Kitchener Panthers for sale, seeking ‘long-term’ owner by end of December

Citing a change in the province’s Intercounty Baseball League (IBL) landscape, the Kitchener Panthers organization has made the decision to seek a new owner after over 100 years as a community led non-profit.

Sharing the news on Wednesday in a post on social media, it said the board of the outdoor sports team has seen the “non-profit model” giving way in the IBL to private investment among competitors in the league.

The board has clearly stated that new owner must be “as dedicated to our tradition in the region as our community volunteers have been for the past 105 years.”

Speaking as a guest on the Mike Farwell Show, Kitchener Panthers general manager Mike Boehmer said the volunteer driven, not-for-profit model “just isn’t sustainable moving into the future,” though he said that the team won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.

“One of the major criteria is that the team needs to remain in the Region of Waterloo” said Boehmer. “It could be Jack Couch (Park), it could be Waterloo, it could be Cambridge, but we’re insistent that the team remain in this region.”

The statement from the board noted that the change will hopefully bring the ability to facilitate “more games, more talent, more excitement for fans and more opportunities for the players, coaches and staff who bring the games to life.”

While Boehmer said the goal is to have a new owner or owners by Dec. 25, he added that the board has already received a few inquiries.

The full statement from the Kitchener Panthers organization is below.