Mayor Libby Schaaf 'passionate' about keeping A's and Raiders in Oakland
The ceaseless back-and-forth regarding the long-term future of the Oakland Athletics and/or Oakland Raiders continues to be bandied about on an almost daily basis.
The two co-tenants of O.co Coliseum remain stuck at the outdated (or 'friendly', depending on your perspective of its existence) facility for the foreseeable future, though the Raiders in particular keep coming up in relocation talks.
Despite all the rumors, speculation and incessant chatter, Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf has firmly put herself in the 'keep both teams' camp.
As she told CSN Bay Area late last week, she took part in a presentation to NFL owners regarding the city of Oakland's interest in keeping the Raiders in town...and she also made a 'friendly call' to MLB's headquarters in NYC regarding the A's as well.
Mayor Schaaf also touched on the chance of a new ballpark with the A's, though the club's ownership would have to agree to any supposed plans, of course:
"Obviously we are working with the A's on a potential new ballpark with them," Schaaf said. "It could be at the Coliseum, which is something they've expressed interest in in the past. But we are also trying to get them excited about a potential downtown site. We think that would really help revitalize our downtown. It's certainly a trend we're seeing in baseball, and it certainly would simplify our situation out at the Coliseum."
Here's a video interview with Schaaf conducted by CSN Bay Area:
This is just the latest wrinkle in the never-ending saga that is the present and future of Oakland sports.
