After getting waterfront ballpark milestone, A’s messaging to Bay Area, Las Vegas differ

Certification a "milestone" — but was it “significant” or “necessary, but not sufficient” for A's?

The remarks made by Oakland A’s president Dave Kaval and the A’s organization in reaction to moving forward on the Howard Terminal ballpark differ, depending on where you read them.

In the Bay Area, Kaval told Bay Area News Group on Friday that the A’s are “thrilled” at what the team called a “significant milestone” Thursday night, when the Oakland City Council certified the waterfront ballpark’s environmental impact report (EIR).

But in Las Vegas, it was “a necessary, but not sufficient milestone,” per Kaval’s words to Mick Akers of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, and the team may already have a preferred ballpark location near the Las Vegas Strip.

It’s a dizzying split in comments coming after the Oakland City Council’s 6-2 vote to approve the 3,500-page EIR and cleared the first of a few hurdles needed to get the waterfront ballpark project started. The approval was cause for celebration on both Twitter – with Kaval saying “Boom” and saying the vote was a “big step closer” – and in an email sent out to fans on Saturday morning, calling the vote a “significant milestone.”

Boom YES Vote! @Athletics Big step closer to a new waterfront ballpark at Howard Terminal! https://t.co/dTK3bkZ5UV pic.twitter.com/pVHV8UsXXr

— Dave Kaval (@DaveKaval) February 18, 2022

“Our waterfront ballpark is a once-in-a-generation project, creating transformative environmental and community benefits for Oakland, and setting the stage for more World Championships for our fans,” the A’s said in the email.

“We thank our fans, community members, and civic leaders who shared their support during the EIR process and in public meetings. While this is the furthest we have come in securing a new ballpark in Oakland for the Athletics, we have more work to do. We now look forward to finalizing the development agreement and community benefits agreement before a vote later this year.”

But Kaval’s quotes to Akers of the Las Vegas Review-Journal strike a far different tone.

“It’s a necessary, but not sufficient milestone,” Kaval said to the Review-Journal on Friday. “We (still) have the big economic deal now that has to be worked out with the city of Oakland.”

Kaval detailed the progress of the A’s work in the Las Vegas area to Akers and the Review-Journal, discussing different locations, term sheets and even a highly-thought-of location in the Resort Corridor, the area around the famous Las Vegas Strip. Kaval also said he spoke about the Las Vegas area at MLB’s owners meetings last week and how the major events other sports leagues are now holding there stood out to MLB.

“That it can both support and amplify these incredible gem events, I think that would bode very well for baseball and we need a baseball stadium there to make it happen,” Kaval said to the Review-Journal. “It’s another great reason to have a MLB team in Southern Nevada.”

It’s certainly a different tone from what is being told to fans in Oakland, especially as the team’s website still flashes the team’s “Rooted In Oakland” rallying slogan at the very top. That continued in the team’s messaging on Saturday, too, as the A’s released an eight-minute interview Kaval did with Chris Townsend on the A’s Cast podcast where Kaval called the certification “a tremendous accomplishment for everyone involved.”

“Well, we’ve never been closer to making our waterfront ballpark vision a reality than today,” Kaval said on the podcast. “It’s really just been critical. We’re really happy about achieving that big milestone.”

But Kaval then went on to discuss details of the “parallel path” the team is taking in Southern Nevada, and even contrasted what working with officials in the two places is like.

“California is a little more process-based, Nevada is a little more wide open in terms of how you get deals done and it’s more commercially-minded,” Kaval said on the podcast. “We’re just on those two parallel paths, trying to make as much progress as possible.”

The biggest thing left, in Kaval’s words, is “running the gantlet” of votes from Oakland’s planning commission, city council and the Port of Oakland. With the team’s lease at the Oakland Coliseum expiring in 2024, Kaval wants a resolution this summer to find a new ballpark — no matter where it is.

“At the end of the day, we need to find a Major League stadium, a new home for the A’s, whether it’s in Oakland or Las Vegas,” Kaval said on the podcast. “Because our current situation is so untenable.”

Thursday was a milestone to achieving that. Whether it was “significant” or “necessary, but not sufficient” depends on where you’re reading comments from Kaval and the team.