OAKLAND — Alameda County leaders are expected to vote Tuesday on whether to transfer a sale of one of the East Bay’s most significant properties, the Oakland Coliseum, to a group of private developers looking to build a new megaplex there.
If approved, the county’s original deal in 2019 to sell its Coliseum ownership stake to the Oakland A’s will instead be re-assigned to a business entity formed by the African American Sports and Entertainment Group, or AASEG.
The A’s had agreed to transfer their still-pending acquisition of the site to AASEG for $125 million nearly a year ago, but long negotiations with county officials have dragged on this stage of the development deal, months past when the buyers promised it would wrap up.
The county vote, set for next Tuesday, could finally move the sale forward, allowing AASEG to acquire the county’s 50% interest in the 112-acre site.
AASEG is expected to complete its payment to the A’s by the end of next January, before paying off outstanding bonds at the Coliseum site the following month and closing escrow “on or before June 30, 2026,” per county documents.
County officials did not respond Friday to requests for comment on the upcoming vote.
If the three-party negotiations between the county, the A’s and AASEG weren’t complicated enough, the city of Oakland also needs to close its own deal with the development group.
Revenue from the city’s $125 million sale of its half-ownership stake had once been planned as a one-time fix for Oakland’s financial troubles — a Hail Mary move by ex-Mayor Sheng Thao that AASEG’s leaders now say they felt pressured to go along with.
In April, the City Council bailed on trying to cram the land deal into its fiscal calendar, opting instead to close the sale by the end of June 2026, to align the land transfer with the county’s own escrow period.
Mayor Barbara Lee, who was elected in April to replace Thao following the former mayor’s removal from office via a recall, said Friday in a statement she “recognizes the Coliseum as a key part of Oakland’s history and future.”
“As the sale moves forward, we’re committed to ensuring it remains a space where the community can come together for years to come,” Lee said, “while recognizing that the economic benefits are important to residents of the surrounding communities.”
“This is a complex transaction,” Councilmember Ken Houston said at an April meeting. “Things come up, and you’re dealing with two different governmental agencies. But it’s moving forward.”
When finished, the developers plan to add housing, retail, restaurants, a hotel and some kind of professional sports attraction to the property, likely razing the stadium while keeping the arena intact.
Closed-door negotiations between county officials and AASEG were complicated by a local nonprofit’s lawsuit over the county’s original, $85 million sale to the A’s.
The group, Communities for a Better Environment, alleged that the 2019 deal had neglected the state Surplus Lands Act, which requires that available public land first be considered for housing development before anything else.
With an approval vote Tuesday by the county supervisors, the nonprofit would agree to permanently dismiss its suit. AASEG does plan to build housing at the site, a percentage of it affordably priced.
A third-party consulting firm hired by the county also found that AASEG’s planned redevelopment would boost property tax revenue generated at the site by more than 15%.
Angela Scott, an organizer with Communities for a Better Environment, affirmed in a previous statement the group’s “trust that AASEG will make good on its commitment to developing the land for the benefit of all Oaklanders.”
AASEG is best known for its public face, Ray Bobbitt, who leads a group of other Black, Oakland natives in representing the project locally.
The deal will primarily be financed by the investment firm Loop Capital, whose principal Jim Reynolds, is the signatory on official transaction documents published by the city and county.
The broader AASEG coalition includes more specialized officials: sports agent Bill Duffy, local real-estate developer Alan Dones and former Oakland City Manager Robert Bobb.
Perhaps the crown jewel of the East Bay’s rich sports history, the Coliseum has descended into blight and decay over the decades, culminating in Oakland’s loss of its three major professional franchises — the Raiders, Warriors and A’s.
The arena still hosts some of the country’s top live acts, its revenue only climbing in recent years. And the stadium has seen sparks of life, hosting the Oakland Roots soccer franchise and drawing impressive attendance last month for a series of domestic cricket matches.
Shomik Mukherjee is a reporter covering Oakland. Call or text him at 510-905-5495 or email him at shomik@bayareanewsgroup.com.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
