Some Baltimore Ravens fans are unhappy with parking and tailgating changes announced just days before Sunday’s home opener, a game that also lines up with an Orioles matchup later that night.
Paul and Shellie DeLuca, longtime Ravens fans, said they were caught off guard when an email arrived telling them their Lot H pass had been revoked.
“(We) get an email saying, 'Your Lot H pass has been revoked, and we're going to put you in the Horseshoe Casino lot, where there is no tailgating,'” Paul DeLuca told WBAL-TV 11 News.
The team said the changes were tied to the logistics of managing two games in the Camden Yards Sports Complex on the same day. But for fans who build their Sundays around tailgating, the move landed hard.
“Twenty-five or 30 season ticket holders join us every week, and now, all of a sudden, I have nowhere to tailgate. That was a bit infuriating,” Paul DeLuca told WBAL-TV 11 News.
Bruce Reamer, who owns Salerno's in Eldersburg and has sponsored a tailgate event for more than 20 years, said he got the same notice and was left scrambling.
“We've already started the prep of the food and everything for this, brought in product and working it around the rest of our inventory, and now, we've got to figure out where we're going to go,” Reamer told WBAL-TV 11 News.
He said the short notice was especially frustrating.
“We spent a lot of money on these tickets, and I just feel like we're not treated well. It was a last-minute thing. Stuff happens, but there are just better ways to handle it, I think,” Reamer told WBAL-TV 11 News.
In a statement to WBAL-TV 11 News, the Ravens said the Orioles’ 7:20 p.m. game on Sept. 20 created unusual operational needs across the complex. The team said a small number of Lot H spaces were needed for Orioles staff working that game.
“As a result, we arranged alternate parking accommodations for impacted pass holders. We have also refunded parking costs for those affected and provided a $100 food and beverage stipend for them to enjoy at any Ravens home game this season. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate our fans' understanding.”
Still, some fans say the process should have been handled differently.
“We never even had the option to say, 'No, we don't want that,' or try to move us all to a lot that is a tailgate lot,” Reamer told WBAL-TV 11 News.
“We knew they were in a hard spot, but the timing of it is the big issue. Why five days before a game when this is four months after the schedule came out? It just makes no sense whatsoever,” Paul DeLuca told WBAL-TV 11 News.
WBAL-TV 11 News asked how many people were affected, but the Ravens did not respond.
The Maryland Transit Administration said it will add Light Rail express buses from Glen Burnie/Cromwell and Timonium Fairgrounds to Camden Station starting at 4 p.m. After the game, those express buses will leave from the Convention Center Light Rail stop instead of Camden Station.
The MTA also said fans can use the subway to Charles Center and walk to M&T Bank Stadium. CityLinks Navy, Yellow, Brown, and LocalLinks 51, 54, 73, 76, and 94 also run to or near the stadium.
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