Shut out at Peralta College ballpark location, A's interested in Coliseum site
OAKLAND – The Oakland A’s have occupied the Coliseum for 50 years this season, and now they want to buy their East Oakland home.
Team President Dave Kaval on Monday proposed purchasing the 120-acre site – all of it, including Oracle Arena – in a deal he said would secure the land even as the A’s continue to pursue Howard Terminal.
“We are trying to make sure we retain as many options as possible so we can remain ‘rooted in Oakland,’ ” Kaval said Monday. “The focus now is that we own our own home and we control our own destiny.”
“This is going to once and for all put the public financing debt of all the complexes behind the city and county,” Kaval said. “It’s an amazing gesture.”
In a letter sent to Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and the Alameda County Board of Supervisors on Sunday, the A’s proposed to pay $135 million and asked to enter into an “exclusive negotiating agreement” with the county and city, who own the property. Before the proposal was made public, county officials have discussed whether to sell its share to the city.
Oakland is facing the real possibility of having no sports teams at the Coliseum. Oracle Arena, left, and O.co Coliseum are seen in this aerial view over Oakland.
Currently the Coliseum site is home to three professional teams – the A’s, Raiders and Warriors. But the latter two franchises are short-term tenants in the process of building new facilities. The Warriors plan to open the Chase Center in San Francisco for the 2019-20 NBA season, while the Raiders intend to relocate to a $1.8 billion domed stadium in Las Vegas in 2020 or 2021.
The site has also not been the A’s first choice. In December, the Peralta Community College board of trustees decided to end talks with the team over a proposed stadium near Laney College. The team’s intention to build a downtown ballpark on a 13acre site abutting Laney College and near Lake Merrit
faced immediate push-back from residents and activists that a Laney College instructor characterized as “landslide opposition.”
Several Oakland leaders have said the Coliseum is the most logical location because environmental review for a new stadium has already been completed and for its proximity to BART, Interstate 880 and the Oakland International Airport. However, city leaders have scoffed at previous attempts by developers to purchase the property from the city and county.
Mayor Schaaf supported a waterfront site at Howard Terminal that Kaval believed was too cold and presented too many transit hurdles. On Monday, Kaval said the team is still pursuing Howard Terminal but the transportation and environmental problems there remain.
“I’m excited to work with the A’s in their commitment to stay in Oakland and build a privately financed ballpark,” Schaaf said in a statement issued Monday morning. “We look forward to reviewing, analyzing, and considering the offer.”
It remains unclear if the city would still have to pay for infrastructure costs. In 2016-17, the failed attempt to developed a new stadium for the Raiders at the Coliseum included having the city pay about $200 million in improvements. Kaval declined to discuss infrastructure costs, saying it is too early in the process, but the team is committed to privately financing the ballpark.
He said the team arrived at the $135 million figure because it covers the current debt at Oracle arena and the Coliseum, from taxpayer bonds used to renovate the facilities, including adding Mt. Davis, to lure the Raiders back in the 1990s.
Debt at Oracle stands at about $55 million while Coliseum debt remains at about $80 million. However, by the time the Warriors depart for San Francisco, the total debt at both facilities will be around $105 to $110 million, according to sources.