City strikes deal to sell its half of soon-to-be-former Oakland A's coliseum
The city of Oakland is selling its share of the Oakland Coliseum to a local Black development group for at least $105 million
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The city of Oakland is selling its share of the Coliseum — home to the departing Oakland Athletics — to a local Black development group for at least $105 million, Mayor Sheng Thao announced Wednesday.
The sale is not surprising after the A's announced last month that the Major League Baseball team will temporarily relocate to West Sacramento until its ballpark is built in its new home of Las Vegas. Fans are trying to enjoy the team's final year in the city of 400,000.
The property houses the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum and Oakland Arena, once home to the Oakland Raiders and Golden State Warriors, respectively. The NFL's Raiders moved to Las Vegas and the NBA's Warriors left for San Francisco in recent years, leaving professional sports fans in the East Bay Area desolate.
The money will help fill shortfalls in the city's budget, but city officials also say the sale to the African American Sports & Entertainment Group paves the way for a proposed sports and entertainment destination site, thousands of new affordable housing units and community benefits for historically neglected East Oakland.
