LAS VEGAS (AP) — Foundation work on the Athletics' stadium is complete, according to the project director, and officials for the contractor and team told the Las Vegas Stadium Authority on Thursday they remain on target to open before the 2028 season.
Athletics Stadium Baseball
It was a similar message in theDecember meetingwith the Stadium Authority.
"We are excited we continue to be on schedule for the project," said Tyler Van Eeckhaut, project director for contractors Mortenson-McCarthy.
The Stadium Authority also approved the A's request to sell personal-seat licenses, and the Athletics vice chairman Sandy Dean said the team has spent $300 million on the $2 billion, 33,000-person domed ballpark and have yet to request public financing.
While construction takes place on the Las Vegas Strip, the A's are about to play the second of three scheduled seasons at a Triple-A stadiumin West Sacramento, California. They played theirprevious 57 seasonsin Oakland, California.
"It's good to be here on a day in which we have a lot of tangible progress to report," Dean told the Stadium Authority.
Van Eeckhaut provided a detailed update of where construction stands, noting two of the buttresses are finished and work is being done on the lower suite level and main concourse. He said all the buttress work should be completed by May and the vertical construction already in progress should continue.
"I feel great about the progress," Badain said. "You heard Tyler's comments in terms of where they are on the schedule, and we've pretty much hit every deadline. The county has been great to work with. I feel great about that."
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Dean said the A's haven't decided when they would request public financing. Nevada and Clark County have approved up to $380 million in public funds for the ballpark, and the A's have said they will cover the remaining expenses. Dean said after the meeting that the A's have attracted some outside investors.
As for the PCLs, A's President Marc Badain told the Stadium Authority they would be for only for "a select number of seats" mostly in the high-end areas. He noted five or six other MLB teams also sells PCLs.
"We researched the market," Badain said after the meeting. "We have a (season-ticket) deposit list of over 20,000. We reached out to people. The demand was there, so we're going to utilize that to help with the project."
Badain emphasized to the Stadium Authority there would be a number of seats in the $20 and $30 price range, and there likely will be tickets geared toward attracting families to the ballpark.
The A's are in spring training in Mesa, Arizona, but will play the Los Angeles Angels in two preseason games in Las Vegas on March 7-8. The club also will return to play six regular-season games at Las Vegas Ballpark — home of the Athletics' Triple-A affiliate — in June against the Milwaukee Brewers and Colorado Rockies.
Badain said tickets for the regular-season games were first offered to those who put down deposits for Las Vegas A's season tickets and sold out in 24 hours. More tickets will be put on sale later, he said.
Ceremonialgroundbreaking on the stadiumlocated on the Las Vegas Strip occurred June 23. The A's Ballpark Experience Center in Las Vegas opened in December to give fans a chance to view the stadium in detail and take part in other immersive experiences.
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