Exclusive: Oakland stadium deal "worst by far" for Raiders, experts say
By Matthew Artz martz@bayareanewsgroup.com ©Copyright 2015, Bay Area News Group
POSTED: 06/26/2015 11:38:16 PM PDT
39 COMMENTS| UPDATED: ABOUT 10 HOURS AGO
OAKLAND -- The long-awaited financing plan for a new Raiders stadium is a lousy deal for the team and will make a potential return to Los Angeles look even more attractive, stadium finance experts said after being briefed on the proposal obtained by the Bay Area News Group.
The plan, submitted to Oakland and Alameda County leaders Monday by San Diego-based businessman Floyd Kephart, includes a provision that the Raiders sell 20 percent of the club to Kephart's New City Development, LLC for $200 million.
That transaction would be a bargain for Kephart's firm, but it's hardly the only red flag for the Raiders, said Marc Ganis, president of the consulting firm SportsCorp Ltd. and a veteran of numerous NFL stadium deals, including the one that brought the Raiders back from Los Angeles.
Football fans listen to the national anthem before an Oakland Raiders' game against the Buffalo Bills at the O.co Coliseum in Oakland on Dec. 21, 2014. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
"This is not just the worst stadium proposal I've seen," he said. "It's the worst by far."
The proposed $900 million, 55,000-seat facility adjacent to the
O.co Coliseum would be financed entirely by the Raiders, the NFL and future stadium revenues. The Raiders would have to dip into sponsorship revenue and naming rights fees to help repay $300 million in loans needed to offset an estimated funding gap.
And, other than parking garages, the stadium would get no subsidy from the surrounding "live-work-play" technology campus Kephart plans to build on the rest of the sprawling Coliseum complex. The plan includes 4,000 homes, a shopping center, 400 hotel rooms and several office buildings.
"I can't think of any sports team owner that would take a proposal like this even remotely seriously," Ganis said, noting that San Diego has proposed a major public subsidy for a new Chargers football stadium. "It's so one-sided and so bad, that it's almost as if local leaders are saying 'we can't really do anything, so go ahead and leave.' "
Raiders officials did not return calls Friday, and Kephart declined to comment.
Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said she could not comment because "Kephart's submittal is confidential." The City Council is scheduled to discuss the plan Tuesday in a private meeting. If the council and Alameda County Board of Supervisors sign off on it, they would then begin negotiations with the Raiders in hopes of building a new stadium by 2020.
Local officials turned to Kephart late last year to resuscitate the project known as Coliseum City after two major developers gave up on it.
The project has always been a difficult balancing act.
Kephart must satisfy the Raiders, who are working with the San Diego Chargers on a $1.7 billion stadium in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, where more corporate money is expected to be available to offset construction costs.
Oakland Raiders fans cheer during a preseason NFL game against the Oakland Raiders at O.co Coliseum in Oakland on Aug. 15, 2014. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
And he must satisfy local officials who are adamant about not helping pay for a stadium after taxpayers took a bath on the deal that brought the Raiders back from Los Angeles two decades ago.
Further complicating matters, the Oakland A's are also considering a new stadium at the Coliseum site but have ruled out building one next to a new football stadium or working with Kephart.
Kephart's solution, laid out in a 19-page presentation obtained by this paper, is a $4.2 billion development with the following provisions:
- Kephart's New City Development would purchase about 90 acres at the Coliseum site from the city and county for $116 million.
- The city and county would use $80 million from the land sale toward the construction of parking garages needed to serve the proposed homes, shops and offices.
- New City would reserve a parcel through Jan. 1, 2019, as a possible stadium site for the Oakland A's.
- Infrastructure improvements are projected at $100 million, with the money coming from grants.
As for building the $900 million stadium, $200 million would come from the NFL and another $200 million would come from the sale of seat licenses to season ticket holders, with the Raiders responsible if the revenue doesn't materialize.
In addition to $300 million in borrowed funding, the Raiders would contribute $100 million of their own money and another $100 million by investing half the proceeds of selling a piece of the team to New City.
Sports business analysts said they couldn't recall another stadium deal that required an NFL owner to essentially self-fund a stadium and sell off a piece of the team to do it.
"This does create a scenario by which Los Angeles becomes more attractive," said Robert Boland, a professor of sports business at New York University.
The proposal did not mention whether the team or city would be responsible for cost overruns. It also didn't name Kephart's financial partner, although sources have said that it is The Baupost Group, a major Boston-based hedge fund.
deal points
- New City buys 20 percent of Raiders for $200 million.
- New City buys most of Coliseum site for $116 million, based on recent appraisal.
- City leases land under stadium to Raiders for $250,000 per year.
- City and county put $80 million from land sale toward parking garages. New City puts $107 million toward parking garages.
- City and county are responsible for paying the nearly $100 million in debt on O.co Coliseum from prior renovation.
- City and county can issue new bonds to pay for community benefits such as affordable housing.
- Oakland A's will have a space for a ballpark development reserved until Jan. 1, 2019.
- The Golden State Warriors will be allowed to extend their lease at Oracle Arena.
- Football stadium to be completed by 2019; hotel to be completed by 2020; housing, retail, office to be completed by 2022.
http://www.insidebayarea.com/breaki...ive-oakland-stadium-deal-worst-by-far-raiders