10C
Date: March 4, 2025
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Aram Chaparyan, City Manager
John La Rock, Community Services Director
By: John La Rock, Community Services Director | [email protected] Subject: City Manager & Community Services – Approve Purchase of Tickets and On-field Experience for 2025 Torrance Dodger Day and Provide Direction on Game Date Selection and Ticket Resale to Torrance Community Members. Expenditure:
Not-to-Exceed $50,000 (General Fund).
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation of the City Manager and Community Services Director that City Council:
1. Approve the purchase of 1,050 tickets to a 2025 Los Angeles Dodgers game; and
2. Approve the purchase of a VIP on-field photo op; and
3. Provide direction in selecting the game date for the ticket purchase; and
4. Provide direction to authorize staff to resell the tickets to Torrance community members at a subsidized cost.
FUNDING
Funding is anticipated to be available in the fiscal year 2025-26 Community Services operating budget.
DISCUSSION
The City began a Torrance Dodger Day program in 2001. The City procures game tickets and resells them to interested members of the community at a discount. For a 2025 Torrance Dodger Day, staff has researched ticket availability in the Upper Reserved section of the stadium on the first and third base sides of the field. Game times and ticket locations are subject to change. There are three home games recommended for consideration based on availability, the per ticket cost and weekend scheduling:
OPTION A (vs. Nationals) OPTION B (vs. Brewers) OPTION C (vs. Blue Jays) June 22 (Sunday) 1:10pm July 20 (Sunday) 1:10pm August 10 (Sunday) 1:10pm $38.00 @ 1,050 tickets $40.00 @ 1,050 tickets $32.00 @ 1,050 tickets $10 handling fee $10 handling fee $10 handling fee
$39,910 Total $42,010 Total $33,610 Total
City Council
March 4, 2025
3 2
9 It should be noted that the August 10 game may coincide with the Little League Friendship City games, during which one or more youth baseball teams from Japan visit Torrance and play international friendly games with players from Torrance. An approximate allotment of 50 Dodger Day tickets could be held in reserve for the visiting team(s). In the event the program does not commence in 2025, the reserve tickets could be released for public sale.
In addition to the game day tickets a pre-game VIP experience for an on-Field group photo in the outfield is $500, for a maximum of 30 persons. The group photo is a branding and media opportunity benefiting the City.
LA Dodger game tickets are purchased via a DocuSign Terms Agreement and must be paid in full via a credit card. No purchase orders or other methods of payment are accepted by Major League Baseball/LA Dodgers.
Staff recommends that Your Honorable Body provide direction on the amount of subsidy for ticket resale to the public. The City cannot resell the tickets for more than face value, but can sell at less than face value. The table below provide discount options for each game and ticket price:
Game vs. Nationals 6/22 vs. Brewers 7/20 vs. Blue Jays 8/10 Full Price $38.00 $40.00 $32.00
20% Discount $30.40 $32.00 $25.60
30% Discount $26.60 $28.00 $22.40
40% Discount $22.80 $24.00 $19.20
50% Discount $19.00 $20.00 $16.00
For transportation, staff recommends that ticket holders be informed of the LA Metro LA Dodgers Express bus service. Guests can board at any of the following South Bay stations: Slauson, Manchester, Harbor Freeway, Rosecrans, or Harbor Gateway Transit Center (Bay 9). Buses run every 20 minutes starting 2 hours before game time, with the last bus leaving Harbor Gateway Transit Center at game time. Buses drop off behind right field. Service back to the South Bay picks up at the same stop after the game. Return service begins after the end of the 7th inning, with the last bus departing 45 minutes after the final out or 20 minutes after a post-game event.
Free parking is available at Harbor Gateway, Rosecrans, Harbor Freeway, Manchester and Slauson stations on a first-come, first-served basis. The Dodger Stadium Express is free to ride; regular fares apply on all other connecting bus and rail service. If ticket holders choose to travel to the game on their own, they would be responsible for parking and any related costs.