CarMax Park is becoming a winter wonderland this holiday season

The Flying Squirrels’ ballpark is about to look nothing like a ballpark.

Starting Nov. 18, 804Live is turning CarMax Park into WINTERWORLD, a sprawling holiday attraction that runs through Jan. 3 and reimagines nearly every corner of the venue as a winter destination. The idea is simple enough: give Richmond a reason to bundle up and head downtown in December, and build something families want to come back to year after year.

The lineup is a lot. There’s a stadium-wide lighting display, a 12,500-square-foot outdoor ice-skating rink, a six-lane ice slide, a 60-foot Ferris wheel, and what organizers are calling the tallest Christmas tree in Richmond. Add a holiday retail village, seasonal food and drinks, snowball pitching, a 21-and-older lounge, and visits from Santa and Mrs. Claus, and you’ve got a full evening’s worth of things to do. According to organizers, the whole thing hits you the moment you walk through the front gates.

“CarMax Park was always envisioned to be a year-round destination for the Richmond community,” said Chris Yancey, president of 804Live. “With WINTERWORLD, our goal is to completely transform the venue into an immersive, holiday-themed experience for the entire family. We hope guests will create lasting memories, celebrate seasonal traditions and make WINTERWORLD part of their holiday celebrations for years to come.”

That year-round ambition has been the plan since the park opened. 804Live has talked about filling the calendar with festivals, entertainment and community events that keep the place busy long after the baseball season wraps. WINTERWORLD, a multimillion-dollar investment, is the biggest bet on that vision so far.

More than a light show

There’s a dollars-and-cents argument here too. Organizers expect the festival to create seasonal jobs, pull in visitors from around the region, and send business toward Richmond-area hotels, restaurants and shops during a stretch when the ballpark would otherwise sit empty.

“WINTERWORLD is much more than a holiday festival,” said Lou DiBella, managing general partner of the Richmond Flying Squirrels. “It’s about creating a new Christmastime tradition for our neighbors and the entire greater Richmond area, providing a reason for people to visit Richmond during the holidays, supporting our local economy and giving families a place to build traditions for generations to come.”

The projections are ambitious. Organizers expect more than 75,000 visitors in the inaugural season, drawn from across Virginia and neighboring states, and they’re already planning to expand the event with new experiences and programming in the years ahead.

Helping make it happen is SERVPRO, which signed on as a partner to bring the event to life. “At SERVPRO, we believe in investing in the communities we serve, and there’s no better example of that than WINTERWORLD,” said Andrew Bahen Jr., the company’s chief strategy officer. “Projects like this don’t just bring people together, they bring business to our neighbors, energy to our downtown and pride to our hometown. We’re honored to stand behind WINTERWORLD, and we can’t wait to see Richmond families make memories here this winter.”

Free tickets for local families

Accessibility has been baked into the planning, and organizers are teaming up with nonprofits to hand out 5,000 free tickets so cost isn’t the thing that keeps a family home.

“WINTERWORLD is being built for the entire Richmond community,” DiBella said. “We’re committing to partner with non-profit organizations to provide 5,000 complimentary tickets because we believe every family should have the opportunity to experience the magic of the holidays.”

As for the practical stuff, a lot is still to come. Ticket pricing, themed programming, entertainment, special events and New Year’s Eve plans will roll out through the summer and fall. A presale is set for August, with public ticket sales expected to open in September. If the turnout matches the hype, the ballpark’s quietest season might not be so quiet anymore.