Baseball fans may be eager to see the Oakland A’s new stadium at the team’s chosen site near Laney College, but nearby residents are considered about what the new ballpark will mean for them.

According to an East Bay Express report, many Chinatown and Eastlake residents worry that a ballpark will disrupt their community with noise, boisterous fans, and heavy traffic. Rent prices could also see an even more dramatic uptick, and the existing affordable housing may be demolished and replaced with expensive homes and parking structures. Some even fear that Chinatown will disappear altogether under a wave of affluent fans and new residents. 

Oakland Councilmember Abel Guillen has stated that he is worried about the A’s proposal leading to speculation in the real estate markets around the site. To mitigate the potential negative impacts this would have, Guillen asked the Oakland Planning Commission to come up with interim development controls. 

Planning staff has proposed creating a special zone of approximately 120 blocks around Laney that will be protected against demolitions and new parking facilities. The zone will also require all large development projects to obtain conditional use permits. Developers would also have to send notices to property owners and tenants who live near their proposed projects so that the public can weigh in.

It remains to be seen whether these proposed protections will be enough to protect the Chinatown and Eastlake neighborhoods from disappearing.