Doubts have been cast over the future of a new ballpark project for Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise Oakland Athletics after a proposed location for the stadium fell through.
In September, the team selected a site on land near to Laney College to build its new 35,000-capacity stadium, which would replace Oakland Alameda Coliseum as the A’s home.
However, Peralta Community College District, which owns the land, said in a statement partially published by ESPN that its board has directed the chancellor to discontinue talks about a possible stadium near Laney College.
The district said it will work with students, faculty, staff, administrators and the community to “reimagine” the district’s needs and assess the resources to meet them.
The A’s have responded negatively to the news, saying in its own statement that it is “shocked” by the move. The A’s had hoped to begin work on the new venue in 2021, with the aim of moving in to the venue in 2023.
The statement said: “We are shocked by Peralta’s decision to not move forward. All we wanted to do was enter into a conversation about how to make this work for all of Oakland, Laney, & the Peralta Community College District. We are disappointed that we will not have that opportunity.”
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has spoken publicly about his support for the project and following the news that the proposed site had fallen through, called on Oakland to help the franchise locate an alternate site.
Manfred said: “We applaud the efforts by the Oakland A’s over the last year to engage the community in an open dialogue about their new ballpark. This news comes as a surprise and we urge Oakland leaders to rejoin the conversation.”
Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said the Californian city will continue to support the team in its quest to build a new home.
In a Twitter post, Schaaf said: “Oakland remains fiercely determined to keep the Athletics in Oakland. It is unfortunate the discussion w/ Peralta ended so abruptly, yet we’re committed, more than ever, to working with the A’s and our community to find the right spot in OAK for a privately-financed ballpark.”
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