The Hanford City Council on Oct. 21 approved an update to tournament and field fees at the Hanford Softball Complex, moving the city toward full cost recovery for the heavily used facility and directing surplus revenue to improvements at the softball complexes.

The council adopted the fee schedule as presented — including an increase in the per-field daily tournament fee and a higher field-prep charge — and approved an annual escalator tied to cost indexes. The motion passed 4-0; council set the new fees to take effect Jan. 1, 2026.

City staff emphasized the complex’s regional draw. “Usage is a very heavily used facility. The last 12 months, we had just under 178,000 visits,” said Austin Payne, the city’s sports coordinator, during the presentation. Payne and other staff described a year of nearly continuous tournaments (roughly weekends March through June and many weekends year-round), an average dwell time of about 165 minutes and an average of roughly 20 teams per tournament.

Why it matters

Staff framed the changes as necessary to cover rising operating costs — principally electricity for field lighting — while retaining the complex’s regional competitiveness. City calculations presented at the meeting estimated nearly $5.5 million in annual direct visitor spending tied to tournaments when factoring in local day trips and overnight stays, and staff said raising fees would move the complex from roughly 91% cost recovery to more than 100% with concessions and the proposed fees.

What the council approved and why

Council approved the recommended fee package as presented, including:
- Increasing the per-field, per-day tournament fee (from the current $80 toward the proposed $130 per field per day shown in staff materials),
- Raising the field-prep per-day charge (proposed roughly doubling from about $30 to $58),
- Keeping the light fee at the current hourly rate shown in staff materials, and
- Adding an annual escalator tied to CPI (staff recommended an index so fees keep pace with operating costs).

Staff noted a hard operating cost for lights: at the city’s current kilowatt-hour rate and with the Musco light controller accounting for actual hours, the hard electricity cost is about $8.79 per field per hour.

Facility operations and field ownership changes

Staff told council the complex — originally built in 1988 — is owned in thirds by the City of Hanford, Hanford Joint Union High School District and College of the Sequoias and operates under a joint-use agreement with the high school district. Beginning Jan. 1 the district will exclusively use and maintain Field 5 for Sierra Pacific High School varsity softball and assume day-to-day maintenance for that field. In exchange, the district will cede maintenance responsibility for other fields and make additional field space available to the city at the Hanford High / Tenth Avenue site: staff described inheriting two to three softball fields there and the potential to add a third field, increasing the city’s total fields from five toward seven or eight when accounting for Harris Street Ballpark.

That trade-off will allow the city to host large showcases that need five or more fields by permitting Field 5 from the district for short periods (tournaments) and by using the Tenth Avenue fields for some games. Staff cautioned the transition is underway but not fully implemented; a January 1 operational transition date was agreed for maintenance responsibility but additional permits, fencing, parking and concession arrangements will require further negotiation and formal agreements.

Parking, accessibility and upgrades

Council and speakers pressed staff on parking and ADA access at the Tenth Avenue fields, where street-side parking is limited and an off-site school lot may be needed for tournaments. Staff said options include marked school parking and improved walkways; the city has not yet identified final funding for improvements, lighting or concession upgrades at the new Tenth Avenue fields and will return with cost estimates.

Public comment and council direction

Public speakers, including members of the Parks & Recreation Commission and tournament organizers, generally supported fee increases for out-of-town tournaments but asked that youth leagues and local participants not be priced out. Staff said tournament directors retain gate and entry fees and that the city receives permit and facility fees in addition to concession revenue earned by the city-run concession operation.

Council provided two policy directions at the meeting:
- Adopt the proposed fee schedule effective Jan. 1, 2026, with an annual escalator;
- Direct staff to prioritize reinvesting any net revenue from softball operations back into the softball complexes (facilities, shade, parking, lighting and ADA improvements). Council provided consensus for that direction.

What’s next

Staff will implement the new fee schedule beginning Jan. 1, 2026, and return with details on permit terms with the school district, a funding plan for Tenth Avenue upgrades and cost estimates for any lighting or concession projects. Staff also plans to include the escalator as part of future annual fee updates.

Speakers quoted

“A usage is a very heavily used facility. The last 12 months, we had just under a 178,000 visits,” — Austin Payne, sports coordinator.

“This is a revenue generation for our, you know, youth sports, but I’d like to see it be put back into the softball complex,” — Mayor Payton (addressing reinvestment).

Sources and provenance

This article cites the city staff presentation and council discussion at the Hanford City Council meeting on Oct. 21, 2025. First related transcript block: “...move to item b, the Hanford Softball Complex to receive their annual report facility usage and tournament fee structure with proposed new tournament fees...” (transcript time 341.615–363.795). Last related transcript block used for vote evidence: “Motion passes 4 0” (transcript time 5231.225–5231.225).