LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Oakland Athletics have reached an agreement with Bally’s and Gaming & Leisure Properties to build a potential stadium on the Tropicana hotel grounds along the Las Vegas Strip.
Bally’s Corp. made the announcement on Monday for a 30,000-seat stadium on the 35-acre site. The project is expected to cost about $1.5 billion, and the A’s are seeking nearly $400 million in public support from the Nevada Legislature, which could vote on a proposal this week.
The A’s before previously signed an agreement to also build a stadium on Tropicana Avenue, but on the other side of Interstate 15 that runs along the Strip. They were expected to ask the legislature for $500 million in public funds for the 49-acre site that would have encompassed much more than a stadium.
The new agreement is a scaled-down proposal, but the location is within a shorter walking distance for fans staying in hotels on the south side of the Strip. “We are excited about the potential to bring Major League Baseball to this iconic location,” A’s president Dave Kaval said in a statement, “We are excited to partner with Bally’s and GLPI, and look forward to finalizing the plans.” to bring athletics to Southern Nevada.”
Kaval has said he hopes to break ground on a new ballpark next year and open the venue in time for the 2027 season. The A’s have a lease at Oakland Coliseum through 2024, and they can play the 2025 and ’26 seasons at Las Vegas Ballpark, home of their Triple-A affiliated Aviators.
Opened in 1957, the Tropicana drew A-listers like Sammy Davis Jr. in its heyday. Now overshadowed by nearby mega-resorts like the MGM Grand, New York-New York, and Mandalay Bay, the Trop will soon likely suffer the fate of so many other historic Las Vegas hotels that are no longer there.
“We are honored to have been selected to partner with the Oakland Athletics on this monumental step to help bring Major League Baseball to the great city of Las Vegas, and to be a part of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to build a professional baseball team that is a short walk from the Las Vegas Strip,” Bally President George Papanier said in a statement. .”
The A’s had been looking for a new home for years to replace the aging and dilapidated Oakland Coliseum, where the team has played since arriving from Kansas City in 1968. There are fewer than 9,500 fans at home on average this season, by far the lowest of the 30 teams.
The team was in negotiations with the city of Oakland to build a stadium on the waterfront, but shifted focus entirely to Las Vegas last month. The A’s exclusive negotiating rights with the Port of Oakland for the Howard Terminal site expired last Friday, allowing the port to negotiate with other parties interested in using the downtown location.
On Friday, the A’s also reached a deal with the Culinary Union, a politically powerful Nevada union representing more than 60,000 workers, mostly in the Las Vegas area, that guarantees A’s employees the right to organize and negotiate union contracts. negotiate.
“We hope that there will be a path forward for all stakeholders so that the Las Vegas A’s can join the Las Vegas Golden Knights and the Las Vegas Raiders to continue this transformation as Las Vegas, the entertainment capital of the world, also the sports capital of the world,” Culinary Union secretary-treasurer Ted Pappageorge said in a statement.
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Associated Press/Report for America writer Gabe Stern and AP Sports writer Josh Dubow contributed to this report.
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