After an attempt to convert part of the Fairmont San Francisco into condos was derailed by objections by the local hotel workers union, the owners of the hotel, who include Lew Wolff and Saudi Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, have decided to sell the property.
The hotel was bought in 1998 by the same group as part of a portfolio of Fairmont hotels located in SF, Dallas, and New Orleans. The group also included members of the Fisher family and former Pepsi/Apple CEO John Sculley. Wolff and Prince Alwaleed bin Talal had partnered previously on the Fairmont San Jose.
Wolff said this about the state of the hotel:
“We think it’s time for a single owner to revisit the future of this area,” Wolff said. “Maybe they actually can do better than we did. They certainly couldn’t do any worse.”
The pro-Oakland crowd might take this as a sign that Wolff may be willing to sell the A’s if he found himself at a similar dead end. I wouldn’t bank on it. Compared to owning a hotel, owning a baseball team is a couple orders of magnitude more prestigious and expensive, with the potential payoffs that much greater as well. Wolff is in the process of divesting himself of hotels acquired over the past 20 years, there will always be other hotels and opportunities to buy. An MLB franchise? Well, the collective of owners is called The Lodge for a reason. Teams aren’t commodities. The general public typically doesn’t remember hotel owners. They most definitely remember team owners for good or ill.
newballpark.org 
Yeah, we only wish he’d sell this once proud franchise. This is the lowest point I’ve felt with this club since 1979, and that was beyond pathetic.
@jk-usa – I felt much worse about the 1993 A’s. The fire sale was beginning and the A’s were nearly 30 games under .500 by the end. It was clear the dynasty was over. Worst of all, Haas owned the team and couldn’t do anything about it because he was so far in the red.
They signed McGwire to a 5 year contract and Sierra as well. Sierra flamed out, and McGwire was hurt all of the time in 93. In 1994 they had a terrible April, but rebounded and were only a few games out when the strike hit. after the strike in 95 they were still trying to contend, they traded for Tartabull and drafted Ariel Prieto because they thought he could come to the big leagues quick and he did, he just wasnt very good. I remember Gammons coming to the Coli just to watch, then they sold in 95.
My point is that the Haas family continued to spend money after 93 just not very effectively. It was the Schott and Hoffman group that turned things around by insisting that the A’s build through the farm system. Just like Bill Neukom
JK: Sell to who? Somebody willing to also plunk down $500 mill of their own money for a new ballpark or somebody who would move the team out of the Bay Area? Which do you think is more likely to make an offer?
Have to agree with ML, for now. I felt much worse about the A’s in the mid-90’s than I do today. That said, if things keep going the way they are I might get to jk’s POV eventually. As for Wolff selling, I too think the most likely buyers at this point would be ones that aren’t going to keep the team in Oakland. No one wants to buy a team with the expectation of having to build a $500 million dollar stadium in Oakland (maybe more if Oakland can’t get land together which seems likely).
Left the game last night at 10:35, and was in San Jose city limits in 28 minutes. Me and a green truck with an A’s logo both flew to San Jose in no time. Believe it or not, it’s not that far. Hmmm. But what a bummer of a game. What happened to our pitching?
A’s would have had a shot at winning the division in 1994 since the 1st place Rangers were 10 under .500 when the strike wiped out the season.
@pjk: “$500 mill of their own money for a new ballpark” — who said it needed to be their *own* money !?! Last time I checked Maritz, Wolff, & Co is very good at investing/leveraging other people’s money.
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But on topic: this would definitely free up some cash.
re: Left the game last night at 10:35, and was in San Jose city limits in 28 minutes.
…to the Oakland-only crowd, San Jose might as well be San Antonio (a likely destination for the A’s if San Jose is forever banned from hosting MLB)
re: who said it needed to be their *own* money !?! Last time I checked Maritz, Wolff, & Co is very good at investing/leveraging other people’s money.
…the strong corporate support in the South Bay, beginning with the $4 mill a year from Cisco, makes a privately built ballpark viable there. No such likelihood in Oakland. Lots of public $$ would be needed and Oakland doesn’t have it to offer.