Oakland residents not keen on spending tax money on new A's ballpark, survey shows

OAKLAND, Calif. - Oakland community groups who oppose building a new baseball stadium at Howard Terminal will hold an afternoon on Wednesday just ahead of the city's Planning Commission meeting about the final Environmental Impact Report on building the stadium.

That report looks at the adverse environmental affects the stadium could have on the area, as well as possible ways to prevent or reduce those adverse effects.

Meanwhile, a new poll of 500 registered voters shows 46% of Oakland voters oppose spending public money to build a waterfront ballpark for the A's while 37% support it. The poll found that among A's fans, support was 44% to 42% opposed.  

At this point, there is no plan to spend any taxpayer money on the stadium anway. 

The East Oakland Alliance commissioned the survey and they want to keep the A's at the current site at the Coliseum. 

"Even those people who identify in the poll as fans of the Oakland A's baseball team are barely supportive of using tax dollars to make the new stadium happen," said Kevin Frederick of Frederick Polls. "So it's an incredibly weak endorsement among the people of the city who would care the most about keeping the A's in town.

A total of 81% of the people surveyed say the A's should spend their own money to provide the Community Benefits Fund to pay for new housing, offices, and an entertainment center next to the proposed ballpark.