OAKLAND, Calif. -- Oakland Athletics owner and managing partner Lew Wolff announced today the A's have reached an agreement to purchase a 143-acre parcel from Cisco Systems with the intent of constructing a baseball park in the City of Fremont.
The state-of-the-art baseball-only stadium will be named Cisco Field as part of a 30-year naming rights agreement, which is valued at $4,000,000 million annually, with the potential for annual increases based on inflation. This naming rights agreement is transferable at any time. As part of the naming rights deal, Cisco will be granted an undisclosed amount of guaranteed print, radio and television exposure.
360 Architecture, with offices in Kansas City, Mo., Columbus, OH and San Francisco, and Gensler, with offices worldwide, will serve as the primary design companies for the ballpark.
Cisco Field will be located in Fremont, which is approximately 20 miles to the south of McAfee Coliseum, five miles north of the Santa Clara County line and 12 miles from downtown San Jose. With a population of over 210,000 people and an area of 92-square miles, Fremont is the fourth most populous city in the Bay Area and California's fifth largest city in area. The ballpark site is proposed to be located on the west side of Interstate 880 off the Auto Mall Parkway.The partnership with Cisco also includes a broad marketing and business agreement which will underscore the A's commitment to create a unique fan experience by leveraging state-of-the-art network technology throughout the ballpark and franchise operation. As a result, Cisco Field will be one of the most technologically advanced stadiums in the world and will demonstrate the positive role technology can play in sport, entertainment and connecting communities. Cisco's technology will be used to enhance every facet of the stadium, from ticketing and concessions to management of game day operations.
The partnership allows Cisco to utilize the facility for corporate and community events and to create a Cisco Customer Solutions Center at the ballpark in an effort to showcase the use of networking technology in a stadium. Cisco becomes the "Official Technology Partner of the A's and Cisco Field" and the A's will deploy Cisco technology to serve the needs of Cisco Field and the baseball village.
Groundbreaking on the project will commence once the A's gain approval from the City of Fremont, Alameda County and other government agencies.
The anticipated funding for the ballpark will be a combination of private equity and the application of the value of land use entitlements that will be generated by the activities of the ballpark and the adjacent ballpark village developments. The public assistance sought will be in the form of processing the development activity in the most efficient manner possible, the agreement that benefits generated solely by the development will in part or in total be used to facilitate the development program in a manner that will not impose on general fund or bonding issues on local government and other aspects of public-private cooperation that will stand the test of public acceptance.
The estimated cost of the ballpark is between $400-500 million (excluding land) with construction time taking between 24-36 months."Today marks the beginning of a new era in A's baseball in the Bay Area," said Wolff. "Cisco Field will become a destination attraction that will be enjoyed by baseball fans throughout the Bay Area and beyond for generations to come. The location of the ballpark will able us to significantly expand our market place while giving our fans a unique experience at what promises to be one of the most exciting venues in the country. We thank Cisco Systems for the will and ability to make this new standard in fan and sponsor experience a reality. We have a number of rivers to cross, but once the value of what Cisco and the A's are committed to accomplish is clear to the citizens of Fremont and Alameda County, we are confident our plans will add to the economic, social and community base of the region we serve."
"The A's are more than just a great baseball team, they are a symbol of the Bay Area, and Cisco is proud to play a role in ensuring they continue to call it home," said Cisco President and CEO John Chambers. "Technology is changing every aspect of our life experiences and for Cisco, this is an opportunity to harness the power of our own innovative technologies to create a truly unique experience that transcends sports, connects communities and takes the fan experience to a whole new level.
"Cisco intends to be aggressive in ensuring the entire Bay Area community, particularly younger fans, have the opportunity to enjoy the A's experience. We have a vision for how to make Cisco Field the model for all sports franchises," he concluded.
"This announcement of a new ball park for the Oakland Athletics ensures the long-term stability of the club in the Bay Area," said Major League Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig. "I congratulate Lew Wolff of the Athletics and John Chambers of Cisco for developing a partnership that will benefit the community as well as the A's and Cisco.
"As the landscape of baseball economics has changed dramatically in recent years, the importance of new ballparks that maximize the fan experience and expand club revenues, enabling the home team to remain competitive, can not be understated."
Up to date information on the progress of Cisco Field can be obtained on the team's official website Oaklandathletics.com. The Cisco Field link will include an overview of the project, artist renderings, videos, a virtual tour and ballpark facts and figures. Fans may also offer their suggestions regarding any aspect of Cisco Field through a special feedback section. Fans suggestions will be compiled on a weekly basis and forwarded to A's management.
The A's will continue to operate under its current lease agreement at McAfee Coliseum through the 2010 season, with the addition of three one-year club options through the 2013 season. Opened in 1966 and home of the A's since 1968, the Coliseum is the eighth oldest ballpark in the Major Leagues behind Fenway Park (1912), Wrigley Field (1916), Yankee Stadium (1923), RFK Stadium (1961), Dodger Stadium (1962), Shea Stadium (1964) and Angel Stadium (1966), although both Yankee Stadium and Angel Stadium have undergone significant renovations over the years. The Coliseum is one of only four multi-purpose stadiums in the Major Leagues, including Dolphin Stadium in Miami, The Metrodome in Minneapolis and Rogers Centre in Toronto.One of the American League's original franchises, the Athletics have won nine World Series championships and have captured 15 American League pennants. Only the New York Yankees (26) and St. Louis Cardinals (10) have won more World Series championships than the A's. Since 1968, the A's have captured four World Series titles, six American League pennants, 14 AL West Division titles and one AL Wild Card. The A's are one of the most community-minded teams in all of sports as the organization continues to support numerous charitable organizations in an effort to improve the quality of life of people throughout the Bay Area.
Headquartered in San Jose, Calif., Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet. Information about Cisco can be found at http://www.cisco.com/. For ongoing news, please go to newsroom.cisco.com.
14 November 2006
A's-Cisco official press release
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29 comments:
Let the games begin...
Thanks ML, for your diligence and thoroughness in reporting on the stadium issues. Seems like the stadium games will only get wackier from here (especially on the other side of the bay.)
The renderings look fantastic. I noticed the stadium logo says "Cisco Field Home of Your A's". No city designation.
He said in the news conference Fremont will be in the name. It will be [something] A's of Fremont
Logo might as well be a bunch of cars jammed up on interstate 880. Going to be hell to get to games. Oh, and what about the cost over-runs??? Glad I'm not a tax paying chump in Fremont who's going to get stuck with this traffic nightmare and cost-over-run debacle.
Fremont = Disaster
OK, I must get this out (Oakland partisans will probably say the same thing about their city)...THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN BUILT IN DOWNTOWN SAN JOSE, DIRIDON/ARENA!! Alright, vent over. The renderings do look fanstastic. R.M., any idea which direction home-plate faces? And why the 30-34K seat capacity; does this arrangement suggest that current ballparks are too big? Again, great stuff!!
This should be built in Sac-town!!!
So I guess the only question remaining is, is it going to be San Jose A's of Fremont, or Cisco A's of Fremont?
LETS GO CISCO LETS GO!!
"Silicon Valley" is the closest San Jose gets to having its name on this team. And of course, the 49'ers playing next door in Santa Clara will still be called "San Francisco"
Says something, doesn't it?
Wear it, San Jose! You may be the biggest city in the Bay Area, but to the rest of the world you're still the World's Biggest Suburb!
Ah, but at least ten years from now we're still going to have some sports teams.
The rest of the bay area can think what it likes. They're still gonna be driving south if they want a decent paying job.
I don't know about all you guys here, but I like baseball where you have a scorecard and a pencil/pen instead of some high tech gizmo to follow the score. Also, I don't need to check stocks during the game.
I thought I'd join in on this. I'm an out-of-state A's fan (never lived in Cali), but I'd love to see the A's keep the Oakland name. Does it really matter if they are in a suburb? There is something to say about tradition.
Whatever they do, I only hope they keep the A's name, logo and colors. Nothing better than the green and gold!
No way they'd ever build it Oakland. It's either Fremont or out of state. Oakland made their choice and it was the Raiders
What are the chances that the A's will become the first U.S. pro sports franchise to be completely corporatized?
No city name. Just your Cisco A's with a Cisco patch on their jersey and a C on their away caps.
Could happen. Is there something in the MLB charter that forces a team to relate itself to a municipality or geographic location? Not that I know of.
This is a great day! I am so excited we are getting a new baseball-only stadium. Nice work Lew!
To all the hypocrites from Oakland: bwahahaha! You whiners constantly cry when anyone says something derogatory about your poor, misunderstood, down-trodden town. But you're all so quick to throw stones at the next city down the road. I've never encountered such a pathetic collection of individuals in my life. I hope you will all keep your promises to drop the A's, as removing you will increase the quality of the fanbase immediately. Enjoy your baseball-less town and incompetent politicians. You are getting exactly what you deserve.
I hope you enjoy spending your disposable income and lining Lew Wolff's pockets and buy his overpriced lack of culture and soul real estate developments.
Nevermind Oklnd fan you'll still have the Raiders. Now there is culture for you
You can enjoy your applebee's restaurant. You're neighborhood grill in anytown usa. I'll take my mom and pop restaurants any day in Oakland. At least we have real taqueria's, a koreatown, soul food, etc.
I got news for you dumbass. You've been lining his pockets and the pockets of every sports team owner you've ever supported all along. That hasn't changed. The only thing that has changed is that now you're being honest about the lack of depth of your fandom. You are weak. And the sooner you get on with the business of becoming a Giants fan or whatever, the better off the A's and all real A's fans everywhere will be. So long, sucker.
Again with this lame approach? Some of you really need to set foot outside your city limits every once in awhile. I hate to break it to you, but mom and pop restaurants are all over the place. So are various ethnic food restaurants. No really, it's true. In fact there are people from all over the world...get this...all over the world! Yeah, not just in Oakland. But you wouldn't know that because you've never been outside Oakland before. Oh well, at least you have Al Davis to keep you company.
Oh yeah, you wouldn't know that Oakland has diversity and lots of different ethnic cuisines either. You have your Cisco routers and tech gadgets to keep you occupied in Fremont.
I see the problem now. You're not just afraid to cross city limit lines, but you also can't read. Please show me in my post anywhere that I said anything remotely similar to what you claim. Can't do it? Well, such is life.
FYI: I've been to, and will continue to go to, Oakland all the time. You see I visit lots of different cities. You should try it sometime.
Now, I'm not one to bash Oakland or the less tech-savvy fans amongst us, but really, the whole xenophobic "it's Oakland vs. the world" attitude was getting a bit tired. It was like listening to red state oh-woe-is-me "love America or leave it" crap.
It's sad that there is all this sniping back and forth between people. It's apples and oranges, some folks like Fremont, some like Oakland. I don't think people in Oakland are afraid to go to other parts of the Bay Area. I think a lot of people have negative stereotypes of Oakland being a "ghetto" or a place filled with "thugs". Sure, each city has those elements, but Oakland also has its nice parts like Montclair, Rockridge, Piedmont Ave, etc.
The name change will be:
The San Jose A's of Fremont.
Until the A's can clear the way legally to drop the "of Fremont" part of the name that will be it.
When that hurdle is handled, the name will be:
THE SAN JOSE A'S.
Bank on it.
if the name is gonna be san jose a's than san jose needs to put up some money not fremont and not the county. as an alameda county taxpayers i want dont want to pay for san jose's ballpark. if they want the name to be san jose a's then let san jose pay for it. just a thought.
San Jose is way too specific for East Bay fans who will still make up half the fan base. And even though the A's can legally use San Jose, it still refers to a city that is outside of their territory. For that reason, Bud Selig will probably try to discourage the A's from using it.
On the other hand, Silicon Valley is not a legally defined area, though it still implies the South Bay. However, most Bay Area residents now identify with Silicon Valley, no matter how far they actually live from it.
But don't be surprised also if broad names like "Bay Area" and "Golden Gate" are given consideration. The very fact that the 49'ers want to keep "San Francisco" is a testament to the power of a "regional" name. And "SF" means much more than just a city of 800,000.
On the other hand, had the San Jose Earthquakes opted to move to say, San Mateo; it's unlikely they would have kept San Jose as the name. And that's roughly the same distance between SF and Santa Clara.
I tend to agree with you, beresford. Lew has said himself that he likes the regional name approach. He's given himself two years to make that decision and a lot can change in two years. Right now, I'd bet that everything from "California" down to "San Jose" is on the table. It will be interesting to see how that plays out.
I'd just like to state that it's hugely entertaining when two people both log in as 'anonymous' and then start a flame war. It's like having Thanksgiving with a multiple-personalities support group.
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