Raiders Reportedly OK ‘Framework’ of Oakland Offer

The Los Angeles Raiders have approved the “framework” of a proposal to bring the team back to Oakland, an Alameda County supervisor said.

Officials from the team, Oakland, Alameda County and the Oakland Coliseum will start face-to-face talks today that could lead to a tentative agreement by the end of the week, Supervisor Don Perata said.

“We’re moving into the final stages and working toward a written tentative agreement,” Perata told the Tribune of Oakland. “The elements are there to make a final deal.”

Perata said talks will be based on the proposal that the city, county and Coliseum sent to the Raiders about two weeks ago after months of meetings to put together a package of cash and stadium improvements.

The supervisor said he had contacted local officials involved in the proposal about the team’s response, including Mayor Lionel Wilson, but none could be reached for comment, the newspaper reported.

But George Vukasin, president of the Coliseum board, said he had not been contacted about any response from the Raiders.

“If there were any validity to (the response), someone would have called me,” he said. “I haven’t heard anything from anybody.”

Vukasin added that lawyers for the Coliseum will not meet with anyone until he hears of it first.

Raiders officials and spokesmen could not be reached Sunday.

Perata said that he had not seen the team’s response but that it was delivered Friday night by the Raiders’ principal owner, Jack Brooks, to Ed de Silva, a Hayward contractor who is a leader in the effort to return the team to Oakland.

De Silva told him “we’re not at the finish line yet, but nothing in response from the Raiders represents an insurmountable obstacle,” Perata said. De Silva also could not be reached.

The Tribune quoted sources that said the 100-page proposal involves paying the Raiders a $32-million “franchise fee.” The money would be raised with revenue bonds issued by the Coliseum, which is owned by Oakland and Alameda County. The city and county would also raise up to $50 million to expand the 53,000-seat Coliseum.

Officials from Sacramento and Los Angeles-area cities have submitted proposals to lure the team, but Perata said Oakland is the only site the Raiders are considering.

The Raiders moved from Oakland to Los Angeles in 1982. The team’s lease with the Los Angeles Coliseum expires after the 1991 season.

Meanwhile, the Sacramento Union reported Sunday that construction of the Arco Sports Complex--a new 72,000-seat outdoor stadium designed for football and baseball--resumed in Sacramento. The Sacramento Sports Assn. is negotiating with Raiders owner Al Davis to bring the team to Sacramento, but no agreement is in place. The stadium is expected to be ready in time for the 1991 NFL season.