As SF Deltas Prepare For Tonight's Game, Team Talks Parking, SecurityPhoto: San Francisco Deltas/Facebook
Walter Thompson
Published on March 18, 2017

Tonight, the San Francisco Deltas soccer team will take on Sacramento Republic FC at Kezar Stadium in a pre-season match; and at this week's Park Station community meeting, representatives of the Deltas briefed attendees on what to expect.

The team hopes to attract as many as 3,500 fans to tonight's home game, and say extensive plans are in place to minimize negative impacts on stadium neighbors, not just for tonight, but for the duration of the season.

Deltas Stadium operations and fan experience manager Michael Perlmutter said that depending on how well the Deltas perform this season, the team will play 16 to 20 games at Kezar. All of the games are scheduled for Saturday afternoons and evenings.
Capt. John Sanford, Jr. introduced the team's representatives. | Photo: Walter Thompson/Hoodline

“We encourage everybody to take public transportation,” said Perlmutter.

To manage traffic, the team has set up passenger loading areas on MLK and Kezar Drive and has created a designated pickup/dropoff zone on Frederick St. for ride-hailing vehicles. Fans who drive are being directed to park at the UCSF garage.

“We’re very sensitive to the community that lives south of Frederick Street,” Perlmutter said, “so we’re going to try to gear everything to the north side of the stadium.”

At least two parking control officers (PCOs) will patrol the area around Kezar “even if we only sell 50 tickets,” he added.

Perlmutter (center) briefed attendees on game-day logistics. | Photo: Walter Thompson/Hoodline

The plan, however, is to eventually attract 6,000 to 7,000 fans to Deltas’ games (Kezar Stadium has a total capacity of roughly 9,000 seats). Perlmutter said that the team will work with SFMTA to “reinforce public transportation” once these numbers are reached.

“As the numbers grow, we’ll add more [officers].” In addition to the PCOs at today’s game, the Deltas will have four to six Park Rangers from Rec and Park in the area, as well as seven SFPD officers.

Additionally, the Deltas have contracted with Admiral Security, a private firm that worked last year’s Super Bowl, to bring in 40 security guards.

The Deltas, which have a liquor license, will be vending beer and wine at tonight’s game; VIP ticket holders will have access to spirits. The soccer team’s regular season kicks off on March 25.