The Howard Terminal Stadium would be an unmitigated disaster for all but Oakland's wealthiest residents. We do not need 4,000 units of luxury housing in and around West Oakland. The land that is proposed for the development is currently used to mitigate the environmental and health impacts of trucks leaving the Port, a situation that is already bad but would be made worse if Howard Terminal was turned into a stadium. Additionally, the land that is proposed for this monstrous development will be underwater by 2030 and is extremely vulnerable to earthquakes. That area does not have the infrastructure to support a sports stadium, especially given that BART has made it clear that they have no plans to build another station. The Oakland A's have a perfectly good stadium right now that they could renovate. The stadium has large parcels, currently parking lots, that the Fishers could develop. That stadium already has its own BART station. The Fishers are trying to say that the stadium would be privately funded, but this is misleading as all of the infrastructure for the new stadium would be paid for through taxes. The idea that Oakland would care more for a sports team owned by one of the richest families in the U.S. than its own residents is absurd. Please stand up to corporate greed and say no to Howard Terminal.
Many decisions are made about city operations and services that affect the quality of life of residents. It would be helpful if residents had opportunities for public feedback and education at the earliest points of consideration - before matters are voted on by the Council.