http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/ci_2962319#

Will residents swing at A's pitch?
100 property owners stand between team, new stadium
By Paul T. Rosynsky, STAFF WRITER



OAKLAND "” Andy Hall knows all too well what it's like to stand in the way of "progress."
Eleven years ago, his soap-making business was relocated by the state government from Wood Street in West Oakland to make way for Interstate 880.

Hall remembers it both fondly and with anxiety.

The move and the government payoff allowed Hall to rid himself of an asbestos-laden building and replace it with a larger, more convenient warehouse.

But it cost him thousands of dollars in lost profits and construction as he prepared the new site for his business.

Now Hall and about 100 other property owners in an industrial area near McAfee Coliseum are facing a similar fate.

Their land has been targeted by the Oakland A's as a future site for a new $300 million to $400 million ballpark and housing development.

If the A's get their wish, a bakery, flea market, furniture repair shops and Hall's business, among others, would be replaced by a flashy outdoor retail center, apartment buildings and the ballpark.

The land might look useless while speeding by on Interstate 880, but it is home to more than 100 jobs. It produces Colombo bread and refurbishes furniture. It's used for storage and to make soap for car washes.

It was once home to a drive-in theater and now offers residents a flea market six days a week.

Most importantly for the property owners, it generates income.

Whether those owners think they can generate that income in another location or be satisfied with a lump sum payment to vacate will determine if the Oakland A's get a new home and the city a new neighborhood.

For Hall and about a dozen other property owners contacted last week,the decision is largely based on dollars.

"I would love to be allowed to just stay here," Hall said as he described the convenience his warehouse brings to his business and customers. "But I'm willing to sell to them if they make it attractive to me."

What the property owners think is attractive and what the A's are willing to pay, if anything, remains to be seen.

Despite giving a detailed description of what the team wants to do with the land, managing partner Lewis Wolff has not answered critical questions regarding the potential development.

Who would pay for the land?

What would happen to a railroad tracks that run through the property? In what capacity will the city of Oakland and Alameda County help in the effort to secure the more than 100 acres?

"There are probably more questions than we have answers for right now," A's spokesman Jim Young said. "(Wolff) made it very clear in the presentation he was looking for the city to help acquire that land ... how that process is done, we are going to need a great deal of assistance from the city."

Whoever ends up buying the land, if the proposal moves forward, is going to need a lot of cash as well.

A review of the property records for each lot in the area shows the land would cost almost as much as the stadium.

The land and all the buildings on it have an assessed value of more than $109 million, records from the Alameda County Property Appraiser Office show. But that value is what is assessed. Typically the price is higher in terms of market value.

The cost would rise once business relocations are taken into consideration.

And judging by what a dozen current property owners in the area said, market value must be offered and business relocations made.
"I think Mr. Wolff is going to need to win the lottery to get that project done," said George Fernbacher, owner of 10,000-square-foot warehouse on Coliseum Way that is home to a furniture upholster. "If we are allowed to make some money, then we can look at it. But I don't think Mr. Wolff is going to be able to steam roll over us."

"I would not be real excited about selling the land and then having to try to find a new place," added Jim Olesnanik, owner of 20,000-square-foot warehouse on Kevin Court used to package honey.

For his part, Wolff appears to understand negotiations will work better than demands.

Wolff stressed during his presentation last week the team wants to avoid using the government's eminent domain power to grab the land. Under that law, which the U.S. Supreme Court made more powerful this year, the city can take land from private owners for "economic development."

"We understand and we want to assure that property owners in the area will need to be satisfied and treated fairly," Wolff wrote in a letter to Oakland and Alameda County last Monday. "We believe, under the right circumstances, a win-win-win outcome is possible if all involved parties have a willingness to advance the redevelopment of the suggested area."

At the same time, Wolff pointed to the fact that land is currently in a redevelopment area and is probably considered blight under city laws, the letter obtained by the Oakland Tribune said.

Wolff also cautions "claims of appreciation" related to the suggested venue location project cannot be a factor in considering the fair market value.

Only one City Council member, Larry Reid, has said the city would definitely use the eminent domain power to make the deal work.

Others were less convinced about not using it.

"It's just too early to tell right now," said Oakland City Council President Ignacio De La Fuente (Glenview-Fruitvale). "We have to do it right."

Nevertheless, property owners in the area are vehemently opposed to the use of eminent domain and promised to bring "bus loads" of attorneys to the area if the city begins using that power.

"We all would find very good lawyers at that point, I guarantee it," said an owner of a self storage yard on San Leandro Street who declined to be identified in this article.

For the property owners, the land is a livelihood.

Some of it is used to supplement retirement savings. Some is used for businesses shooed from other city locations. Other parcels are owned by the government or organizations for storage.

"I purchased these properties for my retirement. If the city takes it, my income goes in half or less," said Howard Robinson Jr., who leases a warehouse to a paint company. "I don't want to sell my property to someone who can make even more money on it."


Nick Lammers - STAFF
If the Oakland Athletics get their wish, Andy Hall's soap-making business would probably be the outfield site for a proposed $300 million to $400 million ballpark. Hall's business has been near the corner of 66th Street and Coliseum Way for the last 11 years.

NO.