City Council
MEMO
TO: Honorable Mayor and members of the City
Council
FROM: Councilmember Rebecca
Kaplan
At-Large District
SUBJECT: Coliseum Sale DATE: May 31, 2024
RECOMMENDATION
Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan recommends adopting the following:
AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR TO
NEGOTIATE AND EXECUTE A PURCHASE AND SALE AGREEMENT
WITH AASEG LAND LLC, A DELAWARE LIMITED LIABILITY
COMPANY, OR ITS AFFILIATE, FOR THE SALE OF THE CITY OF
OAKLAND’S UNDIVIDED 50 PERCENT INTEREST IN PROPERTY
LOCATED AT 7000 COLISEUM WAY, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, FOR
ONE HUNDRED FIVE MILLION DOLLARS ($105,000,000) TO BE PAID
IN INSTALLMENTS AND CONDITIONED ON DEVELOPMENT OF ON-
SITE AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND OTHER BENEFITS; AND
ADOPTING CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT
FINDINGS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Oakland (Hereinafter “The City”) recommends authorizing the City Administrator and/or their designee to negotiate and execute a purchase sale agreement with the African- American Sports and Entertainment Group (AAESG) for The City’s undivided fifty-percent interest of real property at 7000 Coliseum Way, Oakland, CA.
Honorable Mayor & City Council
Subject: Coliseum Sale
Date: May 31, 2024 Page 2
City Council
June 12, 2024
1 BACKGROUND / LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
Since as early as 2015, the City of Oakland, the City’s Mayor’s office, and the Oakland City Council have diligently pursued official actions through legislation, such as making recommendations and receiving reports regarding the development and revitalization of the Oakland Coliseum Site.
For example, the Coliseum Area Specific Plan2(The Coliseum Plan), adopted in 2015, was the culmination of years of analysis conducted by city staff, outside consultants, and community stakeholders. The Coliseum Plan provided a detailed guide to maximize efficient utilization of the existing infrastructure, recommended improvements to the existing infrastructure, and recommended new infrastructure and mixed-use development.
1 2 https://cao-94612.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/documents/Final-Plan.pdf
Honorable Mayor & City Council
Subject: Coliseum Sale
Date: May 31, 2024 Page 3
City Council
June 12, 2024
Further, the Coliseum Plan highlighted the distinctive features of the coliseum area, such as “unique level of transit facilities and service, including the Coliseum BART station, the Amtrak Capitol Corridor Coliseum Station, and AC Transit bus service, as well as access from two I-880 freeway interchanges.” (Oakland 2015). The distinctive characteristics of the site illustrate its desirability and why the City, as well as parties from the private sector, have pursued or proposed plans for decades. The groundwork for the sale of the City’s undivided 50% interest in the Coliseum is the action described in The Coliseum Plan, which spurs the development and redevelopment described in the Coliseum Plan and has culminated for years.
In a 2019 opinion piece3 Published in The Oakland Post, Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan responded to months of public comments from organizations and community leaders about the future of the Coliseum site. She addressed the possibility of the site's development with or without professional sports tenants and the potential for mixed-use development. Echoing notions similar to the recommendations found in The Coliseum Plan, Kaplan described the site as “This large, well-located expanse of public land can and should be used to provide development that benefits the community in multiple ways” (Kaplan, The Oakland Post 2019).
Further, Kaplan recommends that any site development include expansive affordable housing and mixed-use commercial space; furthermore, “Quality jobs for the local community – Oakland residents – including opportunities in construction, and incorporating existing workforce from Coliseum/Arena such as concessions, security, etc. Local hiring, equity, and quality standards policies for jobs.” The recommended action in this ordinance incorporates the recommendations found in the Coliseum Plan and Kaplan’s opinion piece. Provided in this memo is the published opinion in its entirety.
In 2019, the City, as required by state law, filed the necessary notice and documentation for a “Notice of Availability and Offer to Convey Surplus Property Pursuant to Government Code 54220 et seq.”4 for the Oakland-Alameda County Complex and all its related properties in preparation for the professional sports team's departure in 2024. Further, this action followed recommendations for revitalizing the coliseum site found in the Coliseum Plan. Furthermore, this step illustrated the City’s intent to sell its 50% undivided site share. According to the Surplus Land Act, the declaration must follow the legislative process of the respective local agency. The Oakland City Council adopted the recommendation to declare the City’s 50% undivided interest as Surplus Land in accordance with state law.
Resolution 889225 directed the City Administrator to enter an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement (ENA) with AAESG. The resolution outlined the desired outcomes of the ENA. Expressing the importance of selling to parties that intend to revitalize and increase the professional opportunities at the coliseum site and deeply investing in the lives of local residents, often members of underserved communities. The resolution states, “AASEG is an Oakland-based
3 https://www.postnewsgroup.com/opinion-a-vision-for-the-future-of-the-coliseum-area/
4 City of Oakland - File #: 18-2551 (legistar.com)
5 City of Oakland - File #: 21-0855 (legistar.com)
Honorable Mayor & City Council
Subject: Coliseum Sale
Date: May 31, 2024 Page 4
City Council
June 12, 2024
developer focused on creating economic opportunity for the Black community in East Oakland and using the Coliseum Complex as a vehicle for economic equity and social justice.”
The 2021 resolution, unanimously adopted by the full City Council, recommended the City Council authorize the City Administrator to negotiate potential terms of a sale of the City’s undivided 50% share of the Coliseum and its related property. In the resolution, Councilmember Kaplan states, “The City desires to effectively pursue economic opportunities in ways that benefit our community.” Further, “The City believes it is important that large projects on City land include plans and strategies to benefit the local community, including local hire, jobs and labor standards, affordable housing, anti-displacement support, and other needs of the local impacted communities.” The proposed ordinance incorporates the notions and desires supported by fully adopted resolutions and reports such as the mentioned resolution.
The proposed ordinance is the result of over a decade of strategic action aimed at maximizing the site's fiscal opportunities and increasing access to social mobility for residents in and around the site. The sale of the City’s 50% undivided interest in the Coliseum to AAESG demonstrates the commitment to realizing decades of legislation with an entity that aims to improve the lives of Oakland residents.
Honorable Mayor & City Council
Subject: Coliseum Sale
Date: May 31, 2024 Page 5
City Council
June 12, 2024
ACTION REQUESTED OF THE CITY COUNCIL
Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan and recommend adopting the following:
AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR TO
NEGOTIATE AND EXECUTE A PURCHASE AND SALE AGREEMENT
WITH AASEG LAND LLC, A DELAWARE LIMITED LIABILITY
COMPANY, OR ITS AFFILIATE, FOR THE SALE OF THE CITY OF
OAKLAND’S UNDIVIDED 50 PERCENT INTEREST IN PROPERTY
LOCATED AT 7000 COLISEUM WAY, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, FOR
ONE HUNDRED FIVE MILLION DOLLARS ($105,000,000) TO BE PAID
IN INSTALLMENTS AND CONDITIONED ON DEVELOPMENT OF ON-
SITE AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND OTHER BENEFITS; AND
ADOPTING CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT
FINDINGS
For questions regarding this report, please get in touch with Michael Alvarenga, Legislative Analyst, at [email protected]
Respectfully submitted,
Councilmember Kaplan
At-Large District
Prepared by:
Michael Alvarenga, Legislative Analyst
Office of Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan
Reviewed by:
Kimberly Jones, Chief of Staff
Office of Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan
Honorable Mayor & City Council
Subject: Coliseum Sale
Date: May 31, 2024 Page 6
City Council
June 12, 2024
Opinion: A Vision For The Future of the Coliseum Area
By Rebecca Kaplan. October 3, 2019. The Oakland Post
In recent months, there have been many important and valid concerns expressed regarding the future of the Coliseum Area which may include the Oakland A’s. We hear what people do not want to see happen at the Coliseum. This includes wanting to avoid taxpayer funded giveaways and wanting to avoid loss of jobs, the location being abandoned and blighted, and finally the further erosion of our African American population, most of which has called East Oakland their home for decades.
As we look toward the future and work on these concerns, we thought it would be valuable to talk about what would be good to see happen at this site.
This large, well-located expanse of public land can and should be used to provide development that benefits the community in multiple ways. The Coliseum site, co-owned by the City of Oakland and the County of Alameda, provides a unique opportunity with about 200 acres that are on BART, have freeway access, easy airport connection, Amtrak, and great central location in the growing Bay Area.
We can, and should, work toward a future for the site that provides local benefits, including housing at all income levels, jobs, recreation and health, including for our youth, tax revenue and revitalization.
The future of this great site should ideally include:
• A significant amount of new housing, at all income levels, including deed-restricted affordable housing, workforce housing, and ADA accessible housing.
• Large-scale hotel and convention/conference facilities. • Maintain and use the Arena, including by seeking to bring a WNBA team and other uses. Arena can also be used in partnership with hotel/conference facilities to host large-scale events. • Soccer options. Explore options to provide outdoor soccer fields. Be able to accommodate significant soccer tournaments and provide much-needed locations for our local youth teams etc., to practice and play. Outdoor soccer fields to be designed to be able to accommodate other uses when not in use for soccer.
• Retail, restaurants, bars, and entertainment. Snack stands, inside and outdoors. • Improved and widened pedestrian access-way from BART, to make the welcoming experience pleasant and easy to cross, without requiring people to go downstairs and back up, no chain link, well-lit and attractive, and with access to shops and food and more. • Quality jobs for the local community – Oakland residents – including opportunities in construction, and incorporating existing workforce from Coliseum/Arena such as concessions, security, etc. Local hiring, equity, and quality standards policies for jobs.
• Local/small business involvement and opportunity, opportunity for local/small businesses to participate in the new development at the site.
• Protections from displacement for existing surrounding local residents and local businesses. • Option for inclusion of City of Oakland and Alameda County public needs such as a police administration building.
• Secure bike parking/valet.
• Utilize existing approved Plan/EIR, so development can move forward more easily and quickly. • And, for the sake of public trust, to avoid problems with the project, and to ensure a fair and transparent process, we should start the process of issuing notification of the availability of the land for opportunities.