In S.F., Ron Leuty noted Oakland and Alameda County officials are "talking -- again -- about the city buying out the county's interest" in the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, a "contiguous site" and the Raiders' training facility in Alameda. Consolidating property ownership under one government entity "would make it easier to sell the site for redevelopment." The price and a timeline for "completing a deal are part of the negotiations." But making a deal is "anything but simple." The city and county are "obligated to pay off bonds" totaling nearly $200M -- "split equally between them -- that financed the expansion of the Coliseum" for the Raiders and upgraded Oracle Arena for the Warriors (BIZJOURNALS.com, 12/19).
NAME CHANGE: AUTOWEEK's Mark Vaughn noted after 17 years and "millions of dollars spent to have the place called Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, as of April 1, 2018, it will be known once again as, simply, Laguna Seca." Mazda said that other racing programs with the company's sponsorship "will not be affected." It appears the only motorsports "cutback is Laguna Seca, which we must still call Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca for a few more months" (AUTOWEEK.com, 12/19).
QUEEN CITY MAKEOVER: In Charlotte, Steve Harrison noted Mecklenburg County on Tuesday unveiled a new $31.7M plan to "rebuild Memorial Stadium." The plan calls for the county to "pay for all of the stadium on its own, without help" from the USL Charlotte Independence or from the city of Charlotte. The county "offered different plans for commissioners to consider." The most "elaborate plan would rebuild Memorial Stadium entirely, with 12,000 new seats or bleachers." There also was a "more modest proposal that would have only 7,350 seats." That would cost $21.3M (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 12/20).
