A’s taking tarps off Coliseum upper deck.
In nod to fans who want ‘whole stadium’ open, A’s scrap 3rd-deck covering
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A’s president Dave Kaval said that in response to fan suggestions, the A’s will be taking down the tarps that have covered the third deck and will make those seats available for all games for $15 for the rest of the season.
“I was able to watch a lot of games when I was in business school and as an undergrad,” Kaval said during a break from directing the removal of the tarps. “I wanted to see to it that
everybody can have that kind of experience.”
During the 10-game homestand beginning Friday, the A’s will donate half of the proceeds of third-deck ticket sales to Oakland Promise, an initiative that aims to triple the number of college graduates from Oakland within the next decade.
Kaval went to Facebook Live to make the announcement at 10 a.m. (PDT) and did it from the third deck, where the tarps had already begun to come down. He said he and his team would be working the rest of the day on removing the tarps.
The tarps that cover “Mount Davis” above the outfield will remain in place. The third-deck tarps did have the years of the A’s nine World Series championships, and they will be coming out as part of the makeover.
“We have banners flying in Championship Plaza saluting those nine titles,” Kaval said of the area between the Coliseum and Oracle Arena that the team has converted into a gathering place for fans before, during and after games (except when the Warriors are playing next door). “They will be coming off those tarps, but the numbers saluting our Hall of Fame players are still in place on Mount Davis.”
The move will increase the capacity of the Coliseum by 12,103 seats beginning Friday. That first tarp-less homestand includes three games each against Houston and Texas and Rangers and a fourgame set against Seattle.
“The best fans in baseball deserve the opportunity to experience the whole stadium, so we have decided to take off the tarps on the upper deck,” Kaval said.
The connection between the A’s and Oakland Promise is something the club has been working on with Oakland Mayor Libby Schaff and her staff. The vision of Oakland Promise is to ensure as a community that every child in Oakland graduates high school with the expectations, resources, and skills to complete college and be successful in a career of his or her choice.
What should the A’s do n with the tarps now? Read columnist Gary Peterson’s suggestions.