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All eyes can soon see Marlins' stadium
Construction to be on Earthcam, viewable from Web site

By Joe Frisaro / MLB.com

04/27/09 6:17 PM ET

This is part of an MLB.com/Marlins.com exclusive series with Marlins president David Samson chronicling the progress and developments of the new retractable-roof stadium that is scheduled to open in 2012. Throughout the series, which will run twice monthly, fans are encouraged to e-mail David at D.Samson@Marlins.com with their thoughts.

NEW YORK -- Stadium cam is close to being streamed online.

In the very near future, visitors to marlins.com will be able to see step-by-step construction of the Marlins' new ballpark on the Orange Bowl grounds in the Little Havana section of Miami.

Groundbreaking still is expected in July, but within weeks, visitors to the Web site will be able to see developments on the grounds of the future home of the franchise.

"We are going to go live with EarthCam -- it's been installed," Marlins president David Samson said. "It will provide a 24-hour live view of the ballpark. It will allow our fans to zoom in, zoom out, to literally maneuver the camera themselves. It will simply be the place to go for the next 33 months."

The exact date of when the camera will be turned on is still being determined. But it is close to being activated.

With each passing week, groundbreaking for the retractable-roof park that will open in 2012 is becoming a reality.

Recently, from a financial standpoint, a big hurdle was cleared at the city of Miami level.

By a 5-0 vote, city commissioners approved the formality of a special permit that is necessary to move forward with construction.

"It was our first unanimous vote, ever in the city, 5-0, and we got our special permit, which is the permit required to do a huge project like this," Samson said. "We're very happy. It sets us up to break ground and be ready by July. That was a big moment for us."

Next up on the business side are meetings, set to take place this week, with Bond Ratings Agencies. Miami-Dade County, which will own the 37,000-seat stadium, is taking the lead role in securing the bonds.

"This is the first step to issuing the bonds," Samson said. "As we all know, this is really the most important issue left. Once the bonds are issued, everything is fine and done. We can't break ground until that happens.

"We're going to meet two straight days in front of these agencies, the county is, presenting them the project, and why this is such a good idea. The bond market has really gotten better in the last two weeks, which is really good for the economy and our project."

Samson sees encouraging signs in the economy, which translates to positive news in regards to obtaining the bonds.

"The county-issued aviation bonds, they're called, and they were fully subscribed, which means they sold out," he said. "A few months ago, the county tried and they weren't sold out. So it just shows that things really are getting better, and that's very important."

Pretty much all stadiums, and major projects like building airports, use bonds for funding. So this is just part of the process.

"Things are getting better -- things are looking up," Samson said. "That's important for everybody and the ballpark."

Progress on the stadium front comes as the Marlins on the field got off to a hot 11-1 start, before the current six-game losing streak.

Overall, the organization is pleased with the product on the field, along with the crowds and growing interest in the club.

"Attendance has been good. People are coming to games," Samson said. "The team probably isn't going to win 11 out of 12 the whole season, and we're not going to lose [six] in a row for the whole season. We've very happy with the team. We're very happy with the crowds. People are supporting the team, and we have a great year ahead of us."

Joe Frisaro is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.