SportBusiness.com

BLUE JAYS TO BUY HOME

The Toronto Blue Jays have agreed to buy SkyDome, the team's ballpark, for about $21.24million.

The 50,000-seat stadium, which opened in 1989, cost about $375million to construct, mostly funded by taxpayers.

The Blue Jays, who are owned by Rogers Communications, will acquire the ballpark from Sportsco International LP, a Chicago-based group of investors who bought SkyDome out of bankruptcy court in 1999 for about $74million, reports the Associated Press.

"This will enable us to measurably improve the efficiency of our business operations," Blue Jays president Paul Godfrey said.

The sale is expected to close in December.

The Canadian Football League's Toronto Argonauts plan to move from SkyDome to a new 25,000-seat outdoor stadium in 2006.