More than $16.27 million has been subcontracted to local businesses for work on the Bull Street minor league baseball stadium, recently named Spirit Communication’s Park, part of a successful effort to hire out nearly half of the project through the city’s Subcontractor Outreach Program.

Though it may not look like much now, construction on the minor league baseball stadium at Columbia Common is still on schedule, with significant bids on portions of the project expected next week. “We have a huge hole in the ground,” said Hardball Capital CEO Jason Freier, “and a big pile of dirt next to it.”

Downtown Columbia has resumed the building boom that was interrupted by the Great Recession. It is changing so quickly that it soon could look and feel very different. How different? And what will the Next New Columbia be like? That’s what we’re writing about in this monthly series.

Columbia Professional Baseball will start taking reservations next week for 16 luxury suites that are featured in the $37 million Spirit Communications Park, which is under construction at the Columbia Common development on Bull Street.

Take it from Mike Sabatini, a senior architect for Populous, the design firm for Columbia’s new baseball stadium at the Bull Street development. Spirit Communications Park is going to be a home run.

The City of Columbia and Columbia Professional Baseball, announced Wednesday that Spirit Communications will hold the rights to name the new, multi-use sports and entertainment venue at Columbia Common in downtown Columbia.