The cost to build the Athletics’ Las Vegas ballpark has increased by a quarter-billion dollars, according to Las Vegas Stadium Authority documents.
The originally estimated $1.5 billion stadium’s price has risen by $250 million to $1.75 billion, because of inflation and the team adding 70,000 square feet in added features to the ballpark during the design phase. The additions to the 33,000-fan capacity facility include more clubs and suites, upgraded general admission spaces and player amenities. The A’s Las Vegas Stadium will also be the first in Major League Baseball to offer under-seat cooling.
“The increase in the budget is due to combination of adding a variety of features to the ballpark along with general increases in construction costs,” A’s executive Sandy Dean told the Review-Journal. “The designs process is iterative, and has been allowing us to add elements to the ballpark intended to make this a premier facility for Major League Baseball.”
All recent and potential future cost increases are the responsibility of the A’s.
The design of the stadium also will maximize natural light while protecting fans from the the direct sun with a north orientation of the facility, which features a covered roof, Dean said. A view of the Strip from inside the ballpark also remains a key aspect of the design process, while working with Bally’s Corp., which plans to build a future integrated resort on the remaining 26 acres on the Tropicana site.
The A’s also added updated audio and visual elements of the stadium “in support of the ballpark being available as a premier concert venue,” Dean added.
The increase is included in a partially redacted contract between the A’s and stadium construction manager Mortenson-McCarthy, that will be discussed at Thursday’s stadium authority meeting. The joint venture is a combination of McCarthy Build Co. and Mortenson Construction, the same group who oversaw the building of Allegiant Stadium.
Team owner John Fisher plans to contribute up to $1.1 billion in equity from his family toward the ballpark, with the team set to obtain a $300 million construction loan from U.S. Bank and Goldman Sachs. The A’s will look to use $350 million of the $380 million earmarked for the project via Senate Bill 1 being signed into law in June 2023.
“As of this summer the public contribution for the ballpark through SB 1 was estimated to be about $350 million,” Dean said. “The estimates remain about the same and are subject to adjustment based on interest rates and other refinements that will be made as the project unfolds.”
That breaks down to Fisher and the A’s being responsible for $1.4 billion of the $1.75 billion price tag. The A’s are also looking to secure potential local project partners, who would be given minority stakes in the team for financial contributions to the stadium’s construction. Any minority partnership deal struck would reduce the amount of equity commitment from the Fisher family.
The A’s have already spent $40 million to date on their Las Vegas ballpark process, which will go toward the first $100 million needed to be spent on the project in order to open up as much as $380 million in public funding available for the project after SB1 was signed into law.
Ahead of the planned construction of the ballpark, the A’s have hired around 30 firms to help with various aspects of the stadium’s development and construction.
Plans call for construction on the A’s stadium to begin in the spring and be finished and ready for the team to begin play at the 33,000-fan-capacity ballpark in 2028.
Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.