The Oakland Athletics have signed a deal to sell their stake in the Coliseum to the African American Sports and Entertainment Group, marking one of the final steps in a landmark real estate deal.
The A’s will part with their stake in the 155-acre property for $125 million, AASEG co-founder Ray Bobbitt told The Oaklandside on Thursday. A’s President Dave Kaval confirmed this in a statement.
“We are excited to see their community-oriented vision for the long-term development of the site,” Kaval said.
The agreement brings AASEG much closer to its goal of owning the entire Coliseum site, which it plans to redevelop with housing and new businesses. Alameda County, which previously owned the A’s stake in the Coliseum, must approve the deal.
The AASEG is simultaneously trying to finalize a deal with the city of Oakland for its 50% stake in the Coliseum. Last month, city officials and an AASEG representative signed a term sheet that sketched out the steps for selling the city’s 50% stake. The agreement said the city and AASEG “intend to execute” the deal by August 23.
That day has come and gone. Now, as Oaklanders continue to wait for an update on the sale, they’re eyeing a new date: September 1. That’s the deadline for Oakland to complete the sale so it can obtain the first installments of money. If this doesn’t happen, the city will be forced to implement a back-up budget plan that includes deep cuts to services, including public safety.
The contingency plan includes $63 million in cuts including reducing OPD’s budgeted sworn staffing to 600, suspending five fire engines, and freezing and cutting positions in other departments. At recent budget meetings, city staff described this scenario as pulling a “full emergency brake” to Oakland’s spending and services.
Bobbitt told The Oaklandside that the deal is still being worked on, but he expressed optimism about how things are going.
“We feel transaction certain,” Bobbitt told The Oaklandside earlier this week, adding that he’s grateful for all the stakeholders working together to meet the deadline this Sunday.
Earlier this week, The Oaklandside reached out to Thao’s office and the City Administrator to get an update on the real estate deal. No one responded on record to our inquiries. We also reached out to Loop Capital, the Chicago-based investment firm that is financing AASEG’s development of the Coliseum. The firm and its founder, Jim Reynolds, did not get back to us.
On July 30, Thao and City Administrator Jestin Johnson signed a term sheet with AASEG co-founder Ray Bobbitt. At the press conference in City Hall, officials expressed confidence that the deal would go through, and Thao reassured residents that Loop Capital has the funds to carry out the purchase.
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