OAKLAND, Calif. — The Capital Corridor Joint Powers Authority, the agency overseeing state-supported Amtrak service between San Jose and Auburn, Calif., has filed its own suit over the plans for a new Oakland Athletics ballpark.
The suit joins one previously filed by Union Pacific [see “Union Pacific files suit over Oakland ballpark plan,” Trains News Wire, April 5, 2022], as well as one by a coalition of groups involved in operations at the Port of Oakland.
The San Jose Mercury News reports the Capital Corridor suit says the environmental report for the ballpark and mixed-use development at the Howard Terminal site, adjacent to Jack London Square, failed to consider the safety risks involved in placing a 35,000-seat ballpark and 3,000-resident development next to a heavily used rail line. Capital Corridor runs 30 trains on weekdays and 22 on weekends on the line adjacent to the ballpark site; the route also sees about 15 UP freight trains per day.
Camden Yards in Baltimore seems to have no parking from the downtown side but there is a sea of parking on the South and West sides.
Philadelphia built an extension to the Broad St. Subway concurrent with the new Veterans’ Stadium. There are new stadia but all the pro sport teams still play on that corner (except Soccer which is actually in another city). I plan to ride the subway there Friday for Opening Day. Against the A’s!
I posted this yesterday. I live in Alameda which is just a mile away or less from this project and I can tell you it is the stupidest idea I have seen in a long time. In addition to UP’s main line to San Jose and Stockton there are dozens of Amtrak/Capital trains each day. The UP trains are moving in and out of the Port of Oakland at start up speed and can take 10 minutes to clear a crossing. In addition the shinny drawing does not show a major scrap metal processing plant that loads scrap steel and iron onto cargo ships and is not planning on moving. As for the idea of lowering the tracks this area is a bay fill and if you start digging you are going to have a combination of saltwater and toxic sludge from past industries spurting up from the ground. This entire deal is the wish of a billionaire team owner wanting to build a big real estate development. The team owner could have built a brand new stadium with no problems next to the old stadium site. That site has BART access, parking and two freeway exits. This sight has none of that.
Wrigley Field at one time had active railroads on 3 sides. The L on the east side, the CSL on the south and west side, and the MILW Kingsbury Branch.
As for the Oakland proposal, look for elevated walkways to and from the park to parking garages nearby to keep pedestrian rail crossings to a minimum. The team probably doesn’t want to finance that as part of the overall deal because it would mean taking on more debt.
Typically sports teams desire parking revenue to improve profits, but this is in a high demand area for real estate and Oakland is a small market team. They are only biting off what they can chew. For details read the book Moneyball.
Um, Wrigley Field, Fenway Park.
Yes Mr Landey but they are very old ball parks. Not new construction. They were built before everyone and there brother drove cars.
How about new parks, go across the Bay and you will see most of the parking lots are now being developed and built on by SF Giants on top of the new Chase Center for Warriors and more development. Or where I used to live in St. Louis where real estate is cheaper they are trying to build on the lots surrounding Busch stadium as well.
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In the long run as less and less areas are willing to give tax dollars on new stadiums you will see more and more teams and developers pursue proposal like the A’s over parking lots. But hey, there will be a few holdouts, New Yorker taxpayers are about to give Buffalo Bills a $800 million dollar hand out and sure Nevada will give a handout for A’s as well when all else fails..
Maybe someone can help me out. I know these two pictures from today and yesterday shows a new 35,000 seat ball park with NO parking. I know it’s only an artist’s rendering but come on do all the people have to walk to the ball park?
But isn’t this the reason for causes of concern? Everyone either has to find parking around Jack London Square or take public transit then walk across an active railway line.
We all know how well people obey crossing protection.
Plenty of parking south of the Ballpark in Jack London Square for which the corridor already splits a neighborhood that has seen a lot more apartments and people living next to the tracks.