Over the last two weeks there has been a lot of buzz surrounding Oakland and possible new stadium for the Oakland Raiders. This flurry of Oakland stadium headlines came on the heels of the news about a special session in Nevada.
Oakland Stadium Buzz: Hope or Hype?
First there was Roger Goodell’s cryptic message while using the Minnesota Vikings new 1.1 billion dollar stadium as an example.
“Well, you never want to see a community lose their franchise once, much less twice. That’s why we work so hard with our communities to say, ‘This is what you have to try to get to, because you need to try to make sure this franchise continues to be successful.’ The Minnesota community did that in a great way. I think we can do it in Oakland. I think there’s a solution there, but it takes the community to help identify it.”
Following that up was NFL executive Eric Grubman visiting with Oakland leaders last week. Both he and Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf were at the Oakland Raiders home game versus the Atlanta Falcons. Mayor Schaaf had this to say about the meetings.
“The meetings are very general, just in the spirit of emphasizing that everyone in this community has a role to play in keeping our Raiders in Oakland. Where they belong, in a way that’s responsible to the league, the team, the fans and the taxpayers of Oakland.”
Mark Purdy with the Mercury News had an interesting take here on the Mayor’s comments.
Then the hammer fell September 20th when David DeBolt, of the East Bay Times, dropped this apparent bombshell.
Investment group offers to purchase Coliseum, keep Raiders in Oakland, about the Oakland Stadium.
Actually though, this was an offer from Egbert Perry, Chairman of Fannie Mae, and not the Lott Group. Although, at the time, Perry was the political, and financial, backing of the Lott Group. This was devastating news that I cautioned about back in July on Twitter.
“The [Financial people] behind the Lott group does not care about Oakland, or the Raiders, only [money]. They are investors, they want a return. – Scott Winter, July 3rd.”
Apparently they decided to go solo and present their own offer on the Oakland Coliseum land, without consulting either the Lott Group, or the NFL. Mayor Schaaf rejected their offer, and when the group learned of this rejection through the media, they publicly withdrew it.
Shortly there after the Lott Group cut ties with Egbert Perry, and the financial support that left with him. This has left the Lott Group scrambling to find investors.
Two days ago, Vic Tafur, of the San Francisco Chronicle had an interview with Ronnie Lott himself. Lott remained optimistic that together with Oakland, and Alameda County they could find a solution.
“…I think the city and county will find a way to get this done..”
That was unfortunately tempered by by some of his other comments though.
“How do we make it work?” Lott said. “That’s what we’re all asking.”
This is the heart of the issue. Ronnie Lott does not know how they will make this work currently. Additionally, its been reported, the leaders in Oakland and Alameda are at odds with how to handle the land. Some want to sell it, and others want to only lease it, which means there is no clarity on the land yet. Also the Oakland A’s have a lease on the Coliseum for the next seven years after baseball season is over. Owner Lew Wolfe has shown no inclination of leaving either. Mayor Schaaf would love nothing more than to have the A’s move to Howard Terminal, and last month the A’s toured that site. That said, there has been nothing reported to suggest the A’s are moving forward on that site.
I have personally asked everyone about this that I know, from Jason Cole, Bleacher Report, to Joe Arrigo, Inside the Rebels, who was also the source of the initial reports of the Raiders making a commitment to Las Vegas. Everyone suggests that Oakland needs to bring more to the table. If you are counting on the NFL Owners to save the Oakland Stadium idea, think again. Joe Arrigo said “If Nevada approves the money, then the owners will step aside and allow Mark to move”. Jason Cole was a bit more cautious “The owners would prefer that the Raiders stay in Oakland, however they are open to the idea of Mark moving to Las Vegas”. He also added that some would still like for Mark to sell.
In the end, I am not offering hope, or hype. The odds of a new Oakland Stadium happening are shrinking by the day. In less than two weeks, Nevada will vote on whether to approve funding. Should that happen, all signs point to the Raiders moving to Las Vegas, and only a miracle could keep the Raiders in Oakland.
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