SANTA CLARA – Had the 49ers’ new parking regulations dictating been in place a decade ago Rusty Fachner and Jose Castorena’s friendship probably would have never started.
The pair of 49ers fans almost came to blows the first time they met, fighting over a coveted parking spot at Levi’s Stadium.
Instead of brawling, cooler heads prevailed. Fachner and Castorena decided to park next to one another instead.
“From then on, for the last 10 years. Now, we celebrate birthdays, Christmas,” said Fachner, who lives in the Central Valley and commutes from Escalon every game day. “This is my family. This is my other family. It went from possible fisticuffs to I love this guy like my brother. Seriously.”
But before Monday night’s season opener between the 49ers and the New York Jets, the two men and their families could not continue that tradition.
While Castorena parked his 49ers decal-covered van – bought from Fachner – in one spot, his buddy from Escalon was forced to park in another area of the lot as an early tailgater.
Castorena and Fachner were just two of the hundreds of fans affected by the 49ers’ recently implemented parking lot regulations.
The 49ers recently contacted fans to alert them of a new “directed parking” policy, in which vehicles were directed to specific parking spots. This was a marked change from before when drivers could pick any spot on a first-come, first-served basis.
“It sucks. It sucks! That’s the only way you can explain it,” Castorena said. “It sucks because we’ve been doing it for the last seven years.”
San Francisco 49ers fan Albert Vann, from Fresno, chats with other fans while sitting in his motorized chair outside of Levi’s Stadium before the New York Jets game against the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara, Calif., on Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
According to a page on the Levi’s Stadium website, the new parking procedure is intended to minimize traffic congestion and maximize the number of parking spots available to fans.
“Safety is our top priority, and while we want to ensure all guests at Levi’s Stadium are able to enjoy themselves, tailgating guidelines are in place to protect the safety of all guests and staff,” a spokesperson for 49ers told the Bay Area News Group on Wednesday.
To do this, the 49ers are reducing the number of early tailgate parking passes handed out to fans, who have traditionally barbecued and hung out in the Levi’s Stadium lot long before kickoff.
Charles Morton and his family were among those adjusting to the new rules. Morton, a San Francisco native, said he didn’t have many issues since his family arrived together.
But as he gripped his “pre-victory cigar” and watched his nephew Kishon Lockett flip franks and patties on the Niner-red grill, Morton noted that larger groups would be affected the most.
“The biggest thing now is you have to come together,” Morton said “I think that’s the big thing. It is a little annoying because people pay a lot of money for these season tickets, and people want that experience, you know what I’m saying?”
Castorena believes the new rule was created to appease those who were paying for the most expensive season tickets.
“I think what they’re worried about is the people that are paying all that money for those suites when they’re coming in 30 minutes before they have to be here,” he said. “That’s who they’re worried about.”
Another new point of emphasis revolved around noise levels, with the 49ers attempting to limit the volume of music.
It was noticeable.
For Pennsylvania native and longtime 49ers diehard Luis DeJesus, his first-ever tailgate in the Bay Area sounded like a murmur compared to the parking lots of Philadelphia.
“Oh heck yeah, it’s quieter,” DeJesus said. “Oh my gosh, with the Eagles, they don’t play around over there.”
As Morton alluded to, Larger groups hoping to meet up suffered the most, while smaller groups tended to be less affected.
Marissa Coronado and her two friends lounged at a small picnic table set up behind their vehicle. She grew up going to 49ers games at Candlestick Park with a much larger crowd and foresaw some difficulties trying to replicate that under the new ruleset.
“We all came in just one car, so it wasn’t too bad today,” Coronado said. “But when we have a bigger crowd, we might have some issues.”
San Francisco 49ers fan Charlie Nastari, right, from South San Francisco, barbecues with his father, Chuck, center, and brother, Matt, far left, outside of Levi’s Stadium before the New York Jets game against the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara, Calif., on Monday, Sept. 9, 2024. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
A few yards away was Chuck Nastari – a season-ticket holder of 46 years – and his sons Matthew and Charlie.
Even though he was able to get into the lot an hour before the majority as an early tailgater, and he wasn’t trying to get multiple friends and family groups together, Nastari was still peeved at his lack of choice.
“We always park at the end. We come in and we park in the back so we can get out easy. They force you to come all the way up and they won’t let you park in any other lot,” Nastari bemoaned while wearing a half-white, half-red jersey. “I think you’re paying $50 for your chance to park here, they should have a little bit of flexibility.”
But even though Rusty Fachner, who had to walk across the lot to share a drink with his friend, was annoyed at the new rules, he believed things would get better for long-time tailgaters like himself.
“I’m very optimistic,” Fachner said. “We were anticipating the worst, but it actually turned out better than we thought.”
