Chukchansi Park, formerly known as Grizzlies Stadium, is a city-owned baseball stadium in Fresno, California, United States, completed in 2002 as the home for Minor League Baseball’s Fresno Grizzlies. The first game was on May 1, 2002. Located in downtown Fresno, it was designed to anchor the area’s rehabilitation, as other commercial development is planned in the Central Business District Loop. The ballpark is also used for music concerts, motocross events, and high school football.
Since opening its gates to the public for the first time on May 1, 2002, Chukchansi Park has earned a reputation as one of the most beautiful and modern Minor League sports facilities in the nation and is one of the most used and versatile venues in Central California’s San Joaquin Valley.
The 10,650-capacity stadium (not including hospitality areas and standing room) in the heart of Downtown Fresno features incredible sight lines from every seat, as well as providing dramatic views of the downtown skyline and nearby Sierra Mountains, weather permitting.
The stadium, designed by Populous, features a semi-irregular field shape with dimensions 324′ down the left field line, 385′ in the left center, 400′ in the center field, and 335′ to the right field foul pole.
The ballpark is unique among Minor League facilities in its four-level, three-tiered design. Each of the stadium’s seven street-level gates enters the main concourse level. Terrace-view seating, The Kodiak Club presented by KY Farming, Terrace Level seating, and the Fresno Grizzlies Executive Offices are located on the second level. The top tier comprises 33 luxury suites and the ballpark’s press and broadcast facilities.
History
Upon the 1998 arrival of the Grizzlies minor league baseball team in Fresno, a group of developers proposed building a stadium in downtown Fresno as a permanent home for the club. There was extensive debate over how much the City of Fresno, CA would contribute to the project. Ultimately the stadium was built entirely with public money and then leased back to the owners of the Grizzlies for 30 years at $1.5 million per year.
The stadium was designed by Populous, the firm responsible for many of today’s sports stadiums, like Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Petco Park, Comerica Park, and Oracle Park in San Francisco. The $46 million facility seats 10,650, with left-field dimensions of 324 ft (99 m); center field, 400 ft (120 m); and right field, 335 ft (102 m). The ballpark features 600 club seats and 32 luxury suites. Junk Removal Fresno
In September 2006, Chukchansi Gold Resort & Casino, affiliated with the Chukchansi tribe, announced it would be the premier corporate sponsor for Grizzlies Stadium in a 15-year, US$16 million deal.
In August 2011, the stadium served as a filming location for Parental Guidance. During the game, Billy Crystal threw out the first pitch in character and later appeared on the Grizzlies radio broadcast for an inning.
Check out other attractions like Fresno Art Museum