Santa Ana Planning Commissioner Sean Mill scored us a pair of VIP tickets at yesterday’s Chivas USA soccer match against the Dallas team. So we drove up the 405 Freeway and arrived early at the Home Depot Center in Carson to take it all in.
The Home Depot Center is something else. The parking is shared with Cal State Dominguez Hills. There is plenty of parking and security. The lot was quite clean and everyone was well behaved and having a good time.
You might recall that the NIMBY Usual Suspects here in Santa Ana are screaming about trash and diapers, with respect to the prospect that the Chivas USA might move here to Santa Ana. But Mill and I didn’t see ANY trash, or diapers. What we saw was a lot of families having an awesome time.
There were a lot of Latino families at the game but we also saw a lot of Caucasians too. That made sense as the Chivas USA squad is majority non-Latino and the Chivas Girls are pretty diverse too.
There was a Chivas themed family area that was really busy with vendors including State Farm Insurance, Sprint, Juanitas and other big companies. They were giving away all sorts of stuff including hats, t-shirts, water bottles, etc. There was also a number of stages with live music and dancing.
The Chivas Girls signed free posters and the Chivas mascot ran around taking pictures with the kids and their parents. The whole event was one big community celebration.
The VIP section we sat in featured hosts and servers that brought food right to you. We also won two seats each for a future game, from State Farm Insurance.
The Chivas USA team also celebrated AIDS Awareness Day, as you can see in the picture above. They are also hosting a Diversity Day at an upcoming game – they appear to be huge supporters of the gay and lesbian community. Again, the Usual Suspects haven’t even noticed that.
As you will see in the picture slideshow embedded above, the Chivas USA games are fun for all and there are no security issues whatsoever. The NIMBY Usual Suspects are wrong again, as usual.
The fact however is that the Chivas USA may never come to Santa Ana. They play in a beautiful facility in Carson. The only reason I could see them leaving was if we could guarantee to sell out the games. I think we could do better than Carson, where the Chivas USA play second fiddle to the Galaxy, but it is still a long shot. That has not of course stopped the Usual Suspects from their usual screaming and racist attacks. Par for the course…
Great pictures
Thanks Cook. You should check out the Home Depot Center. The game was very entertaining.
http://www.milestone-rc.com
Funny how the Irvine resident was a cheerleader for building an NFL stadium in Irvine but attacks the potential building of a MLS stadium in Santa Ana.
http://www.theliberaloc.com/2010/11/23/what-would-we-call-ocs-nfl-team-in-irvine/
admin,
Those opposing Chivas USA moving to Santa Ana keep referring to Willowick Golf Course as “historic”. As the resident expert on Santa Ana can you find out what makes this golf course historic? St. Andrews and Augusta are historic. Am I to believe Willowick is in the same league as them?
Going to the Chivas USA game Saturday night was a real eye opener. The Chivas USA folks really know how to create a festive, fun, family atmosphere. The interactive Chivastown was great and there were smiling faces everywhere.
All this talk about Chivas USA coming to Santa Ana is a bit premature as I don’t believe that any official talks/negotiations have actually taken place. For those folks already standing in opposition and those demanding answers about how this will be paid for I say take a deep breath and wait until we have some facts and details. This is not something that will happen over night and there will be plenty of time for public input.
I agree with “admin” when he says that Chivas USA may never come here. The facility in Carson is amazing and has to rank among the tops over any soccer only facility in the country. With that being said, should Chivas USA choose to relocate to Santa Ana it has the potential to be a game changer for our city and our residents.
If we were able to replicate in Santa Ana the environment I saw Saturday night at the Home Depot Center it would be something special for Santa Ana and Orange County as a whole.
Somebody ought to tell Lutz and company that Richard Nixons dead. Move on, it’s not 1974 anymore (or even 1994) old man.
You two bozos got everyone all riled up about Chivas when its obvious your first trip to Carson was this weekend. Now you say it’s not going to happen! Did Pulido tell you to shut up?
You should see the comments at the Blue blog Sean. The comments suggests you did soemthing illegal in getting free tickets
Who got people riled up? The Usual Suspects are the ones holding rallies to oppose Chivas USA. At least Art and Sean went to Carson to get a first hand look. How many of those opposed to Chivas USA coming to Santa Ana do you think have ever attended a game there?
Tom,
Exactly. We went to see the Chivas so we could see if the lies being spread by the Usual Suspects were true. Turns out these folks are just a bunch of uninformed witless racists.
Did you see that blowhard Tardiff/Junior over at the Voice of OC(EA)?
He suggests that Mater Dei has as much of a right to Eddie West as the other PUBLIC schools do because of “longevity”. What kind of crafty bullshit is this guy selling?
You know the Mike Tardiff’s of the world (Richardson, Lutz, Franklin and company) have not been to a SAHS game since the sixties! This fool tries to play coy. Add to this arguement, Lutz’s comment that it’s all about the kids…………