Athletics 'shocked' after stadium plans stopped by college board

The Oakland Athletics received some terrible news on Wednesday which affected the potential building of a new stadium for the franchise.

The governing board of the community college that owns the intended building site ordered discussions between the two sides be stopped.

Laney College in Oakland, Calif. was announced as the Athletics preferred site for a new ballpark in September, but local community groups as well as teachers and students of the institution didn't appear pleased with the idea.

The news caught the Athletics off guard.

"We are shocked by Peralta’s decision to not move forward," the Athletics said in a statement. "All we wanted to do was enter into a conversation about how to make this work for all of Oakland, Laney, and the Peralta Community College District. We are disappointed that we will not have that opportunity."

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred "applauded" the efforts of the Athletics, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, and urged Oakland leaders to "rejoin the conversation."

There doesn't appear to be a back-up plan for a different site, according to the Chronicle, and team president David Kaval explained building on the current Oakland Coliseum site isn't "feasible."

Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf released a statement Wednesday which said the city is "fiercely determined" to keep the Athletics in Oakland despite the unfortunate circumstances surrounding the ended negotiations.

The Coliseum opened in 1966 and houses both the Athletics and Oakland Raiders. It is widely considered as one of the worst stadiums in baseball.