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The Athletics appear on track to relocate to Las Vegas by 2027. According to a report from Mick Akers of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the A’s have agreed to a binding agreement to purchase 49 acres (with an option for additional eight acres) just west of the Las Vegas strip. While the land deal is the only official step at this point, the plan is for the construction of a new stadium on site.
“For a while we were on parallel paths (with Oakland), but we have turned our attention to Las Vegas to get a deal here for the A’s and find a long-term home,” A’s team president Dave Kaval told Akers. “Oakland has been a great home for us for over 50 years, but we really need this 20-year saga completed and we feel there’s a path here in Southern Nevada to do that.”
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred confirmed the news in a statement to the Review-Journal: “We support the A’s turning their focus on Las Vegas and look forward to them bringing finality to this process by the end of the year.”
Oakland mayor Sheng Thao confirmed negotiations between the A’s and their current city are ending (via Sarah Ravani of the San Francisco Chronicle). There’d been reports of progress between the sides in recent months, with the sides negotiating over a potential new Howard Terminal stadium in Oakland’s Jack London Square. With the revelation that won’t come to be, the mayor excoriated franchise leadership, accusing them of using negotiations with Oakland merely “to try to extract a better deal out of Las Vegas.”
“I am deeply disappointed that the A’s have chosen not to negotiate with the City of Oakland as a true partner, in a way that respects the long relationship between the fans, the City and the team,” Thao said. “The City has gone above and beyond in our attempts to arrive at mutually beneficial terms to keep the A’s in Oakland. In the last three months, we’ve made significant strides to close the deal. …In a time of budget deficits, I refuse to compromise the safety and well-being of our residents. Given these realities, we are ceasing negotiations and moving forward on alternatives for the redevelopment of Howard Terminal.”
Howard Stutz and Tabitha Mueller of the Nevada Independent first reported late Wednesday night that the A’s and Las Vegas lawmakers were nearing agreement on a stadium deal. Both the Nevada Independent and the Review-Journal report that the plan is for a 35,000-seat facility with a partially retractable roof. Kaval confirmed to Akers that the site is located roughly a mile north of Allegiant Stadium, home to the Raiders, and around a mile west of the Golden Knights’ home T-Mobile Arena.
“It’s really in the sports district,” Kaval said. “So you have all the stadiums kind of clustered in one spot. I think that creates a powerful zone, a kind of energy to it that will benefit the community and also help us be successful running a baseball team.”
The club has not yet gotten official sign-off from state and local legislators. Both reports indicate that Nevada governor Joe Lombardo and top state lawmakers are in support of the A’s plans, however. The team will make an official proposal to state and local officials at a later date, though there no longer seems to be much doubt regarding its eventual approval. That the A’s have already entered into the land purchase agreement points to the franchise’s comfort in getting a stadium deal done.
Once an agreement is finalized with the Nevada legislature and governor’s office, the A’s will be able to formally apply to MLB for relocation. Given Manfred’s comments on the matter, there’s no reason to believe that won’t receive a stamp of approval. MLB has previously set January 15, 2024, as a deadline for the A’s to have a binding stadium agreement in place somewhere if they’re to retain their status as revenue sharing recipients.
Assuming a deal with Las Vegas is indeed finalized by next January, Kaval confirmed plans to begin stadium construction at some time next year. The goal is for the facility to be ready for the opening of the 2027 season.
According to Stutz and Mueller, the plan is for the A’s to cover costs of the new stadium. They’d be aided by the creation of a new taxation district covering the area which would allow for the reinvestment of sales tax proceeds and various tax credits. That plan still needs formal legislative approval from both the state and county. The parties will surely work on the specifics over the coming months.
It’s a monumental development for the sport, one that almost ensures the franchise’s forthcoming relocation. It’ll be the first time a club has changed cities in nearly two decades; the most recent relocation occurred in 2005, when the Montreal franchise moved to Washington and rebranded from the Expos to the Nationals. Previously, there’d been no relocations in MLB since 1972.
More to come.
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