The Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority held a special meeting on Friday, July 31, to discuss Oakland Roots’ default under its lease agreement on a balance of $1.4 million.
Executive Director Henry Gardner began by saying that he felt “duped” by Roots’ default on their payment.
“I felt duped. I was not blindsided; I was duped,” Gardner said, adding that the club was not responding to emails or phone calls.
Gardner continued to call the club’s payment plan a “wishlist,” saying it is based on prospective revenue for their final five games at the Coliseum and investors that are able to help offset their debt.
“The plan that Roots has put out is more of a wishlist than a plan,” Gardner said. “That plan says we are not able to pay anything other than the ongoing game expenses until September 15. The second payment they can make would come on October 15. The letter I received said their payment plan would be based on projected revenue and prospective investors. My recommendation is they need to come up with a real plan.”
Gardner explained that the organization has two choices with how to approach the debt. Either pay the full $1.381 million, or a flat fee of $138,000, the $20,000 food and beverage deposit, $15,000 in facility fees and parking, and $200,000 for each of the remaining games.
Later on during the meeting, Roots and Soul president Lindsay Barenz called the economics involved at the Coliseum “insurmountable.” Without going into specific detail, she indicated that they laid out a plan that would limit growth of the debt and prepay each of their final matches.
“Our residency at the Coliseum has been bumpy. The cost structure of our arrangement has been unfavorable. We’ve tried everything we could to make it work, but the economics are insurmountable,” Barenz said. “Nevertheless, we are fully committed to paying the amount due. We have communicated that repeatedly to staff and in any conversation with commissioners. We have proposed a plan that starts by limiting any growth in the potential debt and will prepay all games going forward. We have proposed a plan that aligns with the back due amount when our revenue will arrive, and it will give us time to pursue prospective investors that can also support payment of the debt.
“If we don’t play games, there will be no revenue, and we will not be able to pay the debt.”
Commissioner Jacqueline Thompson asked for clarity from Roots’ perspective to understand how they got into the current situation, while Joint Powers Authority chairperson Nate Miley asked if the special event license had an impact on the club’s ability to generate revenue. The special event license notably disallows Roots from accruing money through sponsorships.
Barenz explained the special event permit is “very restrictive,” while the JPA’s imposed schedule of hosting Major League Cricket kept them from game revenue over five weeks. This also forced Roots to host a USL Cup match at Merritt College, which also came at a deficit.
“Yes. The agreement at the Coliseum is a special event permit, and it is very restrictive,” Barenz said. “We do not receive any revenues from our game other than the tickets that we sell. So for concessions and parking, we don’t see that revenue. In addition, we had a five-week gap in our schedule to accommodate cricket. For five weeks, we had no revenue-producing games.”
A part of the issue at the Coliseum has been JPA enforcing an expensive $40 rate for parking passes, while fans have expressed how the price for concessions is causing them to turn away or watch games at home.
Barenz continued that the Coliseum is “very costly” to play at, and that although they can be judged for accepting the JPA’s terms, she laid out how the Coliseum Authority has damaged their ability to sell tickets.
“You can critique our business judgement for accepting [your] terms, but we accepted those terms because we wanted to be in Oakland,” Barenz said. “Our fans are very upset at the price of parking and concessions; they’ve spoken with their feet. None of that excuses the payment; it is just a part of the reason why we find ourselves in the circumstances we are in… We just need to align the payment plan with when we expect to receive revenues and with our ability to close future investor conversations.”
Roots and Soul Co-Owner and Chief Marketing Officer, Edreece Arghandiwal, added that they are requesting “flexibility” to generate the revenue they need to pay the balance.
“We understand the seriousness of the balance due. We’re not here to avoid it; we’re asking for the opportunity to earn the revenue needed to pay it,” Arghandiwal said. “We’ve proposed paying future games in advance and clearing the balance by the end of the season. If we play, we can generate revenue and meet our obligations. We are asking for flexibility and a fair process.”
The meeting did not come without points of contention. After president Barenz said the club “repeatedly” asked for a meeting following the default notice, Gardner shot back, saying they struggled to contact the organization.
Barenz responded: “There have been a lot of communications. I would be happy to sit down and walk through every single one and who they went to, but the accusation that we were nonresponsive is false. There are emails that support our perspective.”
Without Oakland Roots, the Coliseum would largely be sitting empty. Early in the meeting, JPA commissioner David Newton stated they have “lost bookings” because of Roots playing at the site. However, there is no evidence to support his claim.
In fact, BIGBANG at the Coliseum on September 5 will be the location’s first concert since Zach Bryan in May of 2024. Per online records, the only other concert at the Coliseum in 2024 was K-pop group, Tomorrow X Together. There were no concerts held at the Coliseum in 2023, while Bad Bunny was the only show at the venue in all of 2022.
Fellow commissioner David Haubert acknowledged that Roots are their only line of activity at the site.
“When we started this, we said we want activity at the stadium so we don’t have to board it up and the weeds don’t grow,” Haubert said. “Maybe it’s too giant of a facility for their needs, but it’s better than nothing. So, I’d like to find a way to keep them, whether it’s accepting this plan or an alternative plan.”
Haubert would also like to find an “alternative plan” to accommodate Roots.
“I look at things like if we can stop the bleeding, the debt that’s owed, and allow for more revenues to be generated to reduce that debt. If they don’t play, then they can’t pay. That doesn’t mean we allow debt to increase, but if we can freeze the debt by paying in advance for the games, then it allows them a chance to pay. Let’s find a way to let them play if possible,” Haubert said.
Oakland Roots already announced that August 1’s game against Pittsburgh Riverhounds will occur as scheduled after paying their rent for Saturday’s game. With just four games left following the weekend, it will be interesting to see how the organization approaches ticket sales should they make a push for a home playoff match.
Roots indicated that they are hamstrung by a massive increase in rent should they sell over 7,000 tickets, which caused them to cap July 25’s rivalry match against Sacramento Republic.
With the clock winding down at the Coliseum, the club turns its attention toward finalizing a new temporary playing location at their training facility on Harbor Bay Parkway on the border of Alameda. The club is notably hosting an Open House with Alameda residents and stakeholders on August 8.
We’ll provide more information on Roots’ ongoing stadium matters as the news becomes available.