A's president Dave Kaval says July 20 vote is 'last at-bat' for team in Oakland

ByCasey Pratt KGO logo
Saturday, July 17, 2021
A's president says July 20 vote is 'last at-bat' for team in Oakland
Oakland A's President Dave Kaval sat down with ABC7 News to talk about the future of the organization in the Bay Area and what happens next.

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- The Oakland Athletics and the Oakland City Council appear to be headed for a showdown on July 20.

On Friday, new documents were released by the city of Oakland detailing a new Howard Terminal term sheet. While it is considered a draft, it shows that the A's and Oakland remain far apart on an agreement. The Oakland City Council is scheduled for a non-binding vote on this term sheet on Tuesday.

VIDEO: 'Where they belong': Bay Area sports fans make it known, they want A's to stay in Oakland

Amid possible relocation efforts, the message is loud and clear. Bay Area sports fans don't want to lose the A's, the last remaining pro team in Oakland.

Can the city really vote on a term sheet that the A's don't agree with? Can they find a way to bridge the divide between their proposals? Larry Beil and Casey Pratt catch up with A's President Dave Kaval to get some answers.

The main sticking points in the deal include the off-site infrastructure dollar figure - which totals $351.9M. The original term sheet proposed by the A's had two infrastructure financing districts set up. One IFD that covered the Jack London Square area, and an IFD that covered the Howard Terminal stadium site. The "off-site" IFD would have covered the infrastructure cost, but Oakland was concerned it would hurt their general fund, so they removed it from this new term sheet.

RELATED: Oakland city council discusses A's Howard Terminal proposal as vote deadline approaches

So how do they cover the $350+ million gap? It is possible Alameda County, and the State of California could chip in.

Another sticking point in the original deal was affordable housing. The A's are offering $450 million in community benefits, they wanted to cover the affordable housing from that total. The city pushed back hard on that item.

RELATED: A's questioned about commitment to Oakland, ballpark proposal at Howard Terminal

After working closely with Oakland, the A's submitted their own term sheet in January. After not getting the feedback they wanted, they released it to the public in April. This new term sheet is the result of many hours of last-minute negotiations between the A's and Oakland.

Oakland Mayor Libby Schaff took to Twitter and released a statement after the term sheet was released saying the Howard Terminal stadium proposal, if approved, would be a "game changer for West Oakland."