Strike Three? Oakland Mayor calls Las Vegas a ‘gross desert’

It’s safe to assume that Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf won’t be booking a flight to Las Vegas anytime soon. During an interview with ABC 7, Mayor Schaaf got a little foul when commenting about the Oakland A’s potential move to Las Vegas, telling the morning anchors, “You’ve got to be much more environmentally focused when you are developing on the precious California coastline than in the gross desert of Las Vegas.”

(Editors note: I have been to Oakland, and it’s not exactly the French Riviera).

One consideration for this move, as related by A’s President Dave Kaval, is that it’s simply harder to do business in California compared to Nevada. The A’s organization have been subject to a barrage of lawsuits filed against their plans to build a waterfront stadium.

The latest lawsuit, filed last Friday, drew this comment from Kaval:

“Well, we got sued on Friday, I thought it was an April Fool’s Day joke, but I guess the joke was on me,” said Kaval. “Now we have an additional nine months of deliberation that we’re going to have to deal with before we can get the project approved.”

Here's the whole chat from @abc7newsbayarea Midday Live. Lots of EIR lawsuit talk. pic.twitter.com/ou2YDoMpsV

— Casey Pratt (@CaseyPrattABC7) April 6, 2022

Las Vegas Mayor Carol Goodman responded with class, tweeting:

Mayor @LibbySchaaf has this right – sustainability is a priority. The beautiful @cityoflasvegas is a world leader in sustainability & top destination. @LibbySchaaf please join the more than 42 million visitors a year and enjoy a trip to Las Vegas. We can go to a @Raiders game. https://t.co/BmZuKJ0LSp

— Carolyn G. Goodman (@mayoroflasvegas) April 7, 2022

Democratic Clark County Commissioner, Michael Naft, took a much harder swing and knocked it out of the park:

Mayor @LibbySchaaf, this ignorant and elitist comment may be one reason why so many people, companies, and teams want to get the heck out of your jurisdiction. I invite you to come to the #LasVegas strip in @ClarkCountyNV anytime and I’ll be glad to better inform you. https://t.co/jT54H1NdpK

— Michael Naft (@MichaelNaft) April 7, 2022

As reported by KTVN, the A’s organization may make a decision on moving to Las Vegas as early as next month:

As Las Vegas continues to cement itself as the entertainment sports capital of the world, Kaval says a decision on the site for a potential $1 billion stadium could come as early as next month.

“I think it could be kind of like more of like a May timeline,” said Kaval. “So, hopefully we can hit that. It might depend a little bit on some of the negotiations, but it’s certainly achievable. We’re so far along.”

The city of San Francisco has already boycotted Nevada. If their sister city of Oakland strikes out,  Nevadans will have the last laugh while enjoying some peanuts and Cracker Jack in a billion-dollar stadium.