Category: Sacramento Kings

by Ken Gimblin

SAN FRANCISCO–Waterfront advocates lost a major volley after putting up a strong fight and nearly getting a ballot measure for the June election that would ask voters if there should be a height restriction for waterfront buidlings. Propositon B was voted down by the San Francisco Democratic party in a 13-12 vote to keep the measure off the ballot.

The measure would require voter approval for any new buildings at the waterfront over 40-105 feet, the party wanted to keep the measure off the ballot because without it it would allow development proposals such as the Golden State Warriors proposed arena at Piers 30-32 who almost considered looking at other alternatives. The Warriors want to build at Piers 30-32 a new 12 story arena, a 17 story luxury condo, and a ten story hotel.

The condo and hotel would be built across the street from Piers 30-32 where the new Warriors arena would play. The condo and hotel would be owned by the Warriors and the condo and hotel would help pay for the new arena. The political machine of San Francisco came out and got the vote out with the political help of the local trade unions who want jobs and to get the contstruction for the new arena.

The Union memebers called Proposition B a job killer if the ballot measure made the June election and with the knowledge that the voters would surely vote to restrict the height limit at the waterfront no unlimited height they would miss out on construction jobs for the new arena. With the party voting down the measure it could create a path for construction on the new arena, condo and hotel for the Warriors.

Committee member Hene Kelly who voted for the measure said that the proposition was not anti labor, “I do not beleive Proposition B is an enemy of the building trades.” There were other committee members who chose to abstain and did not vote in the narrow vote. Jon Golinger who is running the Yes on Proposition B campaign said that this was all politics with the real estate establishment of San Francisco, “It’s a sign that the real estate lobby is fully in control of this Democratic Party.”

The measure now goes to a legal challenge which will be argued in front of San Francisco Superior Court Judge Marla Miller. The hearing is designed to strike the measure from appearing in the June election. The lawsuit was filed by Tim Colen executive director of the San Francisco Housing Action Coalition, Michael Theriault, a leader of the Building and Construction Trades and Corrine Woods, a neighbor of the project site.

The Giants who said they wanted to construct a retail and condo complex at a parking lot by AT&T Park are underwriting the lawsuit. The Giants are in the fight for keeping the height limit measure off the ballot and it means profit for the team if they can get the complex started. The Warriors were mentioned for constructing the new arena in the Giants lot A if they can’t build at Piers 30-32 but with no height restriction in place the Warriors could construct at Piers 30-32 if the judge throws out the proposition on Monday.

Ken Gimblin is covering the arena developments for the Golden State Warriors and the Sacramento Kings for Sportstalk radio

That’s Amaurys News and Commentary

PHOENIX AZ–The Sacramento Kings are very close to getting their new arena under construction they only need to sort out the remaining parcel land with the old Macy’s building located between the downtown plaza mall and Old Sacramento in front of the Holiday Inn. Once done the Kings are able to break ground.

The Kings are still haggling with the owners of the property U.S. Bank and the other owner CalPERS. CalPERS says their willing to sell their share but U.S. Bank is fighting immient domain and said it would be difficult to recoup the price that the Kings are willing to buy the building for.

In comparision to the Warriors situation the Warriors need to convince San Francisco voters that they need a 12 story building at Piers 30-32 waterfront location. That drive is not going so well and there have been talks about the team buidling at AT&T Park or by nearby UCSF owned by Salesforce just off of Third Street.

In the Kings case once they get past the U.S. Bankers for the Macy’s building they can begin construction, they don’t have to deal with the environmentalists, they don’t have to worry about the views, the view of the bay or the bridge views like the Warriors do. This is the closest the Kings have come to getting their new building once they settle with U.S. Bank on the sales price.

The Warriors situation is different and it looks like Warrior owners Peter Gruber and Joe Lacob could be in for a long, long fight here. They’ll need the best attorneys possibly the business law dream team version as opposed to O.J.’s dream team of attorneys from L.A. Especially Gruber who knows all those big shot attorneys down there in L.A.

Both basketball teams are hoping to get an new arena built and the Kings are hoping to get their new arena built and ready by the 2016 season and the Warriors who have to deal with lots of opposition in the waterfront neighborhood of the city to get their arena built as the arguement alone concerning the height of the arena and the building of a condo and hotel owned by the Warriors across the street is also causing a political stir.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for Oakland Athletics baseball and does News and Commentary each week for Sportstalk radio

by Ken Gimblin

SAN FRANCISCO–Opponents who argue against any kind of development at Piers 30-32 are close to succeeding in stopping any kind of oversized arena, condo or hotel construction. The Golden State Warriors who are trying to move from Oakland to the city have not officially ruled out going to the piers but they realize their odds are not too good with the Waterfront Embarcadero and city voters prepared to vote down any kind of high rise buildings there that would block city views and most are opposed to the cost of rebuilding the piers at $180 million double the original cost.

After numerous discussions the Warriors are prepared to look at their options of leaving Oakland and getting on the waterfront nieghborhood in the city at either AT&T Park in parking lot A on property leased by the San Francisco Giants from the city or a Mission Bay site that is located by UCSF, the latter site is owned by Salesforce who might drive a hard bargain as the property value there is worth $248 million.

The third option is considered the strongest of the three site choices to build a new arena from the financial and least amount of red tape at the Mission Bay site.There would be very little opposition by San Francisco voters in constructing a new arena, new condos and a hotel in this neighborhood. The Warriors would not have to come up against a nieghborhood of opponents who would object to their views being blocked, the team would not have to sell this idea to such organizations like the Regional Bay Conservation and Development Commission, the State Lands Commission, and the Army Corps of Engineers.

The reviews for the Mission Bay site would only have to be overseen by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and two city commissions. City Hall is very supportive of bringing the Warriors to San Francisco in light of losing the San Francisco 49ers to the Southbay this year. A Mission Bay site would sweepingly be voted in to allow the construction of the Warriors new buildings in terms of less hoops to jump through like Piers 30-32. The $248 million Mission Bay price tag is the property price and parking rights at a cost of $23.3 million at a nearby Mission Bay garage and costs and interest on property taxes after the purchase would be additional.

The Warriors would pay the $248 million for the property rights for the Mission Bay site and the city would cover the $23.3 million on the garage costs which would be much less than the $180 million foudation rebuild just on the 13 acre lot at Piers 30-32. Salesforce spokesperson Dane Valley said that the Mission Bay site is just based on rumors and that the sale of the property has never been discussed with the NBA team, “we don’t comment on rumors or speculation” said Valley.

Warriors spokesman P.J. Johnston said the total focus of the club right now is only at Piers 30-32 and that the Warriors are not speculating on any other property either AT&T Park or Mission Bay, “We’re just not going to discuss other sites. Our focus remains on Piers 30-32, which we believe is spectacular, transit rich and a logical place of the event pavilion and eight acres of new public parks” said Johnston.

A source says that the Warriors are not that excited about Mission Bay anyway because of the proximity that it is outside of downtown’s transit centers, that the site lies south of the San Francisco Cal Train station and only the T light rail train comes to the UCSF site. The strongest thumbs down to the Mission Bay site is BART doesn’t run anywhere near the UCSF location. While there is lots of room to develop for what the Warriors are looking for in their customer demographic Mission Bay would not work because the Warriors want that foot traffic from the Embarcadero center crowd and the BART and Muni Metro traffic which is walking distance.

Ken Gimblin is covering the arena developments for the Golden State Warriors and the Sacramento Kings for Sportstalk Radio