Moving

A’s stadium proposal in Oakland has setback, talks ‘shifting rapidly’ in Vegas

Jeff Chiu/AP

Oakland Athletics’ Yusmeiro Petit, bottom center, pitches against the Boston Red Sox during the eighth inning of a baseball game in Oakland, Calif., Saturday, July 3, 2021.

A subcommittee for a cross-jurisdictional body that governs the San Francisco Bay voted today against removing port authority protections for a proposed site for a multibillion-dollar commercial district that includes a proposed waterfront stadium for the Oakland Athletics, a setback that could help the baseball team ultimately relocate to Las Vegas.

The San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission’s Seaport Planning Advisory Committee voted 6-3 against removing port priority use at the proposed Howard Terminal site, which would transfer maritime use of the site from the port authority to proposed $12 billion development which would also include a 35,000-seat waterfront ballpark for the A’s.

The commission, however, will hold a final vote on the matter June 2, likely determining the fate of the project. A’s President Dave Kaval said the development can’t move forward without approval.

“It’s very disappointing that an unelected body would choose a parking lot over a privately-financed ballpark and development including housing, which is sorely needed in the Bay Area,” Kaval said. “But that’s exactly what they did. And those are some of the challenges of doing business in California in the Bay Area.”

“The site has to be removed from the sea port plan for the project to move forward. And their recommendation was don’t allow a ballpark and the development to be built there (sic).”

Justin Berton, a spokesman for Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said in a statement the mayor agrees with the subcommittee’s decision.

“We believe the Port of Oakland and its leadership knows its best capacity, and we agree with their detailed analysis that shows they can continue to thrive and grow port activities well into the future, as well as support a transformational, world-class development that will open 18 acres of public parks along the waterfront and create more affordable housing and thousands of great union jobs for the region” the statement said.

The A’s remain on what Kaval is calling a “parallel path” in negotiating with partners in both Oakland and the Las Vegas valley to build a new stadium to replace the outdated RingCenter Coliseum. The team has played there since 1968, and it is considered by many to be among the worst stadiums in the big leagues.

Kaval said the organization within the last week have submitted another offer to purchase a site for a similarly-sized stadium here in Las Vegas. He did not specify where, stating only the bid was made to a private entity.

Kaval, however, did hint that should the team move to the valley, it is “focused like a laser beam” on building a stadium along the resort corridor, and that the team has made several offers at various sites.

“We have these handful of sites in and around the resort corridor, and we’re working very diligently both with resort operators/casinos as well as landowners to kind of get to a final site,” Kaval said. “We think that provides the best balance for locals and tourists, and that’s going to be critically important.”

Kaval said the nature of talks in both Oakland and Las Vegas are “moving quickly” and that he hopes to announce the location of a new ballpark sometime this summer.

“(We’re) hopeful that we can get to the point where the different parties would be comfortable, maybe even announcing it,” Kaval said. “I think that’d be a big moment to announce the site and show people what the vision of that is.”

Major League Baseball in May gave the A’s the green light to seek a new home and permission to speak with entities in other cities about possible relocation after deeming the Coliseum unfit to play. The team’s lease with the stadium expires in 2024, while Kaval and other team executives have made several trips to Las Vegas since.

On Feb. 17, Oakland City Council voted 7-2 to certify the environmental impact report for the Howard Terminal plan, at the time clearing a key hurdle for the city to keep the team in the Bay Area. Kaval said at the time the vote was a “necessary step” to continue negotiations, while also working on securing a spot in Southern Nevada.

The A’s have narrowed down a list of “about three or four” stadium sites in Las Vegas, Kaval said in February. Media reports in December indicated the A’s submitted a bid to build a stadium at the site of the Tropicana hotel, which is owned by Bally’s Corp.

“All of that is happening at a deliberate pace, a pace that balances the need to make progress with the importance of being thoughtful and smart,” Kaval said.

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