Golden State Warriors SF Arena Project Shifts Focus to Mission Bay

Golden State Warriors SF Arena Project Shifts Focus to Mission Bay (Photo: Warriors.com)

The news that the Golden State Warriors were shifting their focus for a new Warriors arena made the rounds Monday afternoon, starting with a report from SF Weekly that the team had committed to buy a twelve-acre site in Mission Bay.

While neither the Warriors nor their representation has confirmed the purchase, it was reported by Rusty Simmons of the SF Chronicle that Dubs do intend to build on the site and have an arena ready by the 2018-19 season.

According to Simmons, the Warriors concerns with their Waterfront Arena on Piers 30-32 began with an ability to get the project done:

The shift in location provides the team with predictability, fewer regulatory hurdles and eliminates the need for voter approval.
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It should also assuage the project’s most vocal critics, who opposed building a 120-foot high arena on Piers 30-32 over concerns about traffic, environmental impacts during construction and blocked views of the Bay Bridge.

The change in locations could save the Warriors millions of dollars in development costs, but will also cost them the great Bay Bridge views that were highlighted their original proposals.

The new site does not, however, have the stunning views of the Bay Bridge, instead looking out onto a dry dock, an industrial pier and rusting old pilings that dot the water.

The site, owned by Salesforce.com, was previously set to be the company’s headquarters before they committed to being tenants in the Transbay Tower, according to Joe Eskanazi of SF Weekly.

The Salesforce lots are just south of AT&T Park near UCSF Mission Bay, across the street from and their proposed medical center. Interestingly, it’s also just down the street from Seawall Lot 337, who many believed was also a potential arena site for the Warriors.

In addition to citing unnamed city sources on the sale, SF Weekly backed up their reporting by following the money:

The potential sale would connect the dots between a series of major real-estate transactions involving Salesforce and the Dogpatch-area land it owns. The company last week announced plans to be the anchor tenant in the future Transbay Tower. Earlier this month, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff gifted an additional $100 million to UC San Francisco on top of the $100 million he already gave to bolster a children’s hospital.
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The former deal, a $560 million, 15.5-year  proposal, would certainly make sense in light of the pending sale of the Mission Bay property Salesforce bought for some $250 million in 2010.
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And if UCSF had any qualms about sharing the quadrant of the city it increasingly controls with a stadium hosting basketball games, concerts, tractor pulls, and the sort of people attending those events — well, that $100 million likely eased the pain.

SF Weekly also reported the Warriors could announce their plans officially as soon as tomorrow. If the Warriors are indeed shifting their focus, expect them to move quickly to recover time lost working on their Waterfront design.

Certainly, it’s a big step back for owner Joe Lacob and the Warriors, who had consistently promised to get an arena done at Piers 30-32. However, it’s also an opportunity to start fresh without all the surrounding negativity.

The forthcoming announcement will likely be received with mixed reactions, but it is important to point out the Warriors will likely be just across the street from the Bay, and still capable of building a beautiful arena.

For an archive of our reports on the Warriors new SF arena, click here.

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