Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf Re-Examines Waterfront Site As Possible Home For A's

Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf is "quietly moving ahead with plans for a new waterfront home" for the A’s, according to Matier & Ross of the S.F. CHRONICLE. Schaaf’s idea is to "sell the A’s" on the waterfront property "that has underwhelmed the team’s ownership from Day One." The A’s "would prefer a new stadium to themselves" at the O.co Coliseum site -- but Schaaf "wants 'an urban, walkable ballpark' that’s closer to downtown." The waterfront site is "one of five sites the city suggested in a 21-page report it recently handed to the team." For Schaaf, the "likely best bet" is still the 50-acre waterfront site, "which has the advantage of being owned by the Port of Oakland." It is the "same site that former Mayor Jean Quan pushed on the A’s." However, A’s co-Owner Lew Wolff has "long considered" the waterfront site a "nonstarter." The city also would probably "have to come up with" at least $90M in infrastructure improvements, "including funding for a car and foot bridge" at the waterfront site (S.F. CHRONICLE, 1/13).