DODGERS: SPRING TRAINING SITE IN ARIZONA GETS FUNDING.

Byline: RICH HAMMOND Staff Writer

The Dodgers' plan to move their spring training operations out of Florida took another step forward Thursday when funding was approved for the construction of a two-team facility in Glendale, Ariz.

The eight-member Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority board of directors voted unanimously to fund $50 million toward the cost of a proposed $76.8 million complex in Glendale. The new facility would house the Dodgers and Chicago White Sox beginning in 2009.

``Any time you have a process like this, there is a lot of work to be done,'' said Glendale communications director Julie Frisoni. ``This was a big step, but by no means are we done.''

Next, the ASTA board and the cities of Glendale and Phoenix will negotiate an intergovernmental agreement and the two teams will work with the cities on particulars of the agreement, Frisoni said.

The funding is a big step, however. In recent weeks, it had been assumed that the Dodgers and White Sox would be competing against the Cleveland Indians, who seek to build a facility in nearby Goodyear, for funding, but the ASTA board on Thursday also voted to fund $30 million toward the Goodyear project.

As part of the agreement, the White Sox must find a team to replace them in their current spring home in Tucson, but all signs point to the Dodgers leaving Vero Beach, Fla., their spring home since 1948.

``This is one more step in the process,'' Dodgers spokesperson Camille Johnston said, ``and there is more work to be done after the first of the year.''

The new complex, which would include a 10,000-seat stadium, would be located near the new stadium built for the NFL's Arizona Cardinals. A report in the Vero Beach Press Journal this week indicated that the Baltimore Orioles have interest in taking over the Vero Beach facility if the Dodgers depart.

[e-mail]

[phone]