Escondido is pulling ahead of San Marcos in the race to build the Padres a minor league ballpark in San Diego County.
Escondido has plans to surround the ballpark with shopping centers, condominiums, and a dining district, according to the North County Times. This spring the Padres announced their plans to move their minor league team from Oregon to North County.
Cal State San Marcos had been a leading contender in the race to get the ball park, but now Escondido's plan have made them the front runner, the paper said.
Escondido officials have been meeting with Padres about the potential of their site located just south of Highway 78 and just east of Interstate 15, the paper wrote.
Padres chief executive Jeff Moorad told the North County Times that the team was leading away from San Marcos because another city had a better plan.
