Warriors purchase land for San Francisco arena to open 2018-19

The Warriors moved to Oakland in the 1970s after initially playing in San Francisco for 11 seasons starting in 1960. (Garrett Ellwood/Getty Images) The Golden

The Warriors moved to Oakland in the 1970s after initially playing in San Francisco for 11 seasons starting in 1960. (Garrett Ellwood/Getty Images)

The Golden State Warriors announced Tuesday the purchase of 12 acres of land in the Mission Bay neighborhood of San Francisco in order to build a new arena in the city that has a targeted opening for the 2018-19 season.

According to a report from NBA.com, the team will purchase the land from salesforce.com, and the new arena is expected to hold approximately 18,000 people; the team's current home, Oracle Arena, is located in Oakland and holds approximately 19,500 people. The franchise was initially looking to a build a new arena along the waterfront area of San Francisco, but critics successfully opposed the measure, citing concerns over traffic as well as environmental issues and obstructed views of the Bay Bridge.

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The new arena will be privately financed and will be located not far from AT&T Park, the San Francisco Giants' ballpark. The move back to San Francisco marks the first time in more than 40 years that the team will play its home games in the city. The team played in San Francisco in 1960 for 11 seasons before relocating to Oakland.