Oakland Roots Pitch 8,000-Seat Stadium at Harbor Bay

If you've driven past the old Oakland Raiders training facility on Harbor Bay Parkway lately, picture soccer players out there instead of linemen. Oakland Roots and Soul, the East Bay's pro soccer clubs, want to turn that site into a temporary 8,000-seat stadium. Alameda's Planning Board just got its first look at the plan, and it's worth knowing what's on the table before it goes any further.

What's Being Proposed at Harbor Bay Parkway

The clubs are asking to convert their headquarters and training facility at 1150 and 1220 Harbor Bay Parkway, inside Harbor Bay Business Park near Oakland International Airport, into a modular stadium that seats up to 8,000 people. The men's team, Oakland Roots, could play 20 to 24 matches a year there from March through November. Oakland Soul, the women's team, would add 5 to 7 games from May through July. The site could also host youth tournaments, high school and college games, summer camps and corporate events on top of that.

How Long Would the Stadium Stay

This isn't meant to be permanent. The clubs are asking for approval to run the setup for 3 to 5 years while they keep chasing a permanent stadium at Howard Terminal in Oakland, where talks with the Port of Oakland are still ongoing. If the Harbor Bay plan gets approved, construction would happen in three phases over about six months, with a goal of hosting USL Championship games there by 2027.

What It Means for Parking and Traffic

The plan doesn't call for building new parking. Instead, it leans on roughly 4,000 spaces already inside the surrounding business park through shared-use agreements, plus shuttle service from remote lots and the Coliseum BART station. There's also a bike valet plan worked out with Bike East Bay. That's the part that will matter most to anyone who lives or works nearby, since match days could bring thousands of extra people and cars into the area.

Where the Approval Process Stands

The June 22 meeting was a public workshop, not a vote. According to the city's own file on the project, no final action on the environmental review or the project itself happened that day. In other words, this is still early. Expect more study on traffic and noise, and likely another Planning Board hearing, before anyone decides whether the stadium actually gets built.

• Where: 1150 and 1220 Harbor Bay Parkway
• Capacity: up to 8,000 seats
• How long: 3 to 5 years, described as an interim use
• Status: workshop held, no vote yet

"We're always exploring all of our options at the club," Oakland Roots and Soul co-founder Edreece Arghandiwal told KTVU. "It's important for us to create a club that's sustainable."

For a neighborhood that's more used to quiet business park traffic than match day crowds, this is a proposal worth watching. Nothing is final yet, and the city still has to work through the traffic and noise questions before this goes anywhere.