The A’s have reengaged with various landowners as they look into potential stadium sites in the Las Vegas area, report Howard Stutz and Tabitha Mueller of the Nevada Independent. According to the report, A’s officials have recently been in contact with land holders at multiple Vegas-area locations that had previously been under consideration.
It’s a bit of a surprise considering the A’s already announced a land purchase agreement for 49 acres west of the Vegas strip three weeks ago. The Nevada Independent report suggests the A’s are scoping alternatives as backup plans. While the agreed-upon site still seems to be the organization’s top priority, it’s somewhat notable they’re also exploring other options.
It seems there’s at least some concern the A’s won’t get legislative approval for their stadium plan at the site they’re already buying. To date, the club’s only agreement has been the land purchase. They have not finalized a stadium deal that’d set the stage for formal relocation. Indeed, they’ve still yet to even put an official proposal up for consideration in the Nevada legislature. They’ve expressed plans for a 35,000-seat ballpark that’d involve a $1 billion investment from the franchise in addition to $500MM in county-issued bonds to be paid by tax dollars related to the stadium project.
Without a formal proposal on the legislative docket, though, there remains some uncertainty whether the plan will be greenlit. “We haven’t gotten anything concrete yet of exactly what it is that they’re looking for, or what they would like us to take a look at,” a state senator told Stutz and Mueller last week. “So it’s tough to have conversations about what exactly we may or may not do, and time here is finite. … We only have a few more weeks left, so if there’s going to be a deal, it’s got to come very soon.”
While there’s no indication the A’s are seriously alarmed about the prospect of negotiations falling through, it’s clear they’ll have to accelerate talks in the relatively near future. The Nevada legislature remains in session through June 5, though they could call a special session to continue negotiations into the summer.
Oakland mayor Sheng Thao announced at the time the A’s entered into the Nevada land purchase she was ceasing discussions about a possible stadium project in Oakland’s Jack London Square. She later left open the possibility for reopening negotiations, though it’s clear the A’s efforts for a Vegas site would have to be in peril for that to happen at this point. There’s still nothing to suggest the A’s are considering sites outside Nevada.
In any event, there’s a clear target date for the A’s to have a binding stadium agreement in place. A provision in the collective bargaining agreement mandates that the organization have a formal stadium deal by next January 15 if they’re to retain their status as revenue sharing recipients. The A’s lease at RingCentral Coliseum runs through 2024.
