Bay Area sports fans are getting a taste of what it’s like to have their favorite teams move stadiums and cities. Within the same week in November, both the Oakland A’s and the San Francisco 49ers announced plans to move. The A’s are moving to Fremont, while the 49ers most likely will move to Santa Clara.
Moving a professional sports team is not the easiest thing to do, so the moves are not 100 percent certain and will not be immediate. The A’s won’t move until at least 2010 and the 49ers are still in talks with Santa Clara trying to work out a deal to move in 2012.
One of the main reasons for the A’s move is money. Like most franchise owners, A’s owner Lew Wolff has always focused primarily on the team’s revenue, and this case is no different. Cisco Systems and the city of Fremont are discussing plans for a new stadium in Fremont for the A’s. In addition to baseball, the stadium would also have retail and residential spaces. Getting a new stadium will mean more people in the stands, and therefore more money for the team and Wolff. This money could be used to help the A’s sign more free agents, which could help the A’s become a stronger team. A new stadium also means that the A’s will not have to share their field with the Oakland Raiders.
However, the A’s move to Fremont is devastating to many Albany High students and other local fans. One of the biggest negatives is going to be the hassle of getting to the new stadium. AHS junior Derek Uchiumi said he will still try to go to a lot of games when the A’s move to Fremont, but as of now, since there is no BART station in walking distance from where the stadium is expected to be, we will have a longer drive. Getting to the A’s current McAfee Coliseum is very easy. It is only a 25 minute BART ride and it stops right at the Coliseum. The BART fare from El Cerrito Plaza to the Coliseum is only $4.90 round trip, while a ride from the Plaza to Fremont is over $3 more making it a whopping $8 round trip. Not to mention the annoying fact that the BART ride is much longer.
The reasons for the 49ers move is similar. Owner John York has said he wants the 49ers to play in a more modern stadium. York has gone as far to say that Candlestick Park, which is where the 49ers play now, is “the oldest and worst stadium in the NFL.” Obviously money is a factor as well, since Santa Clara (as well as Fremont) is close to San Jose, the Bay Area’s most populated city.
Getting to 49er games from the East Bay has never been easy. With no BART stations going close to Candlestick Park, it is much harder to get to 49er games than A’s games. But the move to Santa Clara will make it almost impossible for many local fans.
Although these moves won’t take effect for several years, they will make seeing the games in person much harder. And while there are pros and cons to the move, both teams will be leaving behind tradition. The great 49ers dynasty teams played in Candlestick Park and the A’s won four World Series titles while playing in Oakland Coliseum. It will be a sad day when the teams move.
I live in San Jose, and personally, I don’t want either team to move.
I don’t go to the 49ers now, and I won’t go just because they’re closer.
I’ve been to 3 A’s games in 8 years, and *might* go to another before they move, but don’t count on it.
I live in Oakland, home of the A’s, where they all get hyphy, but still get paid.
i think this is bullshit
that’s not cool to say it’s just stupid
the bob nuts!
Whether or not people are hung up over the name “Fremont” preceding the team’s name,
the building of Cisco Field is our last best chance of keeping the A’s in the Bay Area.
Don’t know if anyone has seen this site, but it gives a pretty good synopsis of the proposed ballpark plans, specs, and features a slideshow:
http://www.ciscofieldstadium.com/