Alameda County supes approve new terms for Coliseum sale

Arena sale added to Oakland Coliseum deal

Arena sale added to Oakland Coliseum deal. 

OAKLAND, Calif. - A new development has emerged in the ongoing sale of the Oakland Coliseum complex.

What we know:

The Alameda County Board of Supervisors approved a non-binding agreement on Thursday that would allow for the sale of the Oakland Arena to a third party as part of the overall transaction.

Under the terms of the original agreement, Alameda County agreed to sell its 50% stake in the Coliseum property to the African American Sports and Entertainment Group for $115 million. 

The newly approved amendment introduces a different structure, permitting AASEG to spin off and sell just the arena portion of the complex to a third-party buyer for $100 million. If that sale goes through, half of those proceeds—$50 million—would be directed to Alameda County.

Also, the sale of the entire complex would be in an "as is" condition, with the county off the hook for most environmental remediation that a development project might require. Who will pay for that has not been finalized.

The term sheet also specifies that prior to the closing date, the Oakland Acquisition Company, the real estate arm of AASEG, will secure dismissal of a lawsuit brought by the environmental nonprofit Communities for a Better Environment, which alleged that the county violated the state Surplus Lands Act by selling its half-interest in the site to the A's for $85 million in 2019 without first giving public notice or trying to build affordable housing.

AASEG co-founder Ray Bobbitt said he is in touch with a couple of potential buyers for the arena, which sits right next to the former football and baseball stadium in the middle of a vast field of open-air parking lots. 

Bobbitt had sought an 11th hour change to the terms — which were only made available to the public Wednesday morning -- in order to make such a sale more likely.

He requested an exemption from the county's environmental indemnification for the 8-acre arena site, saying failure to do so could complicate any arena sales negotiations already underway. 

Supervisor Elisa Marquez strongly objected to the request and moved to approve the term sheet as written, which her colleagues on the board supported — although Supervisor David Haubert seemed to signal he was open to negotiating that provision.

The backstory:

OAC has been working for about five years to buy the Coliseum site, formerly home to the A's, the now-Las Vegas Raiders football team and the Golden State Warriors basketball team, all of which left for other cities.

The city of Oakland owns the other half of the property and last year OAC agreed to buy both Oakland's and the A's shares of the property for $125 million each, but needed the Board of Supervisors' approval to move forward.

The term sheet supervisors approved Thursday adjusts the original sales price, ownership details and environmental responsibilities, but doesn't apply to Oakland's half of the deal.