LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The Oakland Athletics are getting serious about a possible move to the Las Vegas valley.
The Major League Baseball team, according to state records, has recently formed a lobbying group for Nevada's 2023 legislative session.
A's President Dave Kaval is listed among the names that make up the "Athletics Investment Group."
Any hopes of Las Vegas luring the team from the bay area would hinge on whether it could get a new ballpark, which could cost close to $1 billion if built in the valley. Additionally, financing for such a venue would likely need to include public money.
Greg Ferraro is the founder and President of the Ferraro Group, a public affairs firm that provides service in the government lobbying space in Nevada.
He says the club is likely aware that, after this session, the Nevada legislature won't convene again until 2025. The A's for years have been in search of a new ballpark solution to replace the aging and outdated Ring-Central Coliseum.
"As it relates to the A's, there is no legislation that has been introduced, so my guess is the A's decided to hire veteran lobbyists who understand the public policy process and have good relationships with legislators," Ferraro said.
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said earlier this month that he believes A's Ownership is more focused than ever on a possible future in southern Nevada.
Multiple ballpark sites in Las Vegas have been discussed, according to various reports, including a site on the Rio, which is just west of the Strip.
In a statement sent to KTNV this week by Dreamscape Companies, which owns the Rio, the company reiterated that it has been in talks with the A's "for years" about a possible facility at the Rio site. The company "remains open to the idea," the statement continues.
Dreamscape also recently announced a planned multi-million-dollar renovation of the Rio property, which sits on close to 90 acres of land.
Partly due to the recent developments and the ongoing inaction on a new ballpark in Oakland, Tony Cordasco, a Las Vegas radio talk show personality, says he thinks there's a great chance of the A's moving here.
"I feel the A's will be coming to Las Vegas," he said. "I feel it's almost inevitable at this point."
Along with the Rio site, other locations that have been discussed for a new ballpark include land near Circus Circus, on the north end of the Strip. Additional sites include where Tropicana now sits, at the southern end of the Tourist Corridor, and at least one site in Summerlin.
Cordasco said he believes a new baseball stadium would only make sense on or near the strip.
"I think the Rio site could fit, but they also have to do the $850 million renovation project on the hotel because it's aging," he told KTNV. "I think things could fit together and they could make a really nice, neat complex over there at the Rio."
With a plan for a new ballpark in Oakland stalled and the clock ticking on the 2023 Nevada legislative session, Ferraro said a potential package involving public money would need to be brought to lawmakers in Carson City before the end of the four-month-long session.
"If there's legislation to be created, it would need to be introduced here and then, following the procedural rules, pass both chambers of the legislature, before ultimately getting a governor's signature," Ferraro said.
Whether Republican Governor Joe Lombardo would support public funds for a new home for the A's is yet to be determined.
