The Raiders want a new stadium. The Raiders need a new stadium. The team’s current stadium is outdated, has a dirt infield, and periodic plumbing problems that threaten to turn the Black Hole into a brown mess.
The Raiders have no interest in sharing a stadium with the 49ers, the NFL has no apparent interest in returning to Los Angeles, and owner Mark Davis still wants to build a new stadium in Oakland.
A new venue in Oakland isn’t as hopeless as it seems. According to Matthew Artz of the Oakland Tribune, a Dubai financier and a major privately-held real-estate firm has interest in bringing the long-discussed “Coliseum City” to life.
A partnership between Rashid Al Malik and Colony Capital LLC plans to work with the City of Oakland to conduct a stadium feasibility study. As originally envisioned, Coliseum City would have venues for the Raider’s, baseball’s A’s, and the NBA’s Golden State Warriors. Even with only the Raiders (the A’s and Warriors apparently want to build elsewhere), interest exists in pushing the project to reality.
“I’m thrilled,” Oakland mayor Jean Quan told the Tribune. “They are very successful and they have very deep pockets, so they can probably afford to do the project exactly how we would like it.”
Oakland City Counsel was scheduled to talk about the possible venture in a closed session held on Tuesday. A public discussion of the project currently is scheduled for October 8.
The plan surely has a long way to go, but any plan even in the early stages is better than no plan. And no plan is what the Raiders and Oakland have had in recent years.