City of Oakland Sells Their Half of Coliseum; Budget Helped, What's Next

The city of Oakland sold their half of the Oakland Coliseum complex for $105 million to the AASEG investment group.Photo byphoto by: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports

On Monday, July 29, the city of Oakland said that they had sold their portion of the Oakland Coliseum complex to the African American Sports & Entertainment Group for $105 million. The AASEG is a development and investor group from Oakland, and they have agreed to pay off the deal in large installments by 2026. Half of the 112-acre piece of land is now sold, and a deal with the A's is next for the other half.

Oakland's Budget is Saved For Now:

This deal allows Oakland to avoid a great loss of jobs. Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao confirmed that the deal was signed and said it was a huge win for the city of Oakland. The city has an historic financial crisis with a $117 million shortfall for this year and $175 million for next year.

Complicated Deal:

There are critics of the deal. They say it's shocking that in one of the country's most expensive areas, they sold their half for only $105 million. The city will start collecting tax revenue from the land with the sale, but some are saying that they should have sold it for a lot more than that. With them being under a barrell with their financial woes, some feel this was a desperate sale. In fact, AASEG just offered the A's $115 million for their half, and they turned it down.

On social media, some said the money isn't totally seen until 2026, so it helps, but it's not as big a deal as first thought. Proponents say that it is vital that this happen. The city of Oakland's budget right now is a hot mess with huge shortfalls and the land was doing the city no good.

The deal is also a complicated one because the Oakland A's own the other half of the land. The A's have just paid off the land, but there is a lawsuit even questioning their ownership. This deal is not going to be done anytime soon.

What Does the Future Hold?

The AASEG's end game for the Coliseum land is a massive $5 billion project that would bring affordable housing, a convention center, hotel, restaurants, and a sporting arena to the area. This would greatly upgrade the area and bring much-needed tax revenue to the city.

Opponents say the deal may be pie in the sky. Oakland is a city that had 3 of its professional teams leave because teams wanted to go to places that they felt were more attractive to owners and could make them more money. The AASEG feels that with all of the refurbishing of East Oakland, especially, that Oakland will be reborn into a place that would attract teams.

At this time, it's hard to see any MLB, NFL, or NBA team or their leagues being interested in Oakland. There are alternatives for the city, though. With all of the excitement with the WNBA, a WNBA franchise may definitely be an option in the future at the arena that they want to save. In the end a new arena would be imperative. An NWSL (National Women's Soccer League) may also be another way to go to get a franchise.

For now, though, the city of Oakland says it is happy to get the revenue to help with their budget.