Key agreements OK'd for A's Las Vegas ballpark project

Mick Akers, Las Vegas Review-Journal on Dec 5, 2024

Published in Baseball

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LAS VEGAS — The Athletics’ relocation to Las Vegas cleared a major hurdle Thursday with the approval of three long-anticipated agreements required before ballpark construction can begin.

The Las Vegas Stadium Authority approved the development, non-relocation and lease agreements for the A’s ballpark during a Thursday afternoon meeting. The agreements detail how the planned Strip stadium will be built and how the team’s tenure in Las Vegas will be regulated.

The lease and non-relocation agreements are for an initial term of 30 years, with the ability to extend the lease multiple times, up to a potential 99 years. There are stipulations to what occurs if the A’s try to relocate before the lease is up or if the stadium becomes unplayable for a variety of reasons and what the team could do during that time.

The development agreement includes a stipulation that the A’s must spend the first $100 million on the project before public funding is made available for use. The A’s reported that they have already spent $40 million during the planning phase of the project.

The A’s are also responsible for any project cost overruns; the public funding available for the project is capped at $380 million, per SB1.

Stadium construction financing was also discussed and approved Thursday, with the A’s presenting a series of letters breaking down the funding mechanisms and providing assurances from financial institutions about the Fisher family’s ability to fund the project.

Stadium construction costs are estimated at $1.75 billion, up $250 million from the initial $1.5 billion estimate.

A’s owner John Fisher and his family will be responsible for $1.4 billion of the cost. That is set to be paid for by a $1.1 billion Fisher family equity contribution and $300 million via a construction loan from U.S. Bank and Goldman Sachs.

The remaining $350 million will come from public funding made available by the signing of Senate Bill 1 into law in 2023.

Workforce requirements in SB1 stipulate that the A’s must ensure that 51% of workers in the stadium construction project be women, minority, veterans or disabled and that 15% of the stadium’s work be contracted to local businesses.