Alameda County, CA, officials are "aggressively
searching" for a manager to run the newly renovated
Warriors' arena after the team "backed away from" its plan
to take over operations of the facility in July, according
to Frances Dinkelspiel of the SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS. Deena
McClain, attorney for the Oakland-Alameda County Joint
Powers Authority, said that the Warriors "got cold feet over
the deal" when it became clear that the NBA's labor troubles
could affect the '98-99 season (S.J. MERCURY NEWS, 5/12).
Warriors attorney Robin Baggett said that, in addition to
being concerned about the league's labor problems, the team
is "also uneasy" because the Coliseum has not provided
complete financial reports on the new arena. Baggett: "The
(upcoming labor negotiations) are certainly a factor, but
it's almost like that gave us an excuse. We haven't been
able to get any numbers, and we have no idea what it takes
financially to operate (the Arena)." McClain called
Baggett's complaints about the financial reports "a complete
excuse on [the Warriors'] part" (OAKLAND TRIBUNE, 5/12).
MORE WOES: In S.F., columnist Glenn Dickey writes under
the header, "Politicians are Ruining Sports in Oakland."
Since politicians formed the Joint Powers Authority (JPA)
two years ago to oversee the Oakland Coliseum and Arena,
Dickey writes, "There is no policy, no direction, and a
Coliseum staff that was once very efficient seems totally
confused. ... It would be far better to dissolve the JPA and
go back to the old system" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 5/13).
