The Oakland Athletics have asked the city of Fremont, Calif. to stop the planning process for a new stadium, stating that they want to re-examine their options, according to The Associated Press. The team had planned to construct a $1.8 billion stadium and village next to the Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge, but encountered opposition from residents who felt the plans would lead to increased traffic problems and lower property values.
Our Instinct: Amazing! If you take a look at some of the truly nice ball parks built in the last 10 years around country (Safeco, Comerica, AT&T Park, etc,etc) all were built for $200mm to $600mm including Nationals Park that opened in 2008. Citi Field and Yankee Stadium open in 2009 for an eye-popping $850mm and $1.3mmm, respectively. It will be fun to see what these parks look like inside and out and what the A’s, a team known for being frugal can do with $1.8mmm.
I’m all for it if the A’s pay for *all* of the costs.