WORLDS COLLIDE

Fact: since I was six, I have devoted a disproportionate amount of time rooting for the Oakland A’s: celebrating their successes, feeling the pain of their failures, and never too far away from thinking of the team.

Fact: since May, I have devoted a disproportionate amount of time working on my independent study: learning about transit-oriented development, talking with local officials and neighborhood residents, and never too far away from working on the paper.

Today, these two worlds collided. For the owner of the A’s has unveiled a plan for a new ballpark village, which will not just be a baseball stadium but a mixed-use development with condos and retail. All he wants from the city of Oakland is the land – any land near a transit stop. They’re looking at an industrial location near the current stadium, and have promised to pay fair market for anyone who they’ll have to buy out.

Land use issues? Development near transit? My beloved A’s? A brand new ballpark? I can’t help but keep one eye on this story.

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liberranter said…
Nice to see a trend in MLB lately. First George Steinbrenner has made it clear that a new Yankee Stadium WILL NOT be financed with a single dime of taxpayer money (man, do I HATE having to pay Steinbrenner or the Yankees a compliment). Sounds like the A's ownership is saying the same thing. Good on'em!

I, too, have something of a soft spot in my heart for the A's, having spent my teenage years living in San Jose (and knowing too many obnoxious Giants fans EVER to feel an affinity for that team of their city). But, since having lived in the greater D.C. area for the last sixteen years, I've been a loyal Baltimore Orioles fan, so I mostly enjoy watching the A's and O's go at it from an O's fan's perspective.

Still, I'm glad you posted this bit of news. If this is indicative of a trend, it may bring back some of the respectability that baseball has lost over the last decade.
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