San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Transbay scrimmage over where Raiders will play
The question of where the Oakland Raiders will play next year is turning into a political football.
Oakland City Council President Rebecca
Kaplan is calling on her counterparts in San Francisco to put the brakes on the Raiders playing at Oracle Park next year. And some at City Hall are responding.
At the same time, Oakland Mayor Libby
Schaaf is pushing in the other direction, saying that while the Raiders pulling out of the East Bay is “petty,” she nonetheless supports San Francisco hosting the team for a year.
“I’m a regionalist,” Schaaf said, “I think the Raiders are being ridiculous, but the question
is, ‘Do you want them to play in London or here in the Bay Area, where the Raider Nation can enjoy one last season here in the Bay Area?’ ”
Kaplan wants the team to remain at the Coliseum for its final year as the Oakland Raiders.
The Raider tussle started a short while back when Kaplan began contacting San Francisco supervisors after learning the team had approached the Giants about a possible move.
The Raiders, who are seeking to relocate to their new Las Vegas stadium in 2020, withdrew from a tentative deal to remain at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum through the 2019 season the day after the city of Oakland filed the suit.
Shortly thereafter, Raiders’ management contacted the Giants about possibly playing six to eight games in San Francisco. Soon after, Kaplan began contacting San Francisco supervisors.
San Francisco Supervisor Hillary Ronen was one of the first to answer the call.
“The last thing Bay Area cities should do right now is undermine each other,” Ronen said.
New Supervisor Matt Haney — whose District Six includes the San Francisco Giants’ ballpark, which recently switched its naming rights partner from AT&T to Oracle — is on board as well.
“It’s pretty clear that the Raiders are retaliating against Oakland for filing their lawsuit,” Haney said. “I also have concerns about how we would deal with traffic and other impacts on residents that I represent.” Supervisor Aaron Peskin contacted the Giants and said he told Executive Vice President Jack Bair, “I hope you will take into consideration not only the South Beach residents but also the feelings of the city of Oakland ... and acknowledge their grievances.”
“I am appreciating the San Francisco supervisors who said ‘no,’ ” Kaplan said in a text when asked about her calls. “They will not support having the Raiders move to San Francisco for 2019, saying they don’t want to participate in the mistreatment of Oakland.”
And while San Francisco city officials have no direct control over either the Giants or the ballpark, the Port of San Francisco does own the land the stadium sits on.
Sources said the Giants were open to hosting the Raiders, whose other options include San Diego, London and Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara.
A quick look at the numbers also showed that the city would stand to make about $2 million in ticket taxes and parking revenue from the deal.
Schaaf said she had spoken to Giants President Larry Baer, and he assured her that the Oakland Coliseum workers would be used for game days at Oracle Park as well.
Neither the Giants nor the Raiders returned calls for comment.
First first: Newly installed Gov. Gavin Newsom isn’t the only family member with an office in the Capitol — his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom ,is moving in as well, with the title of “first partner.”
Siebel Newsom’s focus will be on gender equality and lifting up women and families. She will not be paid but will have an office just down the hall from the governor’s.
Outgoing Gov. Jerry Brown’s wife, attorney Anne Gust Brown, served as both the first lady and as special counsel, an unpaid job she also held when Brown was attorney general.
A mother of four young children, Siebel Newsom is best known as a documentary filmmaker and director of the Representation Project, a nonprofit organization that, according to its website, uses film and media for cultural transformation.
While she has no previous government experience, she was a close adviser to Newsom’s gubernatorial campaign. The Newsoms have decided to move into the governor’s mansion, located just blocks
from the Capitol.
Welcome aboard: New Oakland City Councilwoman Nikki Fortunato Bas got her first taste of public life the other day when she tweeted a picture of someone parked in her City Hall parking space.
“Ready to work at 9 a.m. and someone’s in my parking spot. TIP: if you want your rep to work on your tax dollar, respect our space so we don’t waste our time or you’re going to get a parking ticket,” she tweeted, with a photo of her reserved parking sign.
Bas has a long history of working with nonprofits, but she must have forgotten that cars are the enemy of many in Oakland, because faster than you can say privilege, the responses rolled in.
“Stop killing the planet and take the bus,” Cathy Reisenwitz tweeted back.
“There is literally nowhere in (District Two) that is not within easy bike commuting range to City Hall,” wrote Your Friendly Neighborhood Nihilist.
“It’s going to be a looong four years for you if this is what has got your goat on the first day of work,” added Not Laughing With Us.
When asked if she cared to comment, Bas responded by email, saying, “I look forward to talking with you about matters in Oakland in the future — best Nikki.”
San Francisco Chronicle columnist Phillip Matier appears Sundays and Wednesdays. Matier can be seen on the KPIX-TV morning and evening news. He can also be heard on KCBS radio Monday through Friday at 7:50 a.m. and 5:50 p.m. Got a tip? Call 415-777-8815, or email pmatier@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @philmatier
this year’s mayoral election.
Ronen rising: San Francisco Supervisor Hillary Ronen’s very public attempt to win the board presidency, and her less-than-graceful loss to Norman Yee, made for quite the show.
I can’t help but think that Ronen’s bid was intended to be the first step in a progressive challenge to London Breed’s re-election.
New life: After all the inaugurations were done, I spied Jerry Brown standing in the Capitol garage. “What are you doing here?” I asked.
“Looking for a ride,” he said.
I know the feeling. One minute you have a car and a police escort. Then the minute your successor says “I do solemnly swear,” all the trappings of the office fall away.
It is one of democracy’s greatest and most humbling experiences.
But hey, life goes on. Besides, you meet the most interesting people on the bus ride home.
Want to sound off ? Email wbrown@sfchronicle.com