A's Plan to Start Construction in Las Vegas in April 2025

Oakland A's plan to begin construction in 2025 which leads to one question, and other takeaways from Wednesday's meeting

On Wednesday, the Las Vegas Stadium Authority held a meeting to officially put the horse before the cart in Las Vegas, talking about the A's potential move to Sin City and some of the logistics surrounding that move. 

MLB owners have yet to approve the team's relocation, but a vote is expected in the next few weeks. The outcome of the vote will likely be to approve relocation with John Fisher and the A's allowed to get this far into the process, but the entire relocation saga has had numerous twists and turns, so nothing is off the table. 

One thing that stood out from Wednesday's meeting is the planned timeline of starting construction on the ballpark in April of 2025 in order to have it completed by January 2028--just in time for the baseball season. While that timeline sounds about right, it also leaves open the possibility that the opposition from Schools Over Stadiums could pass if their legislation gets put to a vote in November 2024. One of the worries for the teacher's supporters had been that if construction had already started, then it would be tough to put that genie back in the bottle. 

Apparently that wouldn't be the case. 

One could argue that the A's don't see Schools Over Stadiums as a real threat to the project, but they have also sued the teachers to attempt to tie them up. So which is it? Could it be that they think the threat is legitimate, but that the group won't have enough funds to keep moving forward? (You can donate to Schools Over Stadiums here).

The other big takeaway from the meeting was that the A's can buy the ballpark after the lease is over in 30 years. While that may not seem like much on its face, in late September Nevada governor Joe Lombardo said that the coup to grâce of the entire deal was that Clark County would own the ballpark once the lease was up. Obviously owning a 30-year-old ballpark isn't a great proposition, but Lombardo seemed to be very excited. Now it's up to the A's to decide who owns it. Of course the team won't buy it, because it'll be old by then. That's why they were happy to let the county take it. 

Other notes include that the A's will not be paying rent during this 30-year lease, which was already known, but worth mentioning. The A's will also be responsible for all maintenance and repairs. I've said it before, but that sounds like something you agree to when you don't plan to stick around very long as an owner. 

Naming rights for the proposed ballpark will be controlled by the A's. The team must also give 12 months notice to The Tropicana before construction can begin. The Tropicana Hotel must be torn down before the construction on the ballpark can begin. 

There is still discussion as to what would happen to the ballpark if the A's decide to leave Las Vegas after the 30-year lease is up. Steve Hill of the Stadium Authority said that having a decaying ballpark on that crucial intersection would be a detriment to the city. 

Tearing down the ballpark with just nine acres to work with could prove to be tricky with a hotel on one side and one of the busiest streets in the world on the other. But that's future Nevadan's problem. 

As always, this entire plan feels half-baked. While some questions were answered or made official, the big ones like where the team will play from 2025-27, how Fisher is paying for this project, and how this thing will actually look are still looming.