Group A re-teamed with various landowners as they reviewed potential stadium sites in the Las Vegas area, Howard Stutz and Tabitha Mueller report of the Nevada Independent. According to the report, A officials recently contacted landholders at multiple locations in the Vegas area that had previously been reviewed.
It’s a little surprising that A announced a land purchase and sale contract for 49 acres west of the Vegas strip three weeks ago. The Nevada Independent report shows that A’s are looking for alternatives such as backup plans. While the agreed-upon website still appears to be a top priority for the organization, it’s worth noting that they’re also exploring other options.
There seems to be at least some concern that A will not get legal approval for their plans to build a stadium at the site they purchased. So far, the club’s only deal has been to buy land. They have Are not completed a stadium agreement to set the stage for an official relocation. Indeed, they have yet to make a formal proposal for the Nevada legislature to consider. They have expressed plans for a 35,000-seat ballpark involving a $1 billion investment from the franchise outside $500MM as county-issued bonds paid in taxes related to the stadium project.
However, without a formal proposal for a legislative notebook, there is still some uncertainty as to whether the plan will get the green light. “We haven’t received anything specific about exactly what they’re looking for or what they want us to look at.,” a state senator told Stutz and Mueller last week. “So it’s hard to have conversations about exactly what we can or can’t do and time here is finite. … We’re only a few weeks away, so if there’s some sort of deal, it should come very soon.“
Although there is no sign that Side A is seriously concerned about the possibility of negotiations failing, it is clear that they will have to accelerate negotiations in the near future. The Nevada legislature remains in session until June 5, though it could convene a special session to resume negotiations over the summer.
Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao has announced that by the time Group A is involved in buying land in Nevada, she will stop discussing a possible stadium project in Oakland’s Jack London Square. She then left the door open to reopening talks, although it’s clear that A’s efforts for a Vegas venue would be in jeopardy if that happened at this point. There is no indication yet that Group A is considering locations outside of Nevada.
In any case, there is a clear target date for Team A to have a binding stadium agreement. A clause in the collective bargaining agreement requires the organization to have a formal agreement on the stadium by January 15 if it wants to maintain its status as a revenue share recipient. The A’s lease at the RingCentral Coliseum runs until 2024.
