Voters To Decide $937M Stadium Deal in June

SANTA CLARA, CA-Voters here will decide a $937-million NFL stadium deal with the San Francisco 49ers in the June 8, 2010 primary election. The City Council committed to putting the deal before the voters a couple of years ago but Tuesday night was the first time a date has been set for the vote.

Deputy city manager Carol McCarthy tells GlobeSt.com the Council also certified the the environmental impact report for the would-be 68,000-seat NFL stadium Tuesday night and directed the city manager to begin creating ballot language. Proposed language will be back before the City Council on Dec. 15, she says.

Having the vote at the same time as the statewide primary elections on June 8 was selected at least in part because a report provided to the council earlier this year determined it would be the least expensive route at $152,000, compared to $364,000 for an all-mail election in March and $652,000 for a special election in April. There was also talk earlier this year about having two stadium-related ballot questions—one vote for the deal itself and another to allow the 49ers to select their own contractor rather than go through the city’s RFP process—but it won’t happen now because state law was recently changed to allow it to happen without a vote, McCarthy says.

As previously reported, the stadium would be built on 13.5 acres currently used as an auxiliary parking lot for the Great America theme park and would sit next to the park, the city’s convention center and the football team’s existing headquarters and training facility. The city council signed off on the financing deal for the stadium in June. The $937-million plan includes up to $114 million in public subsidy, 62% of it from the city.

One possible hitch is a lawsuit just filed by Great America owner Cedar Fair LP. Filed Monday in Santa Clara Superior Court,the lawsuit contends the city violated state environmental law by approving a term sheet – a tentative agreement – in May before certifying a report on the stadium’s environmental impacts, like traffic, parking and crowd noise. However, a story in the San Francisco Chronicle cites correspondence that suggests that due to concerns about the development disrupting business at the park both during construction and on game days Cedar Fair is seeking a reduction in, or the elimination of, its annual $5.3-million rent in favor of a percentage lease.

Filed Monday in Santa Clara Superior Court,the lawsuit contends the city violated state environmental law by approving a term sheet – a tentative agreement – in May before certifying a report on the stadium’s environmental impacts, like traffic, parking and crowd noise. Correspondence with the city suggests the real concern is that stadium construction and parking for the eventual events will disrupt the theme park’s business.

If voters reject the plan the 49ers attention likely will shift back to San Francisco where the city, in partnership with Lennar, wants a new 49ers stadium at Hunter’s Point to replace Candlestick Park. Either way, the goal is to have the stadium ready for the 2014 NFL season. The team’s initial lease term at Candlestick runs through this season but the team holds three five-year extension options such that it could continue to play in its existing stadium through 2023.

Meantime, it appears the NFL’s Oakland Raiders will continue to call the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum home at least through the 2013 season. The Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority and the team last month announced a tentative agreement to extend the term of the Raiders’ lease, which had been set to expire after the 2010 season.

For the San Francisco Chronicle article, click here. For previous GlobeSt.com stories on the 49ers stadium deal, click on any of the following headlines, which are listed in chronological order, the most recent stories first: