After 43 seasons at Candlestick Park, 49er fans are saying goodbye to the beloved stadium in San Francisco, and warming up to their new 69,000-seat home at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara.
The 49er organization said that the $1.27 billion stadium is more than 80 percent completed.
While the extra 45-minute drive won’t discourage most game attendees from going to Santa Clara, ticket prices have led some Marin fans to make hard decisions.
At Levi’s Stadium, season ticket holders pay a one time fee ranging between $2,000 to $12,000 to have a personal seat license, allowing them to own stadium seats. Season ticket holders must also pay an additional annual fee ranging from $850 to $2,000 for the actual tickets. At Candlestick, season tickets ranged from $29-$295 per ticket, without an annual seat license fee. But to purchase a one time ticket for the new stadium, one must pay between $85-$350 per ticket.
Sophomore Dasia Caridad, granddaughter of a former Candlestick season ticket holders, said her family will not be able to get season tickets at the new stadium because of the expense.
However, other dedicated fans are paying for the dramatic price increase because of their love for the team.
“Growing up we were always taught ‘God, our country, and the 49ers’,” Brian McCullough, father of sophomore Shanna McCullough, said.
From now on, the McCullough family will watch every 49ers game from the 45-yard line seven rows up.
Brian McCullough has grown up attending 49ers games at Candlestick since 1962.
The McCullough’s have not only showed their dedication through ticket purchases. The family bought a modified 2011 silver Jeep Wrangler specifically for the purpose of tailgating. Before each game, the McCulloughs’ would tailgate with their seat neighbors, who had their seats for almost 25 years.
Candlestick Park originally opened in 1960 as a home for the San Francisco Giants, but after a few years of wear and tear the stadium needed some improvements. Instead of spending $50 million on a new football stadium, the city spent $16.1 million on Candlestick Park to make it a multi-use stadium.
Candlestick was notorious for being one of the worst stadiums in the NFL. Fans who sat in the stadium would have to sit through games at nearly freezing temperatures. According to The Weather Channel, the coldest temperature recorded at Candlestick Park was 24 degrees Fahrenheit in 1972.
In order to compensate for the notorious reputation of the 49ers’ home, the first ever collapsable field goals in the NFL were installed at Levi’s Stadium earlier this month to keep up with cutting edge technology from its Silicon Valley neighbors.
According to the United States Green Building Council, Levi’s Stadium will be the most eco-friendly stadium in the NFL. It is the only stadium in the NFL to achieve a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification for the stadium’s sophisticated technology to monitor energy and water use.
The accreditation was also made possible with the addition of a bike valet, solar panels, geothermal turf field, environmentally safe water irrigation system, and a “green” garden roof.
In addition to these architectural upsides, the stadium will have numerous recycling and compost stations.
The 49ers are also encouraging fans at Levi’s Stadium to use alternative methods of transportation to get to games, such as CalTrain and Amtrak, parking at one of the designated 49ers parking lots will cost fans $40 dollars a spot.
Levi’s Stadium will open on August 2 and the San Jose Earthquakes will play the first game on the field. In 2016, Levi’s Stadium will host the 50th Super Bowl.
