http://www.insidebayarea.com/a...ocalnews/ci_11475154

A's warming to Warm Springs

Matthew Artz
The Argus

Posted: 01/16/2009 07:41:55 PM PST
Updated: 01/16/2009 07:41:55 PM PST

FREMONT — The Oakland A's drive for a new stadium now seems primarily focused in the Warm Springs district, team and city officials said Friday.

The team will be amending its development application shortly to seek a full-fledged environmental review to move the ballpark closer to the future Warm Springs BART station, "most likely" the preferred location now, A's co-owner Keith Wolff said.

A draft environmental impact report studying both the Warm Springs location and the team's original plan to build the ballpark — as well as housing and shops — west of Interstate 880 near the Pacific Commons Shopping Center off Auto Mall Parkway is expected to be released this summer.

While the A's haven't completely given up on their original ballpark village proposal, they've introduced the alternative site in Warm Springs primarily because they have been unable to reach an agreement with the first site's main landholder, ProLogis, and three of its major retail tenants.

ProLogis, a real estate investment trust, owns the shopping center and the proposed ballpark site, and thus can block the project.

With its initial plans in serious jeopardy, the team has grown more interested in the Warm Springs BART site, which is preferred by regional transportation and environmental groups. But that location, just west of Interstate 680 near the intersection of Osgood Road and Grimmer Boulevard, presents its own share of hurdles.

Many Warm Springs residents oppose building a ballpark there, fearing a stadium would cause traffic gridlock and noise for residents living on the east side of the freeway.

The team doesn't own any land near the BART site, and would have to purchase several lots on which to build the stadium.

The A's hope to have a clear sense if either project is viable by June, Wolff said.

He refused to speculate which city the team might turn to next if it appears the City Council won't approve a stadium plan.

The new proposal, for a ballpark in the immediate vicinity of the future BART station, still would keep retail and housing near Pacific Commons — something ProLogis would not oppose.

If Fremont approves the environmental review, the team would have to return with a more specific plan showing exactly where the stadium would go, said Jill Keimach, the city's community development director.

With the environmental study nearly completed for the Pacific Commons site, the next few months of traffic studies and other environmental analysis will focus on Warm Springs, Wolff said.

The team has been meeting with small groups of residents and proposing ideas to ease their concerns.

When the new application is submitted, the city will hold a second round of public meetings, allowing residents to comment on the plan.

The opposition in Warm Springs is a significant obstacle, Mayor Bob Wasserman said. "By volume, it's a lot of people."

Several months ago, the ballpark village plan ran into opposition from three anchor tenants at Pacific Commons: Kohl's, Lowe's and Costco. The owners of those companies said they think a ballpark would cause traffic and parking problems.

Fremont reporter Matthew Artz can be reached at 510-353-7002 or martz@bayareanewsgroup.com. Read his blog posts at www.ibabuzz.com/tricitybeat/.