Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said Monday he hopes news of an As stadium project will become public within the next year.
And while he didnt say so, it might be a site that hasnt gotten much play: a parcel of land up the road from the current Coliseum site at 66th Ave. and Interstate-880.
A source close to the As said the teams ongoing study of suitable sites is pointing to a parcel of land near Laney College if the baseball franchise decides that the Coliseum property is no longer an option.
The current Coliseum site remains the first choice, but the As are exploring options should the Raiders remain in Oakland and in the Coliseum. The NFL franchise, unable to come up with the funding to build in Oakland, is in active negotiations with Las Vegas about a move to the Nevada mecca. A decision from the Nevada legislature is due no later than by early 2017.
The Laney College site is adjacent to the Lake Merritt BART station and is just off I-880. Another site, Howard Terminal north of Jack London Square, has been touted by the city, but toxic cleanup costs and lack of access to BART and to the East Bay freeway system have made it something of a tough sell.
The Laney site isnt without its own issues. Space for parking would be at a premium and one plan at Laney would call for the college to tear down some of their relatively new athletics facilities.
Manfred, who said he is in frequent communication with team owners John Fisher and Lew Wolff, confirmed that the club was looking at options beyond the Coliseum and Howard Terminal. There is another site under some consideration, Brooklyn Basin, not far from Laney College, but on the other side of I-880 and on the Oakland Estuary.
Right now, the As ownership is engaged in an analysis on multiple sites in Oakland, Manfred said before Game 3 of the National League Championship Series at AT&T Park. I hope the first piece of news will be a decision as to which site will be the focus of their effort to get their plan and finances together.
He also said that baseball has a solid commitment from Oakland in the person of Mayor Libby Schaaf.
The Mayor in Oakland has made it clear to me that baseball is her first priority, Manfred said. She would like to keep both teams, but baseball is her first priority. And I think thats a good spot for baseball to be in.
There had been talk during the final decade of Bud Seligs time as Commissioner that the As might move to San Jose, but Manfred has repeatedly stressed that Oakland is the place he believes the As need to be.
I do believe that John Fisher and Lew Wolff are committed to the idea that they need to get something done in Oakland, he said. Ive told them. They understand that it is my strong preference that the team stay in Oakland. There is ongoing work. They have weekly calls that my office monitors in terms of the work thats ongoing, in terms of selecting a site and determining what the development opportunities are around those sites.
With Oakland and Alameda County unable to offer much in the way of funding, the Fisher-Wolff ownership group believes it can get the financing together privately to build a baseball-only stadium in Oakland. The Raiders have been unable to do that, hence their looking south, both to Las Vegas and, if that doesnt come together, to the Los Angeles area.
It is a complicated situation because of the obvious governmental limitations, Manfred said. Then you lay on the fact that you have a football team and a baseball team who desperately need new facilities, and then you lay on top of that the fact that they play in the same facility right now. They need to work out the logistics of that.
Manfred said he has spent more time with As in the persons of Fisher and Wolff than with any other team since he became commissioner two years ago.
Ultimately, however, he said its up to the As to get it done. MLB will offer support, but a new stadium in Oakland will have to be organically driven.
We will stay engaged with the As, Manfred said. We will not have someone here full time on the ground, Manfred said. The As project is one that will involve a very substantial commitment from local ownership and a result of that, it has to be a locally driven project. They need to find a project they think works for them and they need to push that project forward.
The Raiders are committed to pursuing a commitment to building a stadium in Las Vegas if they can secure $750 million in public funding. Nevada lawmakers are currently in a special session to discuss the economic impact of building a stadium for the Raiders.
Previously Raiders owner Mark Davis had supported the idea of building a stadium the present site, but was unable to come to a suitable plan with the city of Oakland and Alameda County.
A proposed project along with the San Diego Chargers in Carson fell through when NFL owners opted for a plan by the Rams Stan Kroenke. The Raiders have an option to join the Rams in the new stadium if the Chargers secure funding to stay in San Diego.
The Raiders are in Oakland this season after signing a three-year lease extension which the club can opt out of after each of the first two seasons.
