Late push: Oakland politicians, fans try to keep team in Bay Area.
Oakland mayor implores NFL to restart talks before voting
Raiders fans filled a wing of the Oakland Coliseum with a cacophony of chants, stomping and speeches Saturday morning, their last stand to keep the team in town before NFL owners vote on a Las Vegas relocation this week.
Mayor Libby Schaaf implored team officials to restart negotiations, something she said they have spurned for more than a year, publicly revealing for the first time details on her conversations with league officers and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell — and the near silence she’s gotten from Raiders owner Mark Davis.
“The land deal is as firm and as solid as it possibly can be without the Raiders at the table,” she said of Oakland’s counteroffer to build a new sports complex with mostly private funds. “That is all we’re asking of the NFL. Recognize your home market, recognize we have a viable plan, get the Raiders back to the table with us, and forget the temptations of Sin City.”
Stadium proponents in Las Vegas want to build a $1.9 billion, 65,000-seat domed stadium using a mix of financing from Bank of America, the NFL and $750 million in public money from a hotel room tax. Meanwhile, Oakland officials plan to construct a slightly smaller, $1.3 billion open-air stadium that would be financed with a $600 million loan from the Fortress Investment Group and a $500 million loan backed by seat licensing. An additional $200 million would need to be spent on public infrastructure improvements. The Oakland A’s would also get a new ballpark under Schaaf’s vision.
The mayor’s pitch: Oakland boasts a larger television market, fan base and public transportation system than Las Vegas. Plus, she said, with environmental impact and other reviews completed, the city is “shovel ready.”
“We have done every single thing that the NFL has asked us to do,” said Oakland City Council President Larry Reid, who’s worked on the city’s offer and who represents the district that encompasses the Coliseum. “Our deal is equal or better than what they have in Vegas.”
Devoted members of Raider Nation say they plan to divest from Bank of America and wage a campaign against the Vegas deal should owners seal it in the coming days. Most of all, fans say, they will refuse to travel to Nevada for games.
“Everybody knows Vegas is a transplant town,” said Cisco Ortega, 46, a member of the Black Hole fan club. “Who’s going to tailgate in Vegas? We come together as a big family here in Oakland. You can walk up and down the aisle, ‘Hey man, can I borrow your ketchup? Can I get a piece of foil?’ People hand it to you.”
Moving to Las Vegas — which wouldn’t happen for several seasons, until the stadium is completed — requires approval from 24 of 32 owners during their meeting this week in Phoenix.
Libby Schaaf, Oakland mayor “Get the Raiders back to the table with us, and forget the temptations of Sin City.”