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Oakland Athletics May Get Waterfront Ballpark Near Jack London Square

OAKLAND (CBS SF) -- Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf didn't want to get people's hopes up about the future of the Oakland Athletics, but she just couldn't help herself Monday.

"I don't want to get everyone too excited…the exciting thing is the A's are definitely staying in Oakland," Schaaf said.

And it's possible their new home will be right next to Oakland's Jack London Square.

A's owner John Fisher is expected to meet with members of the city's staff to tour the Charles P. Howard Terminal at the Port of Oakland on Thursday morning.

Mayor Schaaf has long favored this site and says the A's are finally taking it seriously.

"And that's why they're touring the site tomorrow with technical staff, engineers, people who understand the soil conditions, the sea wall…" Schaaf said.

But before any home runs can reach the waters of San Francisco Bay, there are a lot of questions to answer, like how much parking will be available? And the closest BART station-12th Street/City Center is a mile away, a 22-minute walk through neighborhoods that may be a bit intimidating for some fans.

Also, thousands of people would have to cross railroad tracks, meaning the city may have to foot the bill for expensive pedestrian overpasses.

Schaaf, who is against putting public money into the stadium, says she doesn't mind funding improvements to the city's property surrounding it, especially if it revitalizes the area like AT&T Park did for China Basin.

As for the fans? They just want to get it done.

Longtime Oakland resident and A's fan Raymond Walker said, "Just keep the A's in Oakland and send them on down to the Jack London where I hang out. I'll go down there any time, all the time."

They say a gleaming new stadium on this site may be what it takes to get more than just die-hard fans to come out to the park.

Oakland resident and A's fan Jay Jordan said, "Sports are an event, attraction, entertainment, now. So, you got to put that aspect…you got to put everything out there for them."

Thursday's tour may just be that first step on what many feel has already been a very long and tiresome journey.

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