Granite Park in Fresno adding 12 new soccer fields this summer

Soccer players will soon have 12 new fields to play on as the second phase of the Granite Park expansion nears completion.

The new fields will stretch out over 10 acres and include four full-size soccer fields and eight smaller-size fields. Some of the fields will have lighting immediately while the others will get lights in the near future. There will also be mini concession stands.

"We have heard from so many people that we need more soccer fields in the city," said Terance Frazier, chief executive officer of TFS Investments and developer of the project. "So we are giving the people what they want."

The soccer fields are the latest additions to what is becoming a major revival effort of the once-promising complex of sports fields on Cedar Avenue, just north of Dakota Avenue.

Launched 13 years ago, the park was conceived as a regional destination for sports, restaurants and shops. But the developer went bankrupt and the city got stuck with the property.

The park sat vacant for about a decade until Frazier and business partner TJ Cox proposed a $2.7 million plan to renovate the facility in phases. The first phase is done and includes three new ball fields. The second phase is the construction of the soccer fields that are expected to be completed by mid-August.

As part of the project, the city agreed to a 25-year lease and service agreement with the nonprofit Central Valley Community Sports Foundation. It will pay the foundation $150,000 a year for 10 years to help with programming, staffing and maintenance. Frazier serves as president of the foundation.

Eventually, Frazier would like to open a restaurant, indoor basketball and volleyball courts. He does not have a timeline of when the next phase will begin.

"We need to get soccer going and getting people used to playing in Fresno again," he said. "We need to take our time and perfect each phase before we move on to the next one."