Businesses reaping the benefits of ballpark crowds

Friday and Saturday marked the first weekend the El Paso Chihuahuas hosted games at Southwest University Park.

Downtown businesses near the ballpark say the crowds coming after the game exceeded their expectations.

“We were down here for work staying in El Paso and just thought we’d catch a great ball game,” said Detroit native Gabe Grijalva.

Grijalva says the clubs, bars and restaurants around the corner grabbed his and his friends’ attention.

“I think it’s great. There are a lot of things to do for the fans after they leave the ballpark,” said Grijalva.

Pint and Peanut Bar manager Julio De La Rosa said the crowds were better than expected.

“We were assuming we had a little bit of business, but not as much as we’ve had for starting games. So we are very grateful,” said De La Rosa.

The business has picked up so much,the business has future plans.

“We’re going to add a food truck here soon, within the next month. That way we can attract more people,” said De La Rosa.

De la Rosa said they were counting on the ballpark benefiting the business.

“We’ve been putting all our eggs in the stadium opening up,” De La Rosa said. “We’ve been really exited for the past 4 and a half months and it’s actually here. We’re excited for the Chihuahuas to be playing.”