Click on an image to enlarge. Renderings via Skidmore Owings & Merrill More news from the waterfront, and things are looking good for the 34th America's Cup here in San Francisco in 2013. According to today's New York Times, a spokesman for the Golden Gate Yacht Club is quoted as saying that Valencia is no longer under consideration for the race, leaving the competition between Italy (with a yet-to-be disclosed location) and San Francisco. Yesterday, an agreement was announced between the club (Oracle/BMW's sponsor) and the city, which must be approved by the Board of Supervisors. Since six of the eleven Supes are co-sponsors of the agreement, it's expected to go through. More at the Chronicle. The basics: San Francisco and Ports will cede extensive development rights between the Bay Bridge and China Basin to the Event Authority in exchange for a minimum of $270,000,000 in infrastructure investment. Like fixing the rotting piers, which Ports cannot afford to do.
The Event Authority is not some quasi-public agency- it's the Oracle/BMW entity that will "produce" the event. And let's not forget that when Larry Ellison's bid to compete under the San Francisco Yacht Club's pennant was rudely declined a decade ago, he went downshore a ways and bought the little Golden Gate Yacht Club. The Event Authority could possibly make its decision this month, and it's likely that Italy, a place where archaeology traditionally gets in the way of new infrastructure, will zero out. What makes San Francisco seem an even more likely choice is that Spain, the host of the last America's Cup race, has invested billions of pesos in a world-class facility in Valencia that's ready to go. No doubt we'll see an increase in sales activity in the neighborhood as investors buy condos to rent out for the races.
· San Francisco Takes Lead to Host America’s Cup [New York Times]
· S.F. is 1 of 2 finalists to host America's Cup [SFGate]
· La Marina Real Juan Carlos [Consorcio Valencia]
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