FOR MEDIA COVERAGE
OAKLAND ATHLETICS MEDIA ADVISORY
510/638-4900 • athletics.com • @athletics
Nov. 28, 2018
Oakland A’s to Host Press Conference at 10 a.m.
OAKLAND, Calif. – The Oakland A’s today announced their intent to build a next generation urban ballpark at
Howard Terminal. The A’s also plan to pursue a second project to redevelop the Oakland Coliseum site.
The A’s will host a press conference today, Wednesday, Nov. 28 at 10 a.m. with A’s President Dave Kaval, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, President of the Board of Port Commissioners Ces Butner, Oakland City Council President Larry Reid, and Alameda County District 4 Supervisor Nate Miley.
WHAT: The A’s will host a press conference to discuss plans to build a ballpark at Howard Terminal and to redevelop the Coliseum site
WHEN: Wednesday, Nov. 28, at 10 a.m.
WHERE: Oakland A’s Headquarters
55 Harrison St. – 3rd Floor
Oakland, CA 94607
MEDIA NOTE: Please check in with security on the 2nd floor
Dave Kaval will be available following the press conference for one-on-one interviews. Please check in with Erica George to schedule an interview time.
-athletics.com-
CONTACT: Erica George, 510.746.4419 egeorge@athletics.com
OAKLANDBALLPARK.COM
newballpark.org 
Looks like they went with Howard Terminal. And how far is that from BART? I wonder how much government money will be used to clean up the place.
Okay, been waiting for some time, if this happens in anyway shape or form
I will be thrilled.
Not to be negative or anything but, these renderings don’t take advantage of the estuary (water view), or Downtown Oakland at all (view), what a shame on both counts hopefully that will change a little as we near a finished product.
Cranes are nice though.
A’s proposal is a tad south of where Oakland proposed in their initial renderings.
Overall, we still didn’t get any answers to the many issues with the HT site. Hopefully new light is shed at the press event.
What this must mean is, there is no way to privately finance a ballpark at the current site, even though it has all the infrastructure, parking and BART are right there. If HT strikes out (a very real possibility), it’s going to be bye bye A’s.
No, what it means is if the A’s build at HT, they will need to develop the coliseum site to defray some of the cost they are not receiving from local government’s.
Which has been part of the plan the whole time, if they didn’t build at the coliseum.
Won’t happen…wonder what the A’s game is with all these unworkable plans. IMHO
Wrong… the A’s have the money to make this happen. Just look at the Warriors’ arena. All the opposition in the world wasn’t gonna stop that from happening!!
The A’s aren’t going anywhere !!! Sorry bitter San Jose lovers!
There are two types of A’s fans: Those who would have accepted San Jose if the A’s can’t get it done in Oakland, and those would rather see the team leave the Bay Area completely than go to San Jose. The latter may come to fruition if this HT plan is unable to leap the many obstacles in its path. Look how fast the Laney College plan evaporated.
And, a third… Those that desperately want anything in Oakland not to succeed in hope’s that MLB will let them try again in San Jose before they leave the Bay Area completely.
This is my forth time saying this eventually I may be wrong but not this time. Although maybe Laney college should host the museum of proposed A’s Stadium Artwork.
Eventually, hopefully you will be wrong.
Ballpark at Howard Terminal, develop Coli site. Sounds like what Quakes did with IStar property in South SJ. Following the same blue print; this could work.
The following is from https://www.mlb.com/athletics/oakland-ballpark/community-engagement/upcoming-events
***************************************************************************
New Ballpark Community Open House
Thursday, November 29 | 4:00 – 6:00 PM | 55 Harrison, 1st Fl, Oakland CA 94607
Join the Oakland A’s at our Front Office as we discuss the two sites for the new ballpark.
Please RSVP by sending an email to externalaffairs@athletics.com
***************************************************************************
I live near Sacramento, so I won’t be able to make it. Are any of you planning to attend? If so, could you provide us with a recap of what was discussed, what questions were raised and the response to those questions? Thanks in advance!
If you haven’t already done so, I encourage everyone to checkout https://www.mlb.com/athletics/oakland-ballpark especially the “Community Engagement” section where you can read the feedback from the communities of East and West Oakland. At first glance, it looks like the proposals for Howard Terminal and the Coliseum site is a decent attempt to meet most of those concerns.
If only jk-usa were here with us today…
(He’d probably be throwing it in Tony D’s face)
Hahahaha. 🤣😂😅
Poor tony😆 I think he’s over at skyscrapercity these days pushing for 400 footers at diridon 😆
Hey guys!! I heard my name mentioned. I’m back, after at least an 8 year hiatus. I check out the site now and then… and am obviously thrilled of the decision to build at the HT site. Where is that Tony D? He mowed lawns for Lew Wolff for a few years, who knows now. I would love to throw it in his face.. Tony, please come back and let’s talk about stuff.
Hey Rhamesis, why don’t you allow my comments to go through!!? Afraid of a little dissent on your blog? Some flashes of reality leaking in? Let this post through!!
Here’s the problem: I have no problem anymore with the A’s staying in Oakland! In fact, for me it’s become all about the Beautiful Game, as baseball is a dying sport in this country…it’s all about soccer, futbol! Besides, with Google and 20,000+ jobs coming to Diridon, I’m now a firm believer in the notion that everything happens for a reason.
My problem is this stupid choice of Howard Terminal. Simply put: how the heck are 34,000 fans supposed to get in and out!? A mile/mugging away from BART, terrible ingress/egress issues from 880, active/busy freight RR next to proposed ballpark…won’t even get into other infrastructure/environmental issues of HT.
Just build at the fricken Coliseum!! For me (and others), I can get on BART at SJ Berryessa Station and (much like today) get off at BART Coliseum, NO PROBLEM. Include the proposed office, retail and the rest of the Coliseum proposal with a ballpark and be done with it! Howard Terminal? Are you %$#@! kidding me!?
Hey Tony D, welcome back… I see you’re in rare firm, back to your small minded negativity. Okay, if they build it, they will come. Sure, there is many hurdles to overcome and the Coliseum will probably be a backup if it falls apart but I think it won’t. They’ll be a gondola from 12th st Bart to move 6k fans an hour, shuttles too, pedistrian bridges over the tracks.
re: And, a third… Those that desperately want anything in Oakland not to succeed in hope’s that MLB will let them try again in San Jose before they leave the Bay Area completely. …Absolute nonsense. There is no more San Jose site. Google is getting it. Now, it’s either a contaminated, wind-swept property in Oakland that’s a mile walk from BART, or Portland, which is making moves to lure MLB.
@ pjk
Re: “Absolute nonsense. There is no more San Jose site. Google is getting it.”
Just because that particular San Joes site is no longer available, doesn’t mean a certain segment of folks don’t fill the way I described.
I would venture to guess that many of them used to comment here regularly, and although it’s less these days (most likely since we may have an Oakland based solution), I believe there are still people that still fill that way.
The whole process has been difficult for all true A’s fans (concerned about this process), regardless of where they thought or wanted them A’s to be physically located in the Bay Area, and we have all expressed that frustration on some level or another.
While I would not disrobe you as one of those people, I would be hard pressed to recall a time when you expressed any reasonable hope or excitement that a solution that could be found in Oakland, perhaps I am incorrect but I cant recall a time.
I’ve been OK with an Oakland solution for a long time. The Warm Springs BART station brings the A’s even closer to me; it’s much easier to get to the Coliseum now than ATT Park. FWIW, I believe San Jose’s loyalty to the Giants and shrugged-shoulders attitude about the A’s make it an unworthy destination for the team. This includes seeing a San Jose city councilman wearing a Giants hat during the July 4th parade, right when the Giants were putting the screws to the city. The A’s-to-San Jose ship has sailed. It’s Oakland or Portland now.
Semi-related: Portland site acquisition announcement is today at noon. Glad the A’s are getting out in front of this so that (assuming the funding mechanisms are similar between PDX and OAK) PDX can focus on expansion.
Sad news. HT is far and away the worst option presented for the A’s going back to when this saga first started.
IMO it is short-sighted to put staying inside the Oakland city limits before the long-term viability of the franchise.
I guess like many others I am firmly in the “A’s fan not Oakland fan” camp. Just like true “Raiders fans not Oakland fans” will still follow the team after their move. (not me though… I’m a Steelers fan … haha) That doesn’t mean I want them to leave Oakland, that means I want what’s best for the team and if that means a move then so be it.
and to add… if a stay in Oakland is the only option I still feel a renovation or rebuild on the Coli site is the best option. Far and away the best access for fans.
I was really hoping Laney would work out, but am super excited by this new effort. Although I’d be thrilled with anything new, I must admit that I don’t love the jewel box design. I’d prefer the broadest possible vistas beyond the outfield (looking out over the estuary and the hills), but the rendering shows a substantially enclosed outfield, with a narrowed opening in center field. Kind of cool, but not what I would prefer, and I don’t think it would age as well as a fully open outfield…it also looks more expensive than is necessary. I’m guessing perhaps the enclosed nature of left and right field might help keep the stadium warmer/less windy, and it also accommodates the apparent pedestrian ramps that climb from beyond center field up to 1st and 3rd base “corners” of the jewel box. Also kind of cool, but I don’t think a ramp full of trees is worth enclosing the outfield and blocking off what would be some of most interesting and varied views in MLB. Of course, I’m not a world famous architect…just an A’s fan who has been following this for 10 years…but that was my first reaction.
There’s a “New Ballpark Open House” today in Oakland at 4p. Is anyone planning to attend?
https://www.mlb.com/athletics/oakland-ballpark/community-engagement/upcoming-events
Matt – see the previous post
I’m disappointed with the A’s decision to select HT as the site for the team’s proposed new ballpark. While I was not enamored with the Coliseum site either, I do believe it was the far better choice of the two final proposed sites. In retrospect, I believe that the far and away best ballpark site within Oakland would have been in the Laney College/ Lake Merritt area. This near downtown location would have had most of the necessary surrounding infrastructure already in-place. I believe that the main reason the proposed Laney ballpark site was rejected had little to do with the opposition from the Laney College students and faculty, and more to do with the overall political opposition to the perceived negative impact of gentrification on our urban cities, particularly in high cost of living metro areas such as NYC, LA, and the Bay Area. Many feared that a new A’s ballpark near downtown Oakland would have caused housing prices and rents to skyrocket and force many working class and poor Oakland residents out of their homes. On the other hand, the Howard Terminal area is located in a geographically isolated and relatively underdeveloped area of Oakland, and not perceived as a threat to Oakland City residents. IMHO, the A’s will be facing many issues to overcome, before they can get a shovel into the ground at HT. Even if a ballpark is eventually built at that location, there is no certainty that a new HT A’s ballpark will spur further development to the surrounding area, especially if they are not successful in building sufficient transportation infrastructure. My biggest fear is that the A’s will not be successful in getting a ballpark built within Oakland, and they eventually will be forced to move out of the Bay Area market altogether.
I have been a Howard Terminal skeptic for most of this history, mostly due to the anticipated costs of making the site work. But if the A’s can make it work financially, it can be a great location due to proximity to JLS and downtown. It’s not a terribly long walk down Broadway from BART — really just several blocks longer than BART to Oracle and shorter than BART to AT&T. That walk will take you along the edge of Old Town (a great neighborhood) and through the northern end of JLS. There are already plenty of places to eat and drink before and after games in the area. The only rough patch is going under 880, but that can be fixed with relative ease. I don’t mind walking if it’s enjoyable and that walk will be. For those that can’t make that walk (like my folks), I’m sure they can arrange shuttles, Uber/Lyft, bus routing, etc. There’s a long way to go and plenty of hurdles, but I’m excited about the potential here.
As A’s fan for 40+ yrs, wish them the best, but unless they project they’ll be rolling in so much TV $$ that actual attendance isn’t that critical, this concept seems like a long-term loser. The 2nd generation of Fishers have proven they’re not the sharpest knives in the drawer, but that’s often the way it goes in business
Looking forward to Marine Layer’s analysis. First impressions though:
1. The politics. Something about Kaval makes me think he knows what he’s doing. He knows he has to do Oakland a solid with the Coliseum site and can’t beg for too many freebies. He knows who he’s working with. We’ve tried his over and over before but never with him in charge. The Laney thing was a great dry run for him. He is ready now. Laugh if you want but I’m…confident.
2. The design. Not enough comments about it here. There are a lot of good elements. It turns its back to the wind like AT&T. I like the semi octagon shape. Like Philly but without the gratuitous asymmetry. The apparent public access in CF is awesome. Kicks ass compared to the little area in RF in SF. As a Sac Kings fan I guarantee you will love the elevated decks in the outfield. We have a ‘bridge’ at one end of the arena. It has a bar sponsored by Sierra Nevada. It’s always packed. A linear version of the Treehouse.
3. The design ‘600 lb elephant’ aka the ‘hobbit’ stuff. I scoured the BIG website when they were announced. I should have guessed this. They did a resort hotel in Sweden where the roof was a ski slope. I’m not a fan of it but I like the idea of a roof deck open to the public on non game days. That’s where your SF/ Bay views are, behind home plate. Maybe just without the…well, ski slopes in RF and LF.
4. The Coliseum. You know, they could have done the same design but with the new ballpark in the middle. Except, where the park is, there would be parking. And what would that do for the kids of East Oakland? The park was a great idea. And that’s not all. I am going to Rickey Field and let the memories wash over me, all the way back to my first game in ‘68. This plan has both a social conscience and a soul.
5. Howard Terminal. As far as I can tell, ballparks and arenas are now built around the mantra, ‘if you build it cool enough, they will park (or BART) and walk’. Every urban park is harder to access than the current Coliseum. But the walk is part of the experience. This plan doesn’t sweat the Embarcadero and tracks, it blocks them with trees and makes the fans walk from JLS along the water. It isn’t easy access and and it was never going to be. But what is easy for us as A’s fans anyway? Let’s back Dave up on this thing. It just might work.