Oakland To Spend Up To $750,000 On Ballpark Study
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- Oakland City Council members have voted to spend up to $750,000 on an environmental study for a new ballpark for the Athletics, even though the city has no guarantees that the club will stay in town.
The Oakland Tribune reports team owner Lew Wolff is trying to move the team to San Jose.
The council voted 6-2 Tuesday to hire LSA Associates to study the environmental and physical impacts of building a 39,000-seat baseball stadium southeast of Oakland's Jack London Square.
Councilmembers Ignacio De La Fuente and Nancy Nadel voted not to fund the study, saying it's foolish to spend money given the uncertainty of the Athletics' future in Oakland.
Council President Jane Brunner sympathized, but said, "If we did not do this, we would be out of the game tomorrow."