Before I left for Afghanistan in mid-March, I drove across Florida from my home in Tampa to my parents’ home in Melbourne. Along the way, on Florida State Road 520, just outside of Cocoa, Florida, I saw the remains of what was once the home of the Florida State League’s Cocoa Astros, the spring home of the Houston Astros, and for a season, the spring home of the then-Florida Marlins. Sadly, even at 55 mph, it was apparent the Cocoa Expo Sports Complex had seen better days.
Built in 1964, the Cocoa Expo Sports Complex was designed to host baseball, soccer, and other sports on its outdoor fields; basketball, volleyball, and other indoor sports in its indoor complex; and events such as the Florida State Fair in its exhibition hall. The 40-acre complex was supposed to be the premier multi-use event center in Brevard County.
And for many years it was. Shortly after the facility opened, the Houston Astros moved from Apache Junction, Arizona to the Cocoa Expo Sports Complex for spring training and made it the new home of their Florida State League affiliate, the Cocoa Astros. In 1972, the Cocoa Astros moved to Dubuque, Iowa, then to Cedar Rapids, then came back to Cocoa in 1977, before moving throughout Florida from 1982 to 2000 and then finding their current home in the Carolina League as the Lancaster Jethawks.
In 1985, the big league Astros joined their minor league affiliate in departing the Cocoa Expo Sports Complex when they claimed the facility was “rundown” and told the City of Cocoa to pay for the renovations. After the city balked, claiming renovation had to be paid for by the Astros organization, the City of Kissimmee swooped in and lured the Astros and their minor league team an hour west.
After the Astros moved, a private ownership group bought the Cocoa Expo, put their own money into fixing it, and hosted various professional baseball-related events such as the Joe Brinkman Umpire School (1985-1998) and and an academy run by former Brevard County standout and current Major League manager Clint Hurdle. The facility also continued to host many amateur events.
On a personal note, I had a chance to play in one of the many amateur events during my final year of Little League in 1992. A few weeks after our season was over, my then-coach called to ask me if I wanted to participate in an exhibition against a team of traveling Brazilian teens. Never one to turn down the ability to play, I accepted. Although I don’t remember the final score, I remember the Brazilian team being very good and their pitcher throwing very fast, faster than most American kids my age. If I remember correctly, I went 0 for 2 with a strikeout and ground out.
A year after I played there, the Cocoa Expo Sports Complex hosted to its final professional baseball team. In 1993, the then-Florida Marlins played their first season in the Grapefruit League at the Cocoa Expo as they awaited the completion of Space Coast Stadium. Unlike the Astros however, the Marlins only used the complex for its stadium as they practiced and worked out in neighboring Viera adjacent to Space Coast Stadium on the fields of the Carl Barger Complex. Following the Marlins temporary residence, the complex still hosted amateur baseball, basketball, volleyball, and soccer tournaments, gun shows, and the state fair.
Unfortunately, time and the poor economy caught up to the Cocoa Expo Sports Complex. According to recent reports, in June 2011 the complex was foreclosed and seized by its main lender. After months of vacancy, with chains and locks and a sign announcing the foreclosure on the gates, new owners bought the complex and began $40 million dollars in repairs with the intent of making the complex a destination for amateur baseball, basketball, and volleyball teams from around the country. The new ownership attempted to open parts of the complex in March 2012 for a baseball tournament, but faced a wide array of complaints that the fields and facilities were unsafe and that the venue was “an open construction site”.
Will there ever be professional baseball at the Cocoa Expo Sports Complex again? Highly doubtful for three reasons. First and foremost, that doesn’t seem to be the intent of the new ownership. Second, while the complex might one day be suitable for college and amateur training and showcases, the main stadium needs far too many improvements to be considered a viable Florida State League destination. And third, and with Space Coast Stadium, home of the Brevard County Manatees since 1994, only 15 minutes south on I-95, I doubt there is any interest from a Minor League Baseball to place another team in the area.
Professional baseball history is also not on the side of the Cocoa Expo Sports Complex. Only once since 1941 has more than one team called Brevard County home. In 1972 the Cocoa Astros were joined by the four teams of the Florida East Coast Rookie League teams, the also-named Cocoa Astros, the Cocoa Expos, and the Melbourne Twins and Melbourne Reds. After one season, the Florida East Coast Rookie League folded and was never heard from again.
With their recent black eye and bad press, the new ownership of the Cocoa Expo Sports Complex might want to wait until the renovations are completely finished before opening the facility to the public. Until then, however, the Cocoa Expo Sports Complex will be devoid of all baseball and sit as a sad decrepit reminder of Cocoa, Florida’s minor league past.
Here is a recent video of the Cocoa Expo Sports Complex uploaded to youtube in February 2012:
Image acquired from ballparkreviews.com.
I think it’s very unfair for you to diss on this facility when the new owners are putting 40 million dollars into building this place back up. Obviously, this is a process that won’t happen over night, and would you be trying to make some money from the place while you are throwing 40 million dollars into it?
Shame on you for beating up on the place without even giving the new owners a chance. I would think the people of Cocoa Beach would welcome this place with open arms to revive the dying economy, but instead we get this kind of negativity. No wonder people can’t make a good business these days, it seems you want it to fail before it’s even off the ground to it’s recovery.
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Carla,
Thanks for reading. I appreciate the comment, although I think you missed the point. My point was to talk about the Cocoa Expo has a place where Professional Baseball was once played. While the complex might eventually be wonderful for amateur sports, I doubt it will ever host spring training or a minor league team again for the reasons I stated.
As of 10 March when I passed by, it was a ghost stadium. Maybe it won’t be one day.
Again, thanks for reading.
What kind of a reporter or commentator are you?? You write falsehoods about the new owners without doing any fact finding whatsoever. I am a coach on one of the 75 teams that attended a one week of the 5 week series of spring training games this year. We have been to the Cocoa Expo for many years in the past and yes the complex was run down over the years by the prior owners. However, if the improvements that the new owners have already made, is an example of what will be for the rest of the complex, all I can say is, that it will be great.
The stadium was completely refurbished and the dugouts are now professional major league grade. New major league net backstops have been installed and split face block backstop wall. New 8’ fencing has also been installed around the perimeter. All teams that attended the 5 weeks of spring training were all copied on the same emails which stated that all games were to be played at the stadium field and spectator seating would be in 3rd base grand stands.
I’m not sure what you are referring to as a “wide array of complaints”. As far as I know, there was only one team, which was led by a women from Lowden, Tennessee that made it her personal mission along with some other Lowden parents, to do whatever she could to cause the new owners harm, because she demanded to sit in the stadium and because of the ongoing construction she was not allowed to. I was told by coaches that attended their event that the Lowden parents were consuming alcohol in the early am on several days of the spring training week and were not controlled by their coach. 8 teams attended our spring training week and were all contacted by the Lowden woman attempting to persuade them to cancel their trips to Cocoa Expo. All 8 of the teams refused to listen to her and attended anyway.
Most of us have all experienced the out of control parents, who attempt to ruin it for the boys. They seem to forget, it’s about the players, not the parents. The 8 teams that attended with us were very satisfied with the improvements that were made this year, look forward to attending next year and seeing the additional improvements that have been made.
Mike, next time before you write get the facts straight. The pro’s have plenty of places to play. We need a good place, like Cocoa Expo, in order to produce more professional “home grown athletes” where college and high school kids from around the country can come eat, sleep and play. We love this place and it helps to motivate my boys to play at a professional spring training facility. You clearly didn’t enter the complex or you would have witnessed like me, millions of dollars worth of construction equipment and personel rebuilding fields and buildings. So please stop bad mouthing it!!
Thanks for crediting me for the use of my photo as not every website is as considerate.
I have to say, this video is very deceiving as there is never any shots of the actual field, which last I knew was still in pristine condition. Yes, I’m sure the underbelly of the ballpark has been neglected, but to say the ballpark has been “abandoned” is very deceiving.
Brian, as far as the actual ballpark, we received a comment that says what improvements were done. That would lead me to believe the park was not in pristine condition when the new owners started working on it. As for the surrounding fields, I can first-hand tell you they were in a state of disarray as of mid-March. Perhaps they are better now.