With the Sonoma County Fairgrounds emerging as a potential site for a future professional soccer stadium in the region, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors and the fair board will meet this month to consider entering into negotiations with United Soccer League to study the idea.
The proposal calls for a stadium with a minimum of 5,000 seats that would anchor an commercial district with restaurants, shop and other development.
Supporters have said the project could be transformative for the North Bay’s largest city, injecting new money into the local economy and boosting government coffers. The bid comes amid the demise of horse racing at the fair, a longtime staple canceled this past summer as the sport’s footprint shrinks across Northern California.
Still, questions remain about how such a deal would be financed and who would operate the soccer stadium.
United Soccer League, one of the country’s largest professional soccer organizations, has spent the past several months conducting a market feasibility study and courting potential partners.
The group proposes establishing a men’s and women’s soccer team in Santa Rosa and has eyed the fairgrounds as a potential location for its development given the site’s size and central location.
County supervisors and the fair board will meet on Oct. 17 to receive an update on USL’s proposal and weigh entering formal discussions with the league. The meeting starts at 9:30 a.m. at Saralee and Richard’s Barn at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, 1350 Bennett Valley Rd.
The proposal would provide the county and fair board a chance to reimagine a large part of the 200 acre property.
“The fairgrounds has been a gathering place for our community for nearly 150 years,” Supervisor Lynda Hopkins, chair of the Board of Supervisors, said in an email blast to community members. “A multi-purpose stadium could bring energy, jobs and investment to the site.”
She added that as discussions continue, it’s important the county “move forward in a way that reflects community values and keeps the Sonoma County Fair at the heart of it all.”
United Soccer League operates in more than 200 communities, overseeing three men’s leagues, including the second-tier USL Championship league, two women’s leagues, including the Division 1 Super League, and professional development and youth teams.
The organization had long looked at expanding the league into Santa Rosa. League officials pointed to several factors that would make the area a good market, including a well-established network of youth soccer, limited professional soccer competition and a local fan base made of a younger, diverse population that could support a team long-term.
In March, USL and the city of Santa Rosa signed an exclusive agreement to explore the idea.
Since then, representatives held a community meeting and survey and initiated talks with other potential partners, including Sonoma County and the fair board.
USL officials in the summer began conducting site analysis, while the city examined potential stadium designs and operational structures and reviewed similar USL projects.
Throughout the process, the fair has been identified as an ideal location.
Situated near Highway 101 and Highway 12 just outside downtown Santa Rosa, the fairgrounds includes show space and barns tied to the junior livestock auctions, an arena for concerts, rodeo and vehicle exhibitions, a large grass area used for the midway and music festivals, plus the horse racing grandstands and track encircling a nine-hole golf course and driving range.
It’s owned by Sonoma County and operated by Sonoma County Fair and Exposition, a nonprofit organization.
Fair CEO Matthew Daly said in April the organization was excited about the possibility and open to considering other uses for the site, especially as the end of horse racing leaves the fate of the track in limbo.
The ideal site would support a stadium with a minimum of 5,000 seats that meets the league’s field and other playing requirements and could support year-round programming such as concerts and events, league officials have said.
A proposal likely would include a hub with restaurants, shops and other development that could draw game-day visitors and keep them there all day.
As part of the exploratory phase, the city and USL will conduct market feasibility studies and analyze demands for residential, hotel and retail uses around the stadium. Some of that initial data is expected to be released this month, the city said in an Oct. 1 update.
You can reach Staff Writer Paulina Pineda at 707-521-5268 or paulina.pineda@pressdemocrat.com. On X (Twitter) @paulinapineda22.