Pro soccer team breaks ground for new arena in Oceanside - The San Diego Union-Tribune
Indoor arena with nearly 8,000 seats to open for 2023 season
Pro soccer team breaks ground for new arena in Oceanside. Sockers team players take their turn wielding the silver shovels at a groundbreaking ceremony Thursday for the indoor sports arena to be built at El Corazon in Oceanside. Indoor arena with nearly 8,000 seats to open for 2023 season. Elected officials, company representatives and soccer players gathered at El Corazon Park for a traditional shovel-turning ceremony Thursday to launch construction of the Arena CaliFino, the next home of the San Diego Sockers. "The Sockers have always been winners," said Craig Elsten, chief marketing officer for the Sockers. The 15-time Major Arena Soccer League champions play their home games at Penchanga Arena in San Diego. "The Sockers have also always been renters. We've always searched for a home of our own." The nearly 8,000-seat indoor sports arena going up near Rancho Del Oro Drive at the eastern end of Oceanside's sprawling 465-acre park is expected to be in full operation for the 2023 soccer season. "This is a franchise the city and the soccer community can be proud of, both on and off the field." Elsten said. "We truly believe this will be a place where North County gathers." All five Oceanside City Council members attended the ceremony, along with Colton Sudberry, whose family-run company is the primary developer of the residential and commercial properties in El Corazon, along with representatives of the builder Watkins Landmark Construction, numerous city staffers and residents. "This has been a dream," said Mayor Esther Sanchez in her brief remarks from the podium. "You will find that our community is a big, big supporter of soccer." El Corazon also is home to the SoCal Sports complex, on 52.5 acres leased and developed by Sudberry, which has 21 multipurpose sports fields used primarily for weekend soccer tournaments played by teams from throughout the Southwest. Also on the eastern end of property are the Ventana residential complex, the city's largest senior center, and a new aquatics center expected to open this summer. Additional residential and commercial development, including two hotels, is planned. Along with soccer, the 171,291-square-foot Arena Calfino is designed to host hockey, basketball and volleyball. As many as 6,367 seats will be available for sports events. Concerts could have as many as 7,922 seats by using some of the space on the main floor. The arena will have a 36,000-square-foot outdoor plaza designed to host events such as receptions, concerts and even theatrical plays. "This part . is really coming together," said Joan Bockman, board president of the Friends of El Corazon, a nonprofit created in 2012 as stewards of the park's development. "Now we have to make sure that the rest of it does," Bockman said. "We're looking forward to getting to the landscaping aspect of this, and really shaping the look and feel of the park." Large swaths of the El Corazon property remain undeveloped, including parts leased for temporary recycling and composting facilities. Get North County news in your inbox. Top stories from the San Diego North County every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Soccer arena hack