New 49ers Stadium
Encyclopedia
Proposed new 49ers stadium refers to a proposed stadium to be built in Santa Clara, California
in time for the 2015 National Football League
(NFL) season.
On June 8, 2010, voters in Santa Clara, a suburban city just northwest of San Jose
, voted to adopt Measure J, which allows the City of Santa Clara to lease land, currently occupied by Great America theme park's overflow parking lot, to the 49ers Stadium Authority in order to construct a new 68,500-seat football stadium, where the San Francisco 49ers
will be the primary tenant. Assuming necessary funds can be secured in time, construction will start in 2012.
The 49ers initially presented a plan on July 18, 2006, to construct a new 68,500-seat, open-air stadium to be built in time for the 2015 NFL Season at Candlestick Point in San Francisco. Originally, part of the area surrounding the current 49ers venue, Candlestick Park, was to be zoned for retail space and housing; the new 49ers stadium was to be combined with such elements, bringing much-needed attractions to the historically blighted neighborhood of Hunters Point
. Currently, after failed attempts by the 49ers and the city of San Francisco to come to an agreement on the location of the new stadium, the 49ers have focused their attention on the Santa Clara stadium site, where the 49ers' administrative offices and training facility have been located since 1987.
There are also ongoing discussions for the Oakland Raiders
to possibly share the stadium with the 49ers.
916 million. Lennar Corporation would build housing, retail, and office space around the stadium area. The stadium would be stocked with 150 luxury suites, 7,500 premium club seats, and an increased amount of seats lower and closer to the field, called "bowl seating," potentially raising the 49ers franchise value up as much as $250 million and offering at least $300 million in advertising and concession deals, the majority of which from paid corporate naming. The architectural design would be reminiscent of San Francisco buildings and offer a view of the San Francisco skyline to the north.
The current proposed Santa Clara stadium is being designed by HNTB, an internationally renowned architecture firm focused on creating a multi-purpose stadium, with the fan experience and green technology as top priorities.
and the FIFA World Cup
. The seating design of the stadium puts approximately two‐thirds of the fans in the lower bowl. It will be one of the largest lower bowls in the entire NFL. The design features significantly improved accessibility and seating options for fans with special needs and disabilities when compared to Candlestick Park.
Multi-use facility: The stadium can be configured for special touring events including concerts, motocross events, and other community events. The stadium is also designed to meet the FIFA field geometry requirements for international soccer, which will allow it to host international friendly matches and premier tournaments such as the FIFA World Cup. The stadium will also feature over 109000 square feet (10,126.4 m²) of flexible premium meeting space in the club areas.
. The stadium is a sentimental fan-favorite and has housed all 5 Super Bowl Championship teams. It is however the oldest unrenovated stadium in the NFL and is beginning to show its age. The 49ers have been pursuing a new stadium since 1997, when a plan for a stadium and a mall at Candlestick Point passed a public vote. When the plans failed to move forward, the San Francisco 49ers presented an alternative plan on July 18, 2006, to construct a new 68,500-seat, open air stadium as part of a mixed use development featuring housing, commercial and retail space. In November 2006 the team announced that plans for a new stadium at Candlestick Point was not feasible, “citing extensive costs for infrastructure, parking accommodations and other changes that would cost more than the stadium itself”. The 49ers are now focused on making Santa Clara the home to their new stadium. The 49ers’ headquarters and training facility have been located in the city of Santa Clara since 1988.
. When the stadium plans stalled, the game went to Qualcomm Stadium
instead.
For years, the city and team ownership were embattled over attempts to gain funding and a green-light for construction of a new stadium. None of these attempts proved to be successful.
Gavin Newsom
wanted to bring the 2016 Summer Olympics
to the city, and a new stadium would sweeten the city's proposal for selection by the United States Olympic Committee
as the official US submission to the IOC. The announcement came in November 2006, with the new 49ers stadium as the centerpiece of an Olympics bid, and the construction of the Olympic village would be converted into low-income housing after the games were over.
The project planning did not get off to a good start, however, with contention between the 49ers and the city of San Francisco over viable locations for the new stadium. Initially, the idea was to build a stadium in the parking lot of Candlestick Park and later demolish the aging stadium. Team ownership feared that construction of the village and the stadium would severely limit the amount of land available in Candlestick Point, creating a parking problem for fans and increasing traffic along the only two-lane road that links the stadium to the freeway. Moreover, with residents in the low-income housing by 2016, traffic would be increased indefinitely, further damaging the already-limited methods of transportation to the park.
With San Francisco slow to come up with better locations for the stadium or ways to circumvent the problems posed by a construction at Candlestick Point, team owners Denise DeBartolo York
and John York
announced on November 9, 2006, that the 49ers were shifting its efforts to create a new stadium to the city of Santa Clara, approximately 40 miles (64.4 km) south of San Francisco (and existing home to the team offices and training facility).
The sudden removal of the planned stadium forced the San Francisco Olympics bid group to cancel its proposal, which engendered great anger not only from Mayor Newsom, but also from such 49ers legends as Joe Montana and Ronnie Lott who were part of the effort to bring the Olympics to the Bay Area. In addition, many fans were outraged at the suggestion to move the 49ers out of the city that it had shared history with for decades. The Yorks insisted that the legacy of the franchise would be respected in the sense that the 49ers would not be renamed nor moved out of the Bay Area. This was met with much opposition from Mayor Newsom and Senator Dianne Feinstein
(who was mayor of San Francisco
between 1978 and 1988); the senator stated that the team should be unable to use the San Francisco name if its operations were not based in the city. On January 3, 2007, California State Senator
Carole Migden
introduced a bill, entitled SB49, that would bar the 49ers from building a new stadium within a 100 miles (160.9 km) radius of San Francisco, if they were to leave the city. The 49ers organization announced its strong opposition to the legislation and retorted that passing such a bill would only encourage the team to move out of the Bay Area altogether.
Measure J was approved by the voters; the 49ers and County of Santa Clara now need to raise $937 million for the stadium, construction of which is scheduled to begin in 2012. If construction proceeds on time, the stadium is scheduled to be ready in 2015.
Most city council members in Santa Clara are extremely receptive to the possibility of a new stadium being constructed there for the 49ers. In 2009, the Santa Clara City Council and city employees began negotiating in earnest with the team, who presented the city with stadium plans. On June 2, 2009, by a 5 to 2 vote, the Santa Clara city council agreed to preliminary terms (as detailed in a term sheet), and there will be a vote by City of
Santa Clara voters on whether to approve the stadium proposal in a June 8, 2010 election. Team officials have said that the team's name will not change; the team will continue to be called the San Francisco 49ers even when the move to Santa Clara is complete.
on the stadium issue in favor of a ballot initiative from a 49ers-backed group. The ballot initiative was voted on on June 8, 2010 and passed election. The ballot measure has been designated Measure J. Santa Clara City Council members William Kennedy and Jamie McLeod had opposed the stadium project and worked (unsuccessfully) to get Measure J defeated.
rivals, the Oakland Raiders
, might share the stadium. This would be due to cost reasons, as both teams would split the costs of the stadium. The 49ers and Raiders have publicly said it would be an option if possible, while NFL commissioner Roger Goodell
is strongly in favor of the two sharing a stadium. Along with the New York metropolitan area
(where both the New York Giants
and New York Jets
shared Giants Stadium
from 1984-2009 and currently share its successor, MetLife Stadium, which both teams financed), the Bay Area is one of two NFL markets with two teams.
The 49ers and Raiders sharing a stadium would not be unprecedented, as the two shared Kezar Stadium
in 1960. It would also fulfill the late Raiders owner Al Davis
' elusive goal of a new stadium, something he had strongly desired since moving the team
from Los Angeles
back to Oakland
in 1995.
In the wake of Davis' death, the possibility of the 49ers and Raiders sharing the stadium became a stronger possibility, as the Raiders would be more receptive to the idea. However, as of October 2011
the 49ers were far enough along on the stadium to have reportedly already sold over a quarter of the luxury suites
, which means the Raiders would be forced to be secondary tenants. This is not unlike the Jets being the tenants of the Giants after they moved into Giants Stadium from Shea Stadium
in 1984.
. Edward P. Roski
, a part-owner of the Los Angeles Lakers
and Los Angeles Kings
, has announced plans for a new stadium, tentatively titled Los Angeles Stadium
, on the northern side of the interchange of State Routes 57
and 60
(almost 22 miles (35.4 km) east of downtown LA) with the purpose of attracting a team to the Los Angeles region. Roski, who built the Staples Center
, stated that the new 75,000 seat stadium would be privately financed and would be the centerpiece of a new entertainment complex in City of Industry
.
Santa Clara, California
Santa Clara , founded in 1777 and incorporated in 1852, is a city in Santa Clara County, in the U.S. state of California. The city is the site of the eighth of 21 California missions, Mission Santa Clara de Asís, and was named after the mission. The Mission and Mission Gardens are located on the...
in time for the 2015 National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
(NFL) season.
On June 8, 2010, voters in Santa Clara, a suburban city just northwest of San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
, voted to adopt Measure J, which allows the City of Santa Clara to lease land, currently occupied by Great America theme park's overflow parking lot, to the 49ers Stadium Authority in order to construct a new 68,500-seat football stadium, where the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
will be the primary tenant. Assuming necessary funds can be secured in time, construction will start in 2012.
The 49ers initially presented a plan on July 18, 2006, to construct a new 68,500-seat, open-air stadium to be built in time for the 2015 NFL Season at Candlestick Point in San Francisco. Originally, part of the area surrounding the current 49ers venue, Candlestick Park, was to be zoned for retail space and housing; the new 49ers stadium was to be combined with such elements, bringing much-needed attractions to the historically blighted neighborhood of Hunters Point
Hunters Point, San Francisco, California
Bayview-Hunters Point or The Bayview, is a neighborhood in the southeastern corner of San Francisco, California, United States. The decommissioned Hunters Point Naval Shipyard is located within its boundaries and Candlestick Park is on the southern edge....
. Currently, after failed attempts by the 49ers and the city of San Francisco to come to an agreement on the location of the new stadium, the 49ers have focused their attention on the Santa Clara stadium site, where the 49ers' administrative offices and training facility have been located since 1987.
There are also ongoing discussions for the Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
to possibly share the stadium with the 49ers.
Santa Clara stadium design proposal
When the stadium plans were still set in San Francisco, the new 68,500 seat stadium was to be built at Candlestick Point on land just southeast of Candlestick Park. The cost of the stadium would be $United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
916 million. Lennar Corporation would build housing, retail, and office space around the stadium area. The stadium would be stocked with 150 luxury suites, 7,500 premium club seats, and an increased amount of seats lower and closer to the field, called "bowl seating," potentially raising the 49ers franchise value up as much as $250 million and offering at least $300 million in advertising and concession deals, the majority of which from paid corporate naming. The architectural design would be reminiscent of San Francisco buildings and offer a view of the San Francisco skyline to the north.
The current proposed Santa Clara stadium is being designed by HNTB, an internationally renowned architecture firm focused on creating a multi-purpose stadium, with the fan experience and green technology as top priorities.
Basic stadium features
The Santa Clara stadium will be an open stadium with a natural grass field. It will have a seating capacity of 68,500, expandable to approximately 75,000 to host premier events like the Super BowlSuper Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
and the FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
. The seating design of the stadium puts approximately two‐thirds of the fans in the lower bowl. It will be one of the largest lower bowls in the entire NFL. The design features significantly improved accessibility and seating options for fans with special needs and disabilities when compared to Candlestick Park.
Multi-use facility: The stadium can be configured for special touring events including concerts, motocross events, and other community events. The stadium is also designed to meet the FIFA field geometry requirements for international soccer, which will allow it to host international friendly matches and premier tournaments such as the FIFA World Cup. The stadium will also feature over 109000 square feet (10,126.4 m²) of flexible premium meeting space in the club areas.
Environmental sustainability
The stadium is currently one of the largest buildings registered with the US Green Building Council; it is also believed to be the first stadium that will have both a green roof and solar panels. The 49ers are exploring collaborative opportunities with the Environmental Protection Agency to explore environmentally friendly components including:- Use of an outside commissioning agent to verify that energy‐related systems are installed, calibrated and performing in compliance with the project requirements;
- Utilization of public transit nearby including VTASanta Clara Valley Transportation AuthorityThe Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority is a special-purpose district responsible for public transit services, congestion management, specific highway improvement projects, and countywide transportation planning for Santa Clara County, California, United States...
, ACEAltamont Commuter ExpressThe Altamont Commuter Express is a regional rail service in California connecting Stockton with San Jose....
, and AmtrakAmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
; - Construction of a green roof (27,000± sf), and photovoltaic panels (20,000± sf);
- Use of paving materials , and roofing materials with a high solar reflectance index;
- Use of recycled water for landscape irrigation, toilets and urinals along with water‐conserving fixtures;
- No use of CFC‐based refrigerants in the HVAC systems. Systems will instead use refrigerants that minimize compounds that contribute to ozone depletion;
- Installation of permanent monitoring systems that provide feedback on ventilation system performance;
- Diversion, recycling and/or salvaging 75% of non‐hazardous construction waste; and
- Use of controllable and programmable lighting control systems and thermal comfort control systems.
Previous plans
The San Francisco 49ers have played at Candlestick Park since 19711971 NFL season
The 1971 NFL season was the 52nd regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl VI when the Dallas Cowboys defeated the Miami Dolphins...
. The stadium is a sentimental fan-favorite and has housed all 5 Super Bowl Championship teams. It is however the oldest unrenovated stadium in the NFL and is beginning to show its age. The 49ers have been pursuing a new stadium since 1997, when a plan for a stadium and a mall at Candlestick Point passed a public vote. When the plans failed to move forward, the San Francisco 49ers presented an alternative plan on July 18, 2006, to construct a new 68,500-seat, open air stadium as part of a mixed use development featuring housing, commercial and retail space. In November 2006 the team announced that plans for a new stadium at Candlestick Point was not feasible, “citing extensive costs for infrastructure, parking accommodations and other changes that would cost more than the stadium itself”. The 49ers are now focused on making Santa Clara the home to their new stadium. The 49ers’ headquarters and training facility have been located in the city of Santa Clara since 1988.
The 1997 plan
San Francisco voters in 1997 approved $100 million in city spending to build a new stadium and an attached shopping mall at Candlestick Point. However, even after voter approval to grant economic help for the project, the stadium was not constructed as the project failed to get off the ground. Mills Corporation, the company tapped by the 49ers, was unable to put together a plan to successfully construct a new stadium for the team. NFL owners had gone as far as awarding the new stadium the rights to host Super Bowl XXXVIISuper Bowl XXXVII
Super Bowl XXXVII was an American football game played on January 26, 2003 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California to decide the National Football League champion following the 2002 regular season...
. When the stadium plans stalled, the game went to Qualcomm Stadium
Qualcomm Stadium
Qualcomm Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium, in San Diego, California, in the Mission Valley area....
instead.
For years, the city and team ownership were embattled over attempts to gain funding and a green-light for construction of a new stadium. None of these attempts proved to be successful.
The 2006 plan
The city of San Francisco received a new incentive to get a new stadium built. MayorMayor of San Francisco
The Mayor of the City and County of San Francisco is the head of the executive branch of San Francisco's city and county government. The mayor has the duty to enforce city laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the legislative branch....
Gavin Newsom
Gavin Newsom
Gavin Christopher Newsom is an American politician who is the 49th and current Lieutenant Governor of California. Previously, he was the 42nd Mayor of San Francisco, and was elected in 2003 to succeed Willie Brown, becoming San Francisco's youngest mayor in 100 years. Newsom was re-elected in 2007...
wanted to bring the 2016 Summer Olympics
2016 Summer Olympics
The 2016 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, are a major international multi-sport event to be celebrated in the tradition of the Olympic Games, as governed by the International Olympic Committee...
to the city, and a new stadium would sweeten the city's proposal for selection by the United States Olympic Committee
United States Olympic Committee
The United States Olympic Committee is a non-profit organization that serves as the National Olympic Committee and National Paralympic Committee for the United States and coordinates the relationship between the United States Anti-Doping Agency and the World Anti-Doping Agency and various...
as the official US submission to the IOC. The announcement came in November 2006, with the new 49ers stadium as the centerpiece of an Olympics bid, and the construction of the Olympic village would be converted into low-income housing after the games were over.
The project planning did not get off to a good start, however, with contention between the 49ers and the city of San Francisco over viable locations for the new stadium. Initially, the idea was to build a stadium in the parking lot of Candlestick Park and later demolish the aging stadium. Team ownership feared that construction of the village and the stadium would severely limit the amount of land available in Candlestick Point, creating a parking problem for fans and increasing traffic along the only two-lane road that links the stadium to the freeway. Moreover, with residents in the low-income housing by 2016, traffic would be increased indefinitely, further damaging the already-limited methods of transportation to the park.
With San Francisco slow to come up with better locations for the stadium or ways to circumvent the problems posed by a construction at Candlestick Point, team owners Denise DeBartolo York
Denise DeBartolo York
Marie Denise DeBartolo York is the former owner and current co-chair of the San Francisco 49ers. She is the daughter of late construction magnate Edward J. DeBartolo Sr. and the late Marie Patricia Montani DeBartolo....
and John York
John York
John C. York is a retired American cancer research pathologist, married to Marie Denise DeBartolo York, and former co-owner and current co-chairman of the San Francisco 49ers. The Yorks have four children: sons Jed and Tony, and daughters Jenna and Mara.York was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma...
announced on November 9, 2006, that the 49ers were shifting its efforts to create a new stadium to the city of Santa Clara, approximately 40 miles (64.4 km) south of San Francisco (and existing home to the team offices and training facility).
The sudden removal of the planned stadium forced the San Francisco Olympics bid group to cancel its proposal, which engendered great anger not only from Mayor Newsom, but also from such 49ers legends as Joe Montana and Ronnie Lott who were part of the effort to bring the Olympics to the Bay Area. In addition, many fans were outraged at the suggestion to move the 49ers out of the city that it had shared history with for decades. The Yorks insisted that the legacy of the franchise would be respected in the sense that the 49ers would not be renamed nor moved out of the Bay Area. This was met with much opposition from Mayor Newsom and Senator Dianne Feinstein
Dianne Feinstein
Dianne Goldman Berman Feinstein is the senior U.S. Senator from California. A member of the Democratic Party, she has served in the Senate since 1992. She also served as 38th Mayor of San Francisco from 1978 to 1988....
(who was mayor of San Francisco
Mayor of San Francisco
The Mayor of the City and County of San Francisco is the head of the executive branch of San Francisco's city and county government. The mayor has the duty to enforce city laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the legislative branch....
between 1978 and 1988); the senator stated that the team should be unable to use the San Francisco name if its operations were not based in the city. On January 3, 2007, California State Senator
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
Carole Migden
Carole Migden
Carole Migden is an American politician from San Francisco, California who represented the third district of the California State Senate from 2004 to 2008 and the 13th district of the California State Assembly from 1996 to 2002....
introduced a bill, entitled SB49, that would bar the 49ers from building a new stadium within a 100 miles (160.9 km) radius of San Francisco, if they were to leave the city. The 49ers organization announced its strong opposition to the legislation and retorted that passing such a bill would only encourage the team to move out of the Bay Area altogether.
Measure J: June 8, 2010
Measure J is a binding, voter-initiated measure put on the ballot with signatures from over 15% of Santa Clara registered voters. All documents cited below are publicly available on the City of Santa Clara’s official website.- Ballot Question: This is the question that will be presented to voters on June 8.
- Shall the City of Santa Clara adopt Ordinance 17.20 leasing City property for a professional football stadium and other events; no use of City General or Enterprise funds for construction; no new taxes for residents for stadium; Redevelopment Agency funds capped for construction; private party pays all construction cost overruns; no City/Agency obligation for stadium operating/maintenance; private party payment of projected fair market rent; and additional funds for senior/youth/library/recreation to City’s General Fund?
- Voter Ordinance: This city ordinance becomes law if Santa Clara voters approve Measure J.
Measure J was approved by the voters; the 49ers and County of Santa Clara now need to raise $937 million for the stadium, construction of which is scheduled to begin in 2012. If construction proceeds on time, the stadium is scheduled to be ready in 2015.
Stadium proponents and opponents
- Vote Yes on J or Santa Clarans for Economic Progress was formed and is being paid for by the San Francisco 49ers (York owners). It is portrayed as a coalition made up of local residents, business owners, retirees, homeowners, civic leaders, elected officials and native Santa Clarans working to bring a new stadium to Santa Clara.
- Santa Clara Plays Fair is a volunteer organization leading the opposition to the proposed stadium project.
Santa Clara city council negotiations
The Santa Clara stadium project has been in the works since 2007 with negotiations beginning in 2008. Two years have produced the following documents that are key to understanding the stadium deal that will go before the voters of Santa Clara June 8, 2010. All documents cited below are publicly available on the City of Santa Clara’s website.- Term Sheet: Detailed agreement between the city of Santa Clara and the San Francisco 49ers about the financing, construction, operation, and eventual demolition of the stadium. Key points include: no new or increased city taxes or costs to residents; 49ers responsible for construction and operation cost overruns; and the city will continue to own the land and receive rent payments back to its general fund from the stadium.
- 49ers Stadium Proposal: A PowerPoint presentation given to the City of Santa Clara April 24, 2007.
- Study: Economic and Fiscal Impacts of a New State-of-the-Art Stadium in Santa Clara4: This is a study conducted by Conventions Sports and Leisure (CSL). It highlights estimates of a new stadium’s economic and fiscal impact on the City of Santa Clara and the region including the creation of new jobs and new economic activity.
- Environmental Impact Report: This document is part of the state-mandated California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) process. It researches in depth all possible environmental impacts the stadium may have.
Most city council members in Santa Clara are extremely receptive to the possibility of a new stadium being constructed there for the 49ers. In 2009, the Santa Clara City Council and city employees began negotiating in earnest with the team, who presented the city with stadium plans. On June 2, 2009, by a 5 to 2 vote, the Santa Clara city council agreed to preliminary terms (as detailed in a term sheet), and there will be a vote by City of
Santa Clara voters on whether to approve the stadium proposal in a June 8, 2010 election. Team officials have said that the team's name will not change; the team will continue to be called the San Francisco 49ers even when the move to Santa Clara is complete.
Santa Clara stadium campaign
The Santa Clara stadium plan currently calls for the new stadium to be located on a city-owned parking lot on Tasman Drive, located adjacent, to the north of California's Great America theme park and leased to Great America for overflow parking. In December 2009, the owner of the theme park filed a lawsuit to stop the project from proceeding. However, this lawsuit has not deterred the plans for a Santa Clara stadium. On December 15, 2009 the Santa Clara City Council voted 5 to 2 to withdraw their city-sponsored ballot measureon the stadium issue in favor of a ballot initiative from a 49ers-backed group. The ballot initiative was voted on on June 8, 2010 and passed election. The ballot measure has been designated Measure J. Santa Clara City Council members William Kennedy and Jamie McLeod had opposed the stadium project and worked (unsuccessfully) to get Measure J defeated.
Oakland Raiders
There is a possibility that the 49ers Bay AreaSan Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
rivals, the Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
, might share the stadium. This would be due to cost reasons, as both teams would split the costs of the stadium. The 49ers and Raiders have publicly said it would be an option if possible, while NFL commissioner Roger Goodell
Roger Goodell
Roger S. Goodell is the Commissioner of the National Football League , having been chosen to succeed the retiring Paul Tagliabue on August 8, 2006. He was chosen over four finalists for the position, winning a close vote on the fifth ballot before being unanimously approved by acclamation of the...
is strongly in favor of the two sharing a stadium. Along with the New York metropolitan area
New York metropolitan area
The New York metropolitan area, also known as Greater New York, or the Tri-State area, is the region that composes of New York City and the surrounding region...
(where both the New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
and New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
shared Giants Stadium
Giants Stadium
Giants Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium, located in East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA, in the Meadowlands Sports Complex. Maximum seating capacity was 80,242. The building itself was 230.5 m long, 180.5 m wide and 44 m high from service level to the top of the seating bowl and 54 m high to...
from 1984-2009 and currently share its successor, MetLife Stadium, which both teams financed), the Bay Area is one of two NFL markets with two teams.
The 49ers and Raiders sharing a stadium would not be unprecedented, as the two shared Kezar Stadium
Kezar Stadium
Kezar Stadium is a stadium located adjacent to Kezar Pavilion in the southeastern corner of Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, California. It is the former home of the Oakland Raiders and the San Francisco 49ers of the NFL, and of the San Francisco Dragons of MLL. It also served as the home of the...
in 1960. It would also fulfill the late Raiders owner Al Davis
Al Davis
Allen "Al" Davis was an American football executive. He was the principal owner of the Oakland Raiders of the National Football League from 1970 to 2011...
' elusive goal of a new stadium, something he had strongly desired since moving the team
History of the National Football League in Los Angeles
Professional American football, especially its established top level, the National Football League, has had a long history in Los Angeles, the center of the second-largest media market in the United States. Since 1995, Los Angeles has been by far the largest U.S. market without an NFL team...
from Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
back to Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
in 1995.
In the wake of Davis' death, the possibility of the 49ers and Raiders sharing the stadium became a stronger possibility, as the Raiders would be more receptive to the idea. However, as of October 2011
October 2011
October 2011 is the tenth month of the current year. It began on a Saturday and ended after 31 days on a Monday.- Portal:Current events :This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from October 2011....
the 49ers were far enough along on the stadium to have reportedly already sold over a quarter of the luxury suites
Luxury box
A Luxury box is a special seating section located within stadiums, arenas and other sporting and entertainment venues. They are typically located in the midsection of a stadium grandstand, usually providing the best views of the event...
, which means the Raiders would be forced to be secondary tenants. This is not unlike the Jets being the tenants of the Giants after they moved into Giants Stadium from Shea Stadium
Shea Stadium
William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, usually shortened to Shea Stadium or just Shea , was a stadium in the New York City borough of Queens, in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. It was the home baseball park of Major League Baseball's New York Mets from 1964 to 2008...
in 1984.
Relocation
If the 49ers do not succeed in building a stadium in the San Francisco Bay Area, the team could be headed to Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. Edward P. Roski
Edward P. Roski
Edward P. Roski, Jr. is an American real estate businessman in Los Angeles, California.-Biography:Roski was born in Oklahoma and raised in Southern California. He is a graduate of Loyola High School and the Marshall School of Business, University of Southern California, where in 1962 he earned a...
, a part-owner of the Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
and Los Angeles Kings
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
, has announced plans for a new stadium, tentatively titled Los Angeles Stadium
Los Angeles Stadium
Los Angeles Football Stadium is the working title for a proposed 75,000-seat football stadium, the centerpiece of a 600-acre entertainment district in Industry, California. Upon construction, the district will be named Grand Crossing, California. Edward P...
, on the northern side of the interchange of State Routes 57
California State Route 57
State Route 57 , also known as the Orange Freeway, is a north–south state highway in the Greater Los Angeles Area of the U.S. state of California. It connects the interchange of Interstate 5 and State Route 22 near downtown Orange, locally known as the Orange Crush, with the Glendora Curve...
and 60
California State Route 60
State Route 60 is a state highway in the U.S. state of California. It runs from Interstate 10 near the Los Angeles River in Los Angeles east to I-10 in Riverside County, with overlaps at State Route 57 and Interstate 215.-Route description:...
(almost 22 miles (35.4 km) east of downtown LA) with the purpose of attracting a team to the Los Angeles region. Roski, who built the Staples Center
Staples Center
Staples Center is a multi-purpose sports arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. Opening on October 17, 1999, it is one of the major sporting facilities in the Greater Los Angeles...
, stated that the new 75,000 seat stadium would be privately financed and would be the centerpiece of a new entertainment complex in City of Industry
Industry, California
Industry is an industrial suburb of Los Angeles in the San Gabriel Valley region of Los Angeles County. Home to over 2,500 businesses and 80,000 jobs, but only 219 residents at the 2010 census - down from 777 residents as of the 2000 United States census - the city is almost entirely industrial...
.
External links
- Official Site of the San Francisco 49ers - New Stadium
- Stadiums of Pro Football - 49ers Stadium - San Francisco 49ers