Cashman Field Hosts Its Last Event Oct. 17 Before 781 Lennar Homes Replace It

by Ryan Rose

What Happened

Las Vegas Weekly reported on Oct. 8 that Cashman Field's final event will be the Oct. 17 match between Las Vegas Lights FC and Lexington SC. It is the Lights' last home match of the season, so it doubles as fan appreciation night. The team is calling it "Farewell to Cashman Night," according to FOX5. The Lights have played at Cashman since 2018 and reached their first playoffs in 2024.

After that night, the venue is set to be torn down. Lennar bought the site from the City of Las Vegas for more than $36 million in a 2025 sale. FOX5 reported that the Las Vegas City Council approved the $36.15 million deal in March 2025, after the city picked Lennar through a competitive process. KTNV reported that the city sold Cashman in part to help recover money it lost in the Badlands golf course settlement.

The approvals have moved step by step. The Las Vegas Planning Commission approved land use agreements on Dec. 9, 2025, according to KTNV. Then on Jan. 21, 2026, the City Council voted to change the site's use from civic and public to high-density residential, as reported by LVSportsBiz. That vote gave Lennar four years to act. The site covers about 50 acres off Las Vegas Boulevard.

Here is the plan as it stands today:

781 homes on the Cashman site. City documents describe them as for-sale townhomes and detached single-family homes at "attainable" price points.
About 290 more units across the street on the former Grant Sawyer State Office Building land, where demolition started in July 2026.
Some commercial space and some open space, according to planning documents reported by KTNV.
No firm timeline. Las Vegas Weekly reported the timeline is unknown, and Lennar did not respond to its questions. FOX5 reported that home construction is scheduled to start after demolition and after the Lights finish their 2026 season.

No price range has been released for the homes. KTNV reported that the developer's attorney said the project is meant for first-time homebuyers, but that is as specific as it gets right now.

Why It Matters to Las Vegas Residents

Let's start with the feelings, because they are real. Cashman Field is where a lot of Las Vegans saw their first pro game. Families went to Stars and 51s games for decades. Kids ran up and down the grass hills. People got engaged there. In fact, Las Vegas Aviators president Don Logan told Las Vegas Weekly he proposed to his wife at Cashman. When a place like that goes away, it takes a little piece of the city's shared history with it.

Now the housing side. Las Vegas has a shortage of homes at prices first-time buyers can reach. City leaders have said so out loud. When the state started tearing down the Grant Sawyer building, Mayor Shelley Berkley said, "We need residential developments for all income levels." Ward 5 Councilwoman Shondra Summers-Armstrong said, "We urgently need more attainable housing in Las Vegas." Ward 5 is the council area that includes this part of town. More than 1,000 new homes in one spot near downtown is a real change in supply for that area.

For people who already live nearby, a project this size can shift a lot of things. New rooftops tend to bring new demand for groceries, restaurants, and services. During the planning review, one commissioner said they wanted a grocery store on the site because nearby residents have few options, according to KTNV. Another wanted open space like a park. Whether either one happens will depend on the final plans.

There are tradeoffs too. Construction means trucks, noise, and dust for a while. More homes mean more cars on Las Vegas Boulevard North and nearby streets. And the area loses a sports and event venue that has been a gathering spot for generations. The Lights still have not announced where they will play next season, so local soccer fans are waiting on that answer as well.

The location also matters. Cashman sits on the northern stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard, near some of the city's best-known local stops. Green pointed out to Las Vegas Weekly that the Las Vegas Science and Natural History Museum, the Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort State Historic Park, and the Neon Museum all opened along that corridor after Cashman. He described Cashman as a "capillary or vein" that tied Las Vegans to downtown. Swapping a stadium that sat empty most nights for homes where people live every day changes the feel of that whole corridor.

If you rent in the urban core and want to buy, this is the part to watch. "Attainable" does not have a set dollar meaning, and no prices are out. But a for-sale project aimed at first-time buyers, close to downtown jobs, is the kind of thing many renters have been asking for.

Background and History

Cashman's story starts in 1947. According to UNLV history professor Michael Green, who spoke with Las Vegas Weekly, the local Elks built the first version and called it Elks Stadium. It was later renamed for James Cashman, a well-known local businessman who also helped bring the first PGA golf event to Las Vegas. The field hosted Helldorado Days rodeo events. It was also home to the valley's first pro sports team, the Las Vegas Wranglers baseball club, which played there from 1948 to 1952 and again from 1957 to 1958.

The field kept collecting firsts. It hosted a heavyweight boxing match in 1955. In 1964, it held the city's first pro football game, a charity game between the then-Oakland Raiders and the Houston Oilers. The ballpark most locals remember opened in 1983 after a $26 million investment by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. It had 9,334 seats. The Las Vegas Stars won league titles there in 1986 and 1988.

Inside Cashman Field during a Las Vegas 51s game against the Iowa Cubs in July 2008, showing the grandstand and infield

The 1990s were the high point. Big League Weekend brought major league spring games to town every year. The attendance record of 15,025 was set at a 1993 game between the Chicago White Sox and Chicago Cubs. In 1996, construction delays in Oakland forced the A's to open their regular season at Cashman. The Beach Boys and Metallica both played shows on the field that decade.

By the 2000s, after the Stars became the 51s, the old park was wearing out. Logan described electrical and plumbing problems and an air conditioner that failed in the middle of summer. He told Las Vegas Weekly it had become "more expensive to rehabilitate Cashman than it was to build a new place somewhere else." The LVCVA handed operations to the City of Las Vegas in 2017. The last pro baseball game was played on Sept. 3, 2018, when Pete Alonso hit a walk-off two-run homer to beat Sacramento. The team moved to the new $150 million Las Vegas Ballpark in Summerlin and became the Aviators in 2019. The Lights kept the lights on at Cashman from 2018 until now.

The land across the street has its own backstory. For years, state workers filled the Grant Sawyer State Office Building. FOX5 reported that Gov. Joe Lombardo directed state agencies to move those employees to an office campus near Harry Reid International Airport, a move the state says saved $207 million. In 2025, Lombardo also signed the Nevada Housing Access and Attainability Act, which the state says is meant to cut barriers to building and invest more than $133 million in attainable housing statewide. When demolition began this summer, Lombardo said, "Rather than allowing this property to sit underutilized, we're helping create a community." Put the two sites together, and you get the more than 1,000 homes the state is talking about.

What Happens Next

The first date is easy: Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026, the final match. Kickoff time and ticket prices for that night are [NOT VERIFIED] at the time of writing, so check the Las Vegas Lights FC website before you go. After that, the order of events reported so far looks like this. The Grant Sawyer building demolition, which started in July, continues. Cashman Field comes down after the season ends. Then home construction begins once demolition is done.

What is still unknown matters just as much. Lennar has not shared a construction start date, a phasing plan, home sizes, or prices. Las Vegas Weekly reported that Lennar did not respond to its request for information. The January council vote gave Lennar four years to act, so the clock is running, but that does not tell us when the first model home opens. We also do not know yet exactly how much land will go to commercial use or open space.

Things to watch over the next year:

Demolition permits and a demolition date for the stadium itself.
Any site plan or subdivision map Lennar files with the City of Las Vegas, which would show lot counts, streets, and parks.
Whether a grocery store or other commercial use lands on the site.
An announcement on where Las Vegas Lights FC will play in 2027.
Price ranges, once Lennar starts marketing the homes.

Green also told Las Vegas Weekly he hopes the new development honors the field's history in some way, such as a display about Cashman. He called the area "an important corner" in the history of Las Vegas. That is not part of any approved plan we have seen, but it is a fair thing for residents to ask the city about.

Ryan's Take

I will be honest, this one stings a little. Cashman is one of those places that made Las Vegas feel like a hometown and not just a tourist town. But from a housing point of view, putting more than 1,000 for-sale homes near downtown is a meaningful move. Most of our new construction over the last 20 years has gone to the edges of the valley, in the southwest, the northwest, and Henderson. Green made the same point to Las Vegas Weekly: the city mostly grew southeast and southwest, not north. A big project this close to the core is different, and it could pull more investment up Las Vegas Boulevard North.

For buyers, my advice is simple: do not plan around a price that does not exist yet. "Attainable" is a goal, not a number, and builders set prices based on the market when they open. If you are a first-time buyer hoping this could be your shot, get your financing in order now so you are ready when sales start. For owners in the older neighborhoods nearby, new construction next door can help values over time, but it also adds competition when you sell. If you own near Cashman and are thinking about your timing, that is a good conversation to have before the new homes hit the market.

What You Can Do

Say goodbye in person. If Cashman means something to you, the Oct. 17 match is your last chance to sit in those stands. It is a Saturday, it is fan appreciation night, and it is the final event ever planned there. Check lasvegaslightsfc.com for kickoff time and tickets. Bring the kids, take a photo, and tell them about the games you saw there.

Follow the housing plans. The City of Las Vegas posts Planning Commission and City Council agendas online. When Lennar's site plans come up, you can read them and share comments, especially on things like a grocery store, a park, or traffic. If you live in Ward 5, your council office is a good place to ask questions. You can also ask the city whether some part of the project will recognize Cashman's history.

Get ready if you want to buy. If a new home near downtown sounds good to you, now is the time to check your credit, save for a down payment, and talk with a lender about what you qualify for. Nevada and Clark County have down payment help programs for some buyers, and rules change, so ask a lender which ones fit you. When Lennar releases prices, you will be able to act fast instead of starting from zero. And if you already own nearby, keep an eye on how this project moves. It is worth knowing how it may affect your home's value and your plans.

Have questions about how this affects your home or neighborhood? Reach out to Ryan Rose or text/call 702-747-5921 anytime.

Sources

Las Vegas Weekly: "Saying goodbye to Cashman Field, a pivotal place in the development of Las Vegas" (Tyler Schneider, Oct. 8, 2026)

FOX5 Vegas: "Farewell to Cashman Field: Las Vegas Lights gear up for final season at historic sports venue"

FOX5 Vegas: "Former State of Nevada office building to be demolished for new home development"

KTNV 13: Plans move forward on attainable housing development proposed for Cashman Center

LVSportsBiz: Las Vegas City Council changes use of Cashman site to residential to allow Lennar to build home development

Las Vegas Lights FC (schedule and tickets)

Photos: Las Vegas Weekly (1983 Cashman Field); Wikimedia Commons (aerial, CC BY-SA 4.0); Wikimedia Commons (2008 interior, CC BY-SA 3.0); Wikimedia Commons / DVIDS (fireworks, public domain); Wikimedia Commons (2008 exterior, CC BY-SA 2.0).