Is Oakland the worst city in America?
The A’s have played their last game in Oakland. Five years ago the Raiders, A’s, and Warriors all played their home games in Oakland. All are gone.
TUSCL lists no clubs in Oakland
I’ve read In-and-Out Burger closed and left.
Rent a car and the agents will tell you don’t stop for gas in Oakland.
And the rumor is someone famous is from Oakland.
The demise of a American city
Let me say this though Las Vegas is a terrible place for an mlb team. It’s not like the other sports, you gotta sell 30K tickets 82 times a year. Vegas is not a big market and once you leave the Vegas metro theres nothing but empty desert. Where are these fans coming from? I would’ve went to Sacramento or Salt Lake City. Or go eat to Nashville to Charlotte.
Probably be more fans of whoever the LV As at their ballpark. I’d go there to visit Vegas and watch the Phillies. I’ll never go to Oakland.
I live 100 miles Southeast of Vegas in the empty desert... And I have no interest in these sports teams.
^^
You’re not a retired LA cop are you?
I took a Grand Canyon bus tour once and the driver was a retired LA cop who moved to the desert off the grid in the middle of no where. No neighbors. Self sufficient. Earns a few bucks giving tours. Super interesting guy to talk to.
Lightning McQueen also was driving through that empty desert when he got into an untimely predicament that forced him to stay a bit longer. He eventually learned how awesome the areas was and made it his home. Vegas is a good escape for those tired of the rat race. I don’t see that changing, ever. Too many options for entertainment outdoors or indoors. Want a change of scenery get in the car and drive a couple hours or hop on a plane and you’ll be anywhere in the west quickly. Cost of living has increased a lot lately, bummer. Tye secret is out…..
We fly into Oakland instead of San Francisco. I vote Patterson nj.
Had a close friend that lived in Oakland for years. Was in a beautiful new townhouse in what looked like a nice neighborhood. Every time I’d go visit he would give me specific directions on how to exit to get back on the interstate.
Didn’t realize the In & Out had closed there. Been to it several times over the years.
As for Vegas sports teams - the Raiders quickly realized they will never play a home game again because more visiting fans fill the stadium than home fans. Not sure how that will work out for the As with so many games available.
I go to Vegas a lot and it’s really getting to be a pain in the ass to go from one area to another now because it’s grown so much. Everywhere charges a ton of money to park now, and an Uber is $40 one way to take you 2 miles.
Never been to Oakland or Patterson, NJ. Now I’m sure I never will.
I thought the same thing about the NHL going there but they sell out that arena for 41 games a year. Also the A's AAA team is in Vegas and they sell out a lot too, yes it's a smaller stadium but when your AAA team draws more than the parent team in Oakland then the smart thing is to move to that city.
Oakland has some very nice areas and some very bad areas, the problem is it's just a poorly run city from a commercial standpoint. They can't get their act together and these teams aren't going to stick around anymore.
The mayor and the entire city council are Democrats. Is anyone surprised Oakland is a dystopia that mirrors a Mad Max movie?
Oakland is a very dangerous city that most people should avoid especially if you are of not certain minority groups (wink wink). I think it’s even odds between the A’s ending up in Vegas or the field (another city). There is still a huge funding hole for the Vegas facility and construction has not begun. I have seen various pundits think they will end up in Utah since they have pre-approved public funding for sports facilities given SLC was selected to be an Olympic host. Utah Soaking A’s!
Oakland is the future for any major American city that is accelerating in wokeness. 40 years ago, Oakland was the vision that any major American city wanted to achieve and a dream home for many Americans. However, all that many and too many well-intentioned initiatives which ignored potential consequences has led to sinclair's dystopian Mad Max scenario. Oakland fell to this fate faster than other cities because the people who lived there had the money and options nearby to relocate without upsetting their lives too much.
As for the A's relocating, LV likes to throw money at attractions without regard to how those attractions will become self-sufficient after the taxpayer funds expire. I remember the Saints moved to San Antonio temporarily after Hurricane Katrina, and the San Antonio mayor was working to keep them (but not the NOLA welfare queens, "We do not have room in our welfare rolls for daytime TV fans"). There are also There are five cities with two existing big-four sports teams (NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL) but no MLB team: Charlotte, Nashville, Indianapolis, Buffalo and New Orleans. NOLA is a bust and Buffalo is too snowy without a dome, but the other three should be carefully considered.
in 1985 i visited cousin out in san fran. drove me around for a sightseeing tour. passed by the bridge that goes to oakland. he said we're not going to check out oakland.
there was a crew that would have guys hiding on trees with walkie talkies. if one of them spotted someone alone in a car stopped by a red light, the signal would then be relayed to pounce and rob.
something i noticed though is the a's are never mentioned when it comes to developing mlb players. they seem to have high quality coaching staffs top to bottom. if a player has a specific skillset or two and makes the roster he is in a great position to get a lot of mlb plate reps. and if that player blossoms then he gets a nice payday via free agency with another team.
I worked in Wilmington Delaware for a while. That was definitely the worst city I've seen. Gary Indiana seemed like more of a town than a city, and was probably worse than Wilmington.
^Wilmington is very underrated terrible. Hartford is terrible. Crappy strip clubs too.
Camden NJ seemed scarier than Oakland when I worked for a day in Camden a few years ago. Grew up near Oakland. Oakland has had crime issues my entire lifetime but some spots I drove through around Philly and Chicago seemed scarier.
Oakland, like a lot of big cities, has some terrible neighborhoods and some nice ones.
Gary Indiana is still the worst city in America by far.
Yes