The extravagant St. Louis Ballpark Village is set to open right across from Busch Stadium, with the powers that be touting it as a "sports anchored entertainment district." One interesting fact that potential visitors should know about beforehand is the dress code that many of the bars have. The other involves pending lawsuits, fights and allegations of discrimination.
According to Deadspin, eight bars in the village will enforce the following dress code after 9 p.m:
None
That basically means nobody dressed like the Diplomats...
...or St. Lunatics back in the day...
...or Riley Riley Cooper now...
...would be allowed inside certain parts of the village. Hell, some Cardinals wouldn't even be granted entry. Here's looking at you, beloved former Cardinal and 2011 World Series MVP David Freese:
This all seems a little pretentious for a cluster of sports bars, no? What's more concerning is that the area is the work of Cordish Companies, which also constructed Kansas City's Power & Light entertainment district. Deadspin mentions two recent lawsuits against the district claiming that black patrons have been discriminated against, with one asserting that Power & Light had white men on salary specifically to start fights with black patrons so they'd be kicked out.
Sports bars complexes are Petri dishes for douchebaggery, but if any of the latter is true, the company responsible for Ballpark Village and Power & Light is way over the top with it. Cardinal sins have already been created; many more could follow. Still excited for Opening Day?
[via Deadspin]
