The Howard Terminal Final Environmental Impact Report
Has Been Approved

Environmental Impact Reports are intended to inform the public about the impact a development will have on the local environment and community, describe ways to minimize negative effects, and identify reasonable alternatives. 

The Final EIR confirmed what we already know: there are no mitigation measures included that will prevent the disruption of the supply chain at the Port of Oakland that will result from this project.

We are disappointed that the City Council voted to certify the Final EIR despite the fact that it fails to provide sufficient protection against dangerous environmental and community impacts. Several lawsuits have been filed against the Final EIR.

Read below to learn more about the EIR.

The FEIR identifies numerous significant and unavoidable impacts on critical areas of concern. Several lawsuits have been filed against the final, certified EIR to ensure the A’s don't move forward without addressing these key issues.

→Traffic: The FEIR assumes existing truck uses at Howard Terminal will just disappear and does not consider where they will go. Removing Howard Terminal from its current uses would force the 3,200 trucks that use Howard Terminal back into residential neighborhoods. Additionally, the DEIR does not outline or analyze a transportation plan for the 10,000+ cars that will flood into the region on game days, inevitably creating traffic congestion for residents, visitors, and trucks headed to and from the Port of Oakland.

→Parking: The FEIR assumes the ballpark and indoor performance venue, with a combined capacity of 38,500 people, will share 2,000 park spaces. The development will rely heavily on having tens of thousands of fans parking on residential streets to attend events.

→Health & the Environment: Despite proposed mitigation measures, the project will result in significant and unavoidable environmental impacts, including pollutant emissions that far exceed the city’s thresholds and the Port’s emission goals. Mitigation related to the disruption of the toxic substances was left to “future studies” and a future plan for how the toxic soil will be remedied. Without completing these studies and defining their plan for full site cleanup first, it is impossible for the EIR to fully analyze the impact of removing the cap over these toxins and exposing them to the air and nearby water.

→Public Safety: The FEIR only requires the construction of one overcrossing for thousands of pedestrians and bicyclists to mitigate the public safety concerns posed by crossing an active freight rail line to reach the stadium. The DEIR finds the project would expose motorists, pedestrians, bus riders, and bicyclists to permanent or substantial safety hazards.

→Noise: The FEIR assumes that the full project buildout will occur over an 8-year construction period, during which time nearby residents may be required to temporary relocate due to excessive noise. 

→Jobs: The A’s brag that their entertainment complex will create 9,499 new jobs at the project completion, but the FEIR states that the project “would not contribute to cumulative substantial unplanned employment growth in the city or region.” 

The A’s continue to make it clear they have no intention of paying for any of the proposed mitigations required to make this project viable and instead want taxpayers to foot the bill for their luxury development.

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