"We're one week in and we've been able to do some really cool improvements thus far," City Manager Georgeanne White said.
On Tuesday, crews completed installation of new bases and pitching mounds on the park's baseball fields. The city said renovations are expected to take several months, with safety-related projects taking priority as tournaments are scheduled in the coming months.
The improvements are budgeted at just over $400,000.
"I think there was a lot of uncertainty from the users of the park about what would happen once the city took over. So, we are trying to make it as painless as possible," White said.
White said the city has not postponed any events scheduled under longtime operator Terance Frazier and his nonprofit, Central Valley Community Sports Foundation, and plans to continue honoring them.
The city's takeover follows lengthy litigation between Fresno and the nonprofit. The dispute ended in June when a Fresno County judge ordered that the park be "restored to the landlord." An eviction notice is now posted at the facility's front gates.
In a statement to Action News, Frazier said, "I'm genuinely happy to see the City finally making the repairs we've been asking for since 2018. At the end of the day, the kids are the ones who win, and that's always been the mission of our nonprofit."
Admission to Granite Park is currently free, though White said that could change depending on the events being held at the facility.
"We're going to have to sit down with the tournament organizers and look at the financials of how their business model was operating out here to determine if that is something that we're going to be able to offer long term," White said.
The city plans to select concession vendors through a competitive process. White also confirmed that alcohol will continue to be served during tournaments as part of an effort to maintain the experience visitors have come to expect at Granite Park.
"We have just been trying to maintain the status quo in the operations, so that there's not too much shock to the system and they know what to expect when they come to Granite Park," White said.
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