Athletics owner John Fisher and his family will invest $1 billion into the construction of a stadium in Las Vegas while U.S. Bank and Goldman Sachs will offer a $300 million loan, club executive Sandy Dean said Thursday.
Dean made his remarks to a special meeting of the Las Vegas Stadium Authority board.
He said that four letters will be presented at the Dec. 5 authority meeting asserting construction details and that financing will be in place. Final approvals are expected to be made at that meeting to allow construction of the $1.5 billion, 33,000-seat domed ballpark.
“We feel like we’re on the right path and it will become clearer in the months ahead,” Dean told the board.
Construction is expected to begin in the spring with a targeted opening before the 2028 season. As much as $380 million in public funding will go into building the stadium, which will be on the Las Vegas Strip on the site where the recently demolished Tropicana stood.
The Athletics will play at least the next three seasons in West Sacramento, California. The team announced Thursday that it will play 60 of its 81 home games in 2025 at night, with 11 of the day games held in April and May.
The scheduling appears to be a step to mitigate concerns about playing in extreme heat in Sacramento. The city experienced its hottest 20-day stretch on record earlier this summer, with temperatures averaging 103.8 degrees from June 23 to July 12.
The Athletics announced earlier this month that they would play on natural grass in Sacramento.
The 60 home night games would tie the 1968 Athletics for the most in a season in franchise history.
The Athletics are sharing Sutter Health Park with the Triple-A River Cats, a Giants affiliate. Major League Baseball and Minor League Baseball worked together to ensure that both teams will not play at home on the same day.
The A’s played their last of 57 seasons in Oakland, California, this year.
Information from ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez and The Associated Press was used in this report.
Source: www.espn.com