Chaska's Athletic Park intentionally flooded to protect local property as Minnesota River rises

Athletic Park in Chaska, home to the town's amateur baseball team, is completely submerged in water due to an intentional act to redirect floodwaters from the Minnesota River.

Chaska officials began flooding Athletic Park "to save homes and businesses from the overflowing Minnesota River," a post from the Chaska Cubs account on X stated Monday.

"With river levels on the rise, we made the decision to let water in to the park. This isn't something we do often, but with the river projected to be near historic levels, it's something that has to be done," the City of Chaska said.

"Since river levels are projected to be better than 2' above the berm, we made the decision to let water into the park in a controlled manner by raising the flood gates. This will prevent water from flowing over the top of the berm and therefore protecting it from damage."

Concessions, hallways, dugouts, locker rooms and restrooms are submerged. It's unclear if any damage has resulted from the intentional flooding, but city officials say "the less time the field is underwater, the better chance we have for a playable field this year."

When river levels begin to drop, the city will start pumping water out of the park.

According to the National Water Prediction Service, the nearest river-level station in Jordan, which is about 15 miles southwest of Chaska, was reading at 33.97 feet – at major flood stage – on Wednesday morning. The river is forecast to crest at 35.2 feet at approximately 1 a.m. Friday.

The record crest on the Minnesota River at Jordan is 35.1 feet, set on April 11, 1965.

The Chaska Cubs have made Robert G. Fritz Field in nearby Cologne their temporary home field.