Ok, now it's not gonna happen.... obviously. I thought I'd just get that out of the way.
But I made a crude and slightly off, but identafiable Sketch Up representation of what I thought a renovation to the O.com Coliseum would look like. So....
This is the direction I'd think the Raiders would go if they decided to renovate instead of build a new stadium if and when the A's left.
But this is just fantasy, of course....
Nicely done. You even have the Sun in the proper direction for a late afternoon in October in the first pic. Impressive. And the Raiders would probably be delighted with this project. One nitpick is having the two-tiered end zone stands to the north. Something like that would be perfect for the Black Hole, which is always at the south end.
So, assuming 23,000 seats in each peak of Mount Davis, and 9,000 in each end zone, I think that this will seat about 64,000, with about 180 suites. How does that sound?
I didn't know where the Black Hole was. I probably would have designed it differently if I did.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell wants to help keep the Raiders in Oakland.
On Thursday night, Goodell spoke about the prospects of a new stadium for the Raiders. The NFL commissioner says the league is willing to contribute up to $200 million to help fund the project. Of course this is if Raider and local officials can reach a deal of their own.
With the San Francisco 49ers building a new stadium the question was obviously asked if the Raiders could share the premises with them. Goodell said that decision would be made by the Raiders and 49ers.
For what its worth Raiders owner Mark Davis said in October that there were no plans to share a stadium with the 49ers.
Baseball’s Oakland Athletics, who also share the stadium with the Raiders, are also seeking a new stadium and have considered a move to San Jose.
The Raiders to make a " capacity adjustment" at the Coliseum. Tarping Mt. Davis and several sections of the original upper deck grandstand to reduce the capacity to around 51,000.
We have seen this coming for a while. The end of the Oakland Coliseum, aka O.co, lease and the plans for the building of Famers field in Los Angeles on a collision course. Whether the team stays in Oakland will be wholly dependent on the level of support they receive from the city of Oakland with regard to building a new stadium in the area.
The Raiders are doing what they have to do to try and keep the team in Oakland. The latest gesture is the final of many over the past couple years.
http://www.silverandblackpride.com/...ng-raiders-with-final-attempt-to-stay-oakland
The rest of the article is here:By Jerry McDonald
[email protected]
mercurynews.com
ALAMEDA -- Capacity for Raiders games at O.co Coliseum will be reduced by nearly 10,000 to 53,200 in 2013, and approximately 4,850 season-ticket holders from the east side high-rise structure known as "Mt. Davis" will be relocated, the club announced Wednesday.
Raiders CEO Amy Trask described the decision as a "tool" to ensure games remain on local television as well as to promote more of a community and family-friendly atmosphere.
Fans who paid $260 per season ticket on the east side structure will be moved to the west side third deck, and their tickets will cost $250 this season -- or $25 per game including preseason games.
All seats in the west side third deck from sections 304 through 330 will be $250 per season ticket -- even those that previously cost $610 or $460 depending on how close they were to the 50-yard line.
"It certainly makes this entire third deck very, very attractive to families -- especially families with a lot of kids," Trask said.
All other season ticket prices will be reduced $10.
In reducing the maximum capacity from 63,132 to 53,200, the Raiders will have the smallest venue in the NFL. Soldier Field, home of the Chicago Bears, seats 61,500.
With invoices having gone out to season-ticket holders starting Tuesday, Trask said it's too early to tell if the Raiders' 4-12 season in 2012 will cause a reduction in the amount of renewals for 2013.
Reaction to relocation has been met with concern with some season-ticket holders, although Trask said the Raiders will work with fans who want to stay near those they consider neighbors and friends.
Some people are just a little hesitant about change. ... It's not an insignificant but not an overwhelming number," Trask said.
The east side structure, built under terms of a deal that brought the Raiders back to Oakland from Los Angeles in 1995, probably will be covered with a tarp. Fans and media have long called it "Mt. Davis" after Al Davis, the late Raiders owner.
That's pretty embarrassing.
The Coliseum needs to be replaced. That's all I can say about this venue.
The only things actually wrong with it are it is more than 40 years old, and has narrow concourses. Plus the feedback loop where everybody has decided that it's the worst, without any evidence. It's actually a very good place to watch football. Baseball, not quite as good.
Well you can fix the concourses, sure. But if it's 40 years old, it's gonna need a bit more work than that.
Considering how the NFL works with stadiums, the days on this place are numbered if they don't renovate.
This is true. But there are no bench seats, like you have at Lambeau. There are no supporting columns blocking views, like you have at MetLife (and Candlestick!). The access and egress are excellent, with close proximity to both a 10 lane freeway and major mass transit. Almost all of the seats face the center of the field, and you have none of those enormous distances to the field that you get with end zone seats at Soldier Field. It's definitely showing it's age, but it's not that bad.