CITY
OF
OAKLAND
CITY HALL
•
1 FRANK H. OGAWA PLAZA •
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA
94612
#LoveLife
REBECCA KAPLAN
(510) 238-7008
Vice Mayor
FAX: (510) 238-6910
District At Large
TDD: (510) 839-6451
Date: September 7, 2022To: Members of City Council and Members of the PublicFrom: Vice Mayor KaplanRe: WNBA Team In Oakland Dear Colleagues on the City Council and Members of the Public, TheWomen’s NationalBasketballAssociation(WNBA)hasdiscussedplanstoexpandthenumberofWNBAteamsontheirrosterforthepastnumberofyears.Astheseconversationsunfold,theCityofOaklandmustmakeitclearthatnotonlyarewesupportiveofbringingaWNBATeamtoOakland,butareexcitedtobepartnersandcollaboratorswiththeWNBAduringtheexpansion.Thisresolution,therefore,extendsourstrongsupporttowards this effort and urges the WNBA to make Oakland the home for a WNBA team.
Oaklandisideallysuitedfora WNBAteambecauseofourferventandrootedfanbase,existingarenaspace,andsharedcorevalueswiththeWNBA.Forfans,theBayAreahasa strongandorganicfanbaseforwomen’sbasketballfromtheUniversityof CaliforniaBerkeleyandStanfordwomen’s collegebasketballteams.Inaddition,theBayAreahasthefourth-highestnumberofWNBAfansamongU.S.marketswithouta WNBAteam-418,816WNBAfans,higherthaneightcurrentmarketswithaWNBAteam.MorethanahalfmillionBayAreamarketadultsplaybasketball,andtheBayArearanksinthetop30marketsinhouseholddeliveryfortheWNBA Regular Season.
Inadditiontoa strongfanbase,Oaklandalreadyhasa world-classarenaatthecenterofamultimodalcorridorreadyto housea WNBAteam.TheOaklandArenais easilyaccessibleby bothhighwayandpublictransportation,completewithapedestrianbridgethatallowsfansdirectaccessfromtheColiseumBARTstation.Thearenasitson132acreswith10,000on-siteparkingspaces.Itisalsoairportaccessible,andastone’sthrowawayfromtheCapitalCorridorrailline.ThismultimodalconnectivitywillallownotonlyOaklanderstoconvenientlyattendgamesbutalsofansfromacrossCalifornia.FromformerMonarchssupporterstowomen’sbasketball enthusiasts, Oakland will draw fans from the Bay Area megaregion and beyond.
Supporttobringa WNBAteamextendspasta solidfanbase,aslocalregulatingagencieshavealsotakenkeyvotestopreparefora WNBAteaminOakland.InJuly2021,boththeOaklandColiseumAuthorityandtheOaklandCityCouncilunanimouslyandenthusiasticallyvotedinfavorofatermsheettobringaWNBAteamtoOakland.
Oaklandis a communitythatvaluessocialjustice,equality, andwomen’s rights.TheseprinciplesalignwiththoseoftheWNBA,andwearereadytomoveforwardasa partnerinadvancingthosegoalsasthehomeforanew WNBA team. I respectfully request your support for this resolution.
City CouncilSeptember 7, 2022File # 22-06831