Venue News & Notes: A Ballpark Above the Interstate?

While Major League Baseball continues to meander in its slow deliberations on where the Oakland A’s should call home, an architect in Oakland is pressing an idea of a new ballpark — above Interstate 980. The idea is the brainchild of Bryan Grunwald, 67, of Oakland, an urban designer and planner. Grunwald’s proposal calls for a new baseball stadium to be built over the depressed portion of I-980 between 14th and 18th Streets. In essence, the bridges at 14th and 18th Streets would be widened to connect, creating a solid platform where the stadium could be built…

…The company set up to ensure a lasting legacy in east London following the 2012 Olympics said this week it is getting “a lot of interest” in future uses for the main stadium. The 80,000-seat Olympic Stadium, which will be the venue for the track and field competition and Opening and Closing Ceremonies, is designed to be reduced to 25,000 seats after the games. “We’re getting responses back by the end of the month on what the potential uses of the stadium will be,” Olympic Park Legacy Co. Chief Executive Andrew Altman said. “We’re getting a lot of interest”…

…Plans to build a £92 million stadium for England’s World Cup bid were in doubt this week after campaigners won a significant victory in their bid to protect the site from development. People living near the 42-acre stadium site in Bristol are celebrating after an independent inspector said the land should be given town green status. Bristol City, who wanted to build the 30,000-seat stadium, said they were disappointed but remain determined to press ahead with the scheme…

…Maloof Sports and Entertainment just announced that ARCO will be replaced as the Sacramento Kings’ arena naming-rights partner when the gas company’s contract ends in February. The release does not suggest that the Kings have a new sponsor for the gym. Stadium-naming rights are a vital source of income. ARCO has graced the Kings’ two Sacramento arenas for 24 years. No other NBA team has had the same name for more than 22 years (Detroit’s Palace of Auburn Hills debuted in 1988).