15 thoughts on “How much is the Coliseum complex worth?”
Making the debt the basis for calculating the value is unbelievably short-sighted and stupid. The debt is a sunk cost. The property itself is worth what it is worth.
This is not true. A sunk cost is money already spent that cannot be recovered. Future debt payments can be recovered through other means (like the sale of the property in this case).
The short answer is the land is worth what you can get for it.
But, there are so many other factors. If the land was a blank slate it would be worth much, more, because any developer (even the A’s), would have to factor in tearing down the existing structures, It’s not like any one is in the market for sports facility’s that date back 50 years.
Anyway, whatever the value is Oakland/Alameda County have to give a home town discount to the A’s, I mean I guess they would like to keep the one team they have remaining. On top of that they are going to have to help with some development/transportation funds, tax backs, etc.… It’s not like they are going to help with the building cost, so they have to find other ways to kick in.
After everything they have put the A’s through, and what a future A’s home/development could mean to the site they really should give it to the A’s for free, but I will settle for 250 mil.
What ever the market will bear. Still, it’s really the last remaining pieces of land that large in Oakland, so the City and County should consider it a jewel when demanding a price. As much as I want the A’s to have it, they’ll never outbid some tech company. I hope the city considers more than just dollars when selling it.
The land is worth whatever the market would bear (factoring in the cost of demolition) minus the value of the debt the A’s would be assuming. How much the city/county should sell it for is a different question. My view is that they should be willing to cut the A’s at least as much of a deal on the land as they were willing to cut the Raiders.
Here is how I see the valuations for the Coliseum property; there is about $135M in debt for the existing buildings on the site. I was going to do a break down of the removals of exciting items on the property (coliseum, power lines, water and sewage line relocation), but I cannot find good numbers on it. But, to say the 120 acres is worth $135-150M is a fair guess.
According to Chris Dobbins in the Chronicle, the latest appraisal is $200M. So. I’d say that’s the floor for what you could sell it for, which would recover debt and leave plenty for whatever else the City/County wanted to do with the ~$65M left over.
You are probable correct…But, after all the struggle we have experienced with this, one could say that any positive news was huge.
So, they probably settle on the coliseum site, because that’s the most reasonable, and hopefully build it out with all the bells and whistles add significant development around it, we can call it A’s town…I can die in peace, and, the church said amen.
newballpark.org 
Making the debt the basis for calculating the value is unbelievably short-sighted and stupid. The debt is a sunk cost. The property itself is worth what it is worth.
This is not true. A sunk cost is money already spent that cannot be recovered. Future debt payments can be recovered through other means (like the sale of the property in this case).
The short answer is the land is worth what you can get for it.
But, there are so many other factors. If the land was a blank slate it would be worth much, more, because any developer (even the A’s), would have to factor in tearing down the existing structures, It’s not like any one is in the market for sports facility’s that date back 50 years.
Anyway, whatever the value is Oakland/Alameda County have to give a home town discount to the A’s, I mean I guess they would like to keep the one team they have remaining. On top of that they are going to have to help with some development/transportation funds, tax backs, etc.… It’s not like they are going to help with the building cost, so they have to find other ways to kick in.
After everything they have put the A’s through, and what a future A’s home/development could mean to the site they really should give it to the A’s for free, but I will settle for 250 mil.
What ever the market will bear. Still, it’s really the last remaining pieces of land that large in Oakland, so the City and County should consider it a jewel when demanding a price. As much as I want the A’s to have it, they’ll never outbid some tech company. I hope the city considers more than just dollars when selling it.
Hopfuly the city will consider weather they want to be a MLB hosting city or not.
There are far less of those then tech company’s.
The land is worth whatever the market would bear (factoring in the cost of demolition) minus the value of the debt the A’s would be assuming. How much the city/county should sell it for is a different question. My view is that they should be willing to cut the A’s at least as much of a deal on the land as they were willing to cut the Raiders.
Also, welcome back ML. I hope you’re return to posting means all is well with you. You were sincerely missed.
“your”
Here is how I see the valuations for the Coliseum property; there is about $135M in debt for the existing buildings on the site. I was going to do a break down of the removals of exciting items on the property (coliseum, power lines, water and sewage line relocation), but I cannot find good numbers on it. But, to say the 120 acres is worth $135-150M is a fair guess.
I’d say somewhere between 135M and 200M. So maybe about 150 or 175M.
According to Chris Dobbins in the Chronicle, the latest appraisal is $200M. So. I’d say that’s the floor for what you could sell it for, which would recover debt and leave plenty for whatever else the City/County wanted to do with the ~$65M left over.
Apparently Libby Ascaaf wants to enter into an ENA with the A’s for both the coliseum and the howard terminal, if true that’s huge.
It’s true but I don’t know how huge it is.
I’d gamble that the HT part of this is Schaaf’s request and it’s about optics heading into an election.
Okay, Jeffrey.
You are probable correct…But, after all the struggle we have experienced with this, one could say that any positive news was huge.
So, they probably settle on the coliseum site, because that’s the most reasonable, and hopefully build it out with all the bells and whistles add significant development around it, we can call it A’s town…I can die in peace, and, the church said amen.
*Schaaf