Will Cal Expo last in current form? New priorities could shape State Fair site
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Cal Expo reported $2.6M in losses in 2024 and $1.9M so far in 2025.
- X Games, horse racing and Sacramento Republic FC departure raise questions about site use.
- Cal Expo explores new revenue ideas while investing $22M in infrastructure.
Former Gov. Ronald Reagan stood in front of California Exposition on the first day of July 1968 and delivered a speech previewing the future home of the State Fair just before its opening.
“Since the first California State Fair was organized in 1854, Californians have teamed together to create the nation’s richest, most populous and most productive state,” Reagan regaled. “They’ve done so much so well, that a revolutionary new concept in state expositions and fairs, a concept like this California Exposition, was a natural development.
“The California Exposition is answer to many dreams. It is the result of much planning and much hard labor. It will allow industries and businesses and professions of this state of 20 million people to display their wealth and wares.”
Fifty-seven years later, while California’s population has doubled in size, Cal Expo may no longer be the same entertainment engine and California showcase Reagan had in mind.
The COVID-19 pandemic reshaped public events, money has been lost — and shifts in thinking are required for the long-term future of 350 acres of the capital region’s most prime real estate, decision makers say.
“I’ve kind of gone away from just focusing on the fair,” said Tom Martinez, CEO of Cal Expo and the State Fair.
Cal Expo has reported losses of millions of dollars in operating costs in recent years. It comes while prominent tenant Sacramento Republic FC is planning to leave Heart Health Park, located on the southwest corner of the property, for a new soccer stadium in the downtown Railyards they hope to open in spring 2027, though the logistics of that deal have hit snags in recent weeks.
There’s also been the cancellation of horse racing limiting the use of its race track and Michelob Ultra Grandstand with a maximum capacity of 22,000 on the east side of the property. Horse racing has ended at nearly every small fair throughout the state due largely to operating costs, smaller purses, reduced attendance and heightened awareness around animal safety.
The industry throughout California was jolted by the closure of Golden Gate Fields near Berkeley, which closed permanently in 2024 after 83 years of operation.
“It was basically the nail in the coffin,” said Martinez, who has been CEO since 2023. “The revenues were declining before that, but they really declined after. As such, I have tried to illustrate to the board of directors how it’s better we go a different direction in the future. The board is looking at different opportunities for that piece of property.”
The planned X Games that were initially scheduled for this summer were postponed, with little public reason given beyond what X Games organizers called a “strategic pause,” and no official announcement has been made for 2026. The initial agreement between Cal Expo and the X Games last December said they would be held in Sacramento for the next three summers. The opening of a new water park on the property to replace Raging Waters has been delayed until 2027.
And the popularity of Cal Expo’s signature event, the State Fair, has seen its popularity depend heavily on the weather. The high-water mark for attendance came when more than a million people passed through the fair in 2001. Last year, attendance was reportedly 649,000, a 10% increase from 2023.
This year, attendance numbers are expected to increase again, Martinez said, this time because of the cool temperatures compared to July 2024, one of the hottest months on record. Those tallies won’t be officially compiled until after the fair’s 17-day run is completed this Sunday, though Martinez estimated 50,000 people pass through the gates on the fair’s busiest days.
Martinez said there has been discussion about moving the State Fair to the spring or the fall to try drawing bigger crowds in cooler weather. But no changes are imminent.
Still, Cal Expo reported losses of roughly $2.6 million in 2024 and $1.9 million midway through 2025, according to public documents, which raise questions about the financial challenges and operational viability.
Cal Expo making improvements with eye toward future
Martinez said roughly $22 million has been invested toward improving roofs and air conditioning systems throughout the property, which weighs heavily on the balance sheets but could have long-term payoffs.
The board at Cal Expo is evaluating new uses for the horse racing grandstand and Heart Health Park, where Republic FC continues to host home games, which they hope will lead to better revenue streams in the future.
“I think there’s opportunities now to do even better,” Martinez said. “I’m not only optimistic, but I’m excited. I wish I could share more. ... We have some outstanding developments we’re working on that I will believe will be great for the next few generations that come to Cal Expo.”
The California Department of Food and Agriculture, which works with Cal Expo to put on the State Fair, echoed that sentiment.
“I am encouraged by the energy and willingness of Cal Expo general manager Tom Martinez and his board of directors to continually explore new ideas for year-round revenue generation,” said department Secretary Karen Ross in an email, “and that will help sustain important physical assets at Cal Expo that provide a number of critical emergency response functions, in addition to their role in the State Fair and other events.”
Martinez said he’s focused on three strategic areas for investment: improved security through more resources invested in a police presence during the State Fair; bringing big-name artists and performers to the concert stage; and reaching future generations of fairgoers with attractions designed for children.
“It’s about the kids, trying to educate and entertain them so they want to come here, and then they bring their kids here and so on,” Martinez said.
Roughly $2.25 million was spent on concert acts for this year’s fair, Martinez said, including Ludacris, Bret Michaels, Air Supply, Tesla, Cypress Hill, Brothers Osborne, En Vogue, O.A.R. and others.
Alternative uses for Cal Expo
Sacramento Councilmember Roger Dickinson, who represents the district that includes Cal Expo, said he hopes the site can continue to operate the State Fair and as a host to numerous events and conventions amid the changing landscape.
But Dickinson also acknowledged that there are questions about the future.
“That may necessitate looking at reconfiguring the State Fair itself, to some extent,” Dickinson said. “If that’s not feasible over time, then I think it will be incumbent on the Cal Expo board of directors, specifically the state, to look at whether it makes sense to retain the property as a state entity or state asset on a subsidized basis.
“... I mean, everyone sees it from a different angle, so they got a different perspective on it. But I think you’ll find there are lots of contrasting views about Cal Expo just for that reason.”
The financial struggles of Cal Expo have not been secret to business owners and local power brokers. Ideas for alternative uses for the property have been floated in recent years, ranging from film production studios to a large-scale youth sports complex.
Martinez noted that while alternative ideas have been floated for Cal Expo, there’s been no discussion of the state selling the property. Any new uses would likely come in the form of leasing space from Cal Expo, which remains an enterprise agency that doesn’t receive money from California’s general fund.
“So the board will look at those ideas if they’re credible,” Martinez said. “And if we think that it fits with our mission of bringing people together to celebrate the best of California and be there in times of emergencies. Now, a movie production studio, I don’t know how profitable that would be for Cal Expo, but I think it would be good for the local economy if that were the case. There’s some benefits to bringing that industry here, whether it’s at Cal Expo. But we’re going to listen to other projects.”
Cal Expo operates independently, though the governor’s office appoints nine of the 11 people on the board of directors. The other two are assigned by the Speaker of Assembly and Senate Rules Committee. The CEO is then appointed by the board. Cal Expo’s only responsibilities with the state are to host the annual State Fair by showcasing wine, food, agriculture and culture from all 58 of the state’s counties.
Cal Expo has also been available for emergency services like during the pandemic when it was the state’s largest COVID-19 testing center and vaccination center.
“Cal Expo and the California State Fair are beloved traditions in our state,” Elana Ross, a spokesperson for Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office, said in a statement. “Making sure they are fun, safe, and successful is our priority, and I support the work of the Board in executing those goals.”
Trade soccer for baseball?
Dickinson said Cal Expo has also been talked about as a possible site for a new sports stadium, perhaps if Sacramento lands in the running for a permanent Major League Baseball team, either through expansion or if the Athletics’ plans for a new ballpark in Las Vegas fall through.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that Cal Expo would be a site put on everybody’s list as a potential location for a stadium,” Dickinson said.
While Sacramento has been floated as a possible expansion candidate for MLB in the coming years with the Athletics playing their games temporarily in West Sacramento, no formal plan for a new full-time stadium has been made public.
But Cal Expo would make sense as a large-scale stadium site, in theory: the property includes roughly 15,000 parking spaces and sits just across the Sacramento River from East Sacramento and midtown.
This story was originally published July 24, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
