Just when it seemed like all obstacles had been cleared in the Warriors’ attempt to build their new San Francisco arena, legal battles will apparently persist.
The Mission Bay Alliance, a group that has vehemently fought against the new arena being built due to environmental damage, has launched an appeal of the court’s most recent decision.
Environmental attorney Osha Meserve said in a written statement that “the violation of environmental laws are blatant.” Meserve is attorney for appellants Mission Bay Alliance, Jennifer Wade, and SaveMuni.
Past arguments against the arena were about impeding access to a hospital in the neighborhood, but a court ruled that proper precautions were taken.
The group protesting this arena have been largely basing their argument against it on an inadequate environmental review.
It seems unlikely that this arena is not going to go forward as planned at this site. The Chase Center has been planned to be opened in 2019.
The Warriors have played in Oakland since 1971. After relocating from Philadelphia in 1962, the Warriors became known as the San Francisco Warriors, and played their home games at the Cow Palace and San Francisco Civic Auditorium.
Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum was built in 1966, and the Warriors began playing occasional home games in that arena, before officially moving to Oakland in 1971 and becoming the Golden State Warriors.
The Warriors have a rich history in the Bay Area, and a move across the Bay isn’t unprecedented. I’ve always considered them first and foremost the Bay’s Team, and I don’t think the move to San Francisco is going to drastically change this team’s identity.
The Giants and A’s and Raiders and 49ers are subject to fierce debates amongst sports fans in this area, but it’s pretty cool that the Warriors and Sharks are teams that most people can agree on in this region.
The Sacramento Kings were encroaching on some of that in the Chris Webber/Peja Stojakoic/Mike Bibby era, but those days are long gone. The Warriors reign supreme in this region, and moving to San Francisco isn’t going to change that.
My one concern is that the Chase Center isn’t going to be as loud as Oracle Arena, but hopefully those worries are unfounded.
I trust the architects to design that arena to amplify sound as much as possible, and the same fans are going to be passionately cheering for the Warriors at that venue.