Stadium Website
{{Lansing-East Lansing Sports venues in Lansing, Michigan Minor league baseball venues Sports venues in Michigan College baseball venues in the United States Sports venues completed in 1996 1996 establishments in Michigan Michigan State Spartans baseball Soccer venues in Michigan USL League One stadiums Midwest League ballparks