Colossal confusion continues to cloud Coliseum deals

Oakland wants to amend its Coliseum deal to sync up with county’s sale, but the proposal takes AASEG off the hook for a large summer payment; Hints about why county's Coliseum deal has stalled

☕️MORNING BUZZ

—The African American Sports and Entertainment Group (AASEG) has largely failed to put much cash into the proposed $105 million purchase of Oakland’s 50 percent undivided interest in the Coliseum complex.

An amended ordinance authored by Councimembers Rebecca Kaplan and Ken Houston seeks to amend the agreement and remove a key requirement approved last June that AASEG pay $60 million of the purchase price before July 1.

The legislation comes before the Oakland City Council this afternoon.

AASEG paid a non-refundable $5 million payment toward purchase of the city’s half of the Coliseum after blowing through several schedule payments last fall.

The proposed amended ordinance will allow AASEG the ability to sync the purchase of the city and county’s shares of the Coliseum, and was requested by Alameda County Supervisor David Haubert, according to city staff.

—The sale of the entire property cannot be closed until bonds associated with long-ago Coliseum infrastructure improvements are paid off in the spring of 2026. Monday’s amended ordinance requires the Coliseum deal close no later than June 30, 2026.

“I know the public is anxious for us to show something with this deal and I think this is a step in the positive direction,” Interim Oakland Mayor Kevin Jenkins said.

—On March 6, Alameda County supervisors attempted to boost the confidence of prospective investors for the efficacy of the proposed $5 billion Coliseum housing and retail development project.

—“What I’m saying is a message to investors that we want to see this deal to happen,” Supervisor Nate Miley said last month.

—The unorthodox public comments only highlighted persistent questions about AASEG/OAC’s ability to finance the deal have not been resolved.

—Oakland’s proposed amendment to strike a requirement that AASEG pay $60 million of the price for Oakland’s half of the Coliseum only underscores investors jitters about the project.

—Supervisor Nikki Fortunato Bas and Miley expressed hope last month that a Coliseum deal would get done sooner rather than later, but that has not occurred.

—Supervisors Haubert and Miley joined the negotiator’s table three weeks ago. Despite repeated descriptions of fruitful talks, their involvement has not yielded a deal.

—More inside:

• Special election: Lee, Taylor laid out their first 100 days in office. Plus, turnout numbers are surprisingly strong.

• Reasons why county’s Coliseum deal has stalled remains unclear, but two Oakland officials gave us hints last week.

• Alameda County needs even more money for affordable housing. Some type of revenue-generating ballot measure could be coming to your ballot in 2026.

• Where do I live? U.S Postal Service to recognize the names of unincorporated areas on mailing addresses.

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