Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority To Vote On Short-Term Leases For A’s, Raiders

November 24, 2013; Oakland, CA, USA; General view of O.co Coliseum during the national anthem before the game between the Oakland Raiders and the Tennessee Titans. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The Oakland Athletics would stay at O.co Coliseum for at least two more seasons and the Oakland Raiders would stay through the 2014 season under deals the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority is expected to vote on Monday.

The San Francisco Chronicle reported that, while neither agreement answers any long-term questions, it buys more time for a more permanent solution to be found.

The authority wanted to negotiate a five- to eight-year deal with the A’s, while the team wanted a two- to five-year agreement as a maximum.

The stadium authority bowed to pressure exerted by Major League Baseball, which threatened to move to AT&T Park in San Francisco if the authority didn’t do a two-year deal.

The A’s want to move to a new ballpark to be built in San Jose, but the San Francisco Giants are blocking any proposals, claiming territorial rights to the San Jose area.

A’s owner Lew Wolff is “fine” with a two-year agreement.

The A’s did win a major concession from the Coliseum board—under terms of the new deal, the baseball team will have more control over food services and revenue.

"“We negotiated the best deal we could at this particular moment,” said Nate Miley, president of the coliseum authority and an Alameda County supervisor. “We could win the battle and lose the war. But we’re looking at the greater good, looking to try to work out a deal to keep them here permanently.”"

The A’s will pay $1.75 million per year under the new deal, including a $250,000 fee that keeps the A’s in control of concession revenues and allows the team to pick the vendor.

The Raiders will pay $400,000 for their one-year lease and keeps half of the parking revenues. Parking fees will go up to $35 in 2014.

The Raiders have only one real option to remain in the Bay Area and that would be to share Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara with the San Francisco 49ers. That facility is scheduled to open next year.

Miley said that Raiders owner Mark Davis has pledged to keep the team in Alameda County, but new facilities for the A’s and Raiders could cost $1 billion or more.

With the Golden State Warriors still pushing to move to San Francisco in 2017, Oakland is facing the very real possibility of going from three major-league franchises to zero before the end of the decade.
The A’s have played at the Coliseum since 1968, when the franchise moved from Kansas City. The Raiders moved into the Coliseum initially in 1966 and played there through 1981, when the team moved to Los Angeles for 13 seasons, returning to Oakland in 1995.

The Warriors moved to the Oakland-Alameda Coliseum Arena in 1971 and changed the name of the team from the San Francisco Warriors to the Golden State Warriors with the move. They played there through the 1995-96 season, playing one year in San Jose while the arena was renovated. They returned to what is now known as Oracle Arena in 1997.