This is oh so predictable: Oakland A’s president Dave Kaval will lead a group of team leaders to Las Vegas next meet to gauge interest in a new ballpark for the franchise, as debate over a new Oakland waterfront facility continues.
We’re at a turning point in negotiations over a massive $12-billion mixed-use makeover of a Howard Terminal waterfront site that would feature a new A’s ballpark. The A’s informed city officials in late April that they wanted a decision on a proposed term sheet before the City Council takes an annual summer break; soon after that MLB granted the A’s permission to discuss relocation with other municipalities. Yesterday we did a deep dive on what the A’s are proposing in terms of one of the largest redevelopment projects in U.S. history.
And eager to talk: officials in Clark County and Las Vegas, who have spent heavily on NBA and NFL facilities in the last few years and are in discussions regarding a downtown development sporting an MLS stadium. Right now all the talk is conceptual, though in reality there is a limited number of power players in town (tourism officials, Clark County officials) that could make a $750-million or so new domed ballpark happen in term of public funding. From the Las Vegas Review-Journal:
The A’s are hoping to discuss the possibility of a new ballpark being built in Las Vegas or the surrounding area that would be a private-public partnership, much like the one that resulted in the Raiders moving to Southern Nevada and 65,00o-seat Allegiant Stadium before the 2020 season. The domed facility cost $2 billion to build, with $750 million of the cost offset by a Clark County room tax.
Also to be discussed, according to sources: Whether the ballpark would need to have a dome or retractable roof to offset the Las Vegas heat during the summer when the crux of games would be played.
As for the location of the new ballpark, it’s probably too early to say. According to the sources, the opportunity to join the Raiders and the NHL’s Golden Knights in a new facility in the resort corridor would be intriguing from the standpoint of attendance and might appeal to the tourism industry. Instead of one football or hockey game, a ballpark on the Strip could attract visitors for a three- or four-game series.
That corridor is on the southern end of the Strip; T-Mobile Arena is at Tropicana and Las Vegas Boulevard; Allegiant Stadium is to the south, at Mandalay and I-15. But expect talk about a new ballpark in Henderson or Summerlin, where Las Vegas Ballpark is located, to pop up as well.
MLB in Las Vegas is an issue that pops up every few years, whether it’s a 2019 dream about a new ballpark in Henderson or Steve Stone working on a covered ballpark behind Bally’s.
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