Feinstein, York at lunch: Main course, 49ers plan to move

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 8/29/7 | Phillip Matier,Andrew Ross

[SmithL]

The temperature could get a little warm at the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce's annual 49ers booster luncheon today, as Sen. Dianne Feinstein takes the stage with a call for team owners John and Denise York to keep the Niners in the city.

Feinstein, a big Niners fan and equally big critic of the Yorks' proposed move to Santa Clara, tells us she plans to use the event at the Hyatt Regency to urge the 49er Faithful to break their silence, "rally forth and convince Mr. York that San Francisco is the place to be."

"I feel strongly that the 49ers are a San Francisco team and should remain a San Francisco team," Feinstein said. "That's what the 49er legend is all about."

No doubt, plenty of 49ers will be on hand to hear the message - everyone from John York to coach Mike Nolan and even the Gold Rush cheerleading squad is scheduled to welcome an expected 800 guests.

Feinstein hasn't exactly made a secret of her opposition to the Santa Clara idea - she's even sponsored legislation that would give NFL owners the right to block the move - but today's talk will be the first time the senator has publicly thrown down the pom-poms on behalf of San Francisco's stadium effort in York's presence.

Feinstein's message is expected to be echoed by Mayor Gavin Newsom, who will tell the chamber's corporate sponsors that they need to be "engaged" if they want to keep the team from moving down the Peninsula.

Be that as it may, Niners spokeswoman Lisa Lang says the team has no plans to pull back from Santa Clara as the top choice for the stadium that the Yorks hope to open for the 2012 season. San Francisco remains the team's second choice.

[mysterio]

No tax dollars for billionaire sports teams.

[gcruse]

“rally forth’

I see Dianne still has the patrician’s touch.

[Natural Law]

Feinstein continues to act in the interests of San Francisco over the interests of the remainder of the state (in addition to her other hand-in-the-cookie-jar problems) whom she suposedly represents as a US Senator. She cheated Silicon Valley out of a MLB team when she declared that the entire Silicon Valley was Giants territory, thus prohibiting the Oakland A's from moving there. Now she is attempting to do the same with 49ers.

The bottom line is that the cities in the Silicon Valley have a larger population, higher per capita income, larger population of Fortune 1000 companies, better transportation, better weather, and fewer freaks. They also have the San Jose Sharks, the Oakland A's (8 miles away in nearby Fremont) and soon the 49ers. San Francisco has Code Pink and a diminishing tax base. We obviously don't send the best and brightest to Washington DC.

[kabar]

The Washington Redskins play in Landover, Maryland.

[FortWorthPatriot]

"When I think of San Francisco 49ers, I get sick, all the liberal law breakers, illegal gay marriages, cocaine snorting mayor, not to mention he is an adulterer. I think they should move."

Is this the real reason they are moving out or is it something else altogether?

[norton]

It might be easier to recruit if they claim Santa Clara or even Petaluma.

Having to represent San Francisco AND wear stretch pants would be pretty traumatic.

[Mr. Jeeves]

Natural Law got it exactly right in post #23. Silicon Valley is the new center of commercial gravity for the Bay Area - San Francisco is declining as a coprorate center and becoming more of a rich enclave and tourist trap. Any team wanting to sell lots of luxury boxes for big bucks would prefer Santa Clara.

[martin_fierro]

www.dumpyork.com

[ArrogantBustard]

The 'Niners had best be careful.

Fine Swine just might go Postal.

[AnotherUnixGeek]

Feinstein, a big Niners fan and equally big critic of the Yorks' proposed move to Santa Clara, tells us she plans to use the event at the Hyatt Regency to urge the 49er Faithful to break their silence, "rally forth and convince Mr. York that San Francisco is the place to be."

Senator Feinstein needs to remember that she represents all of California, not just San Francisco. Most 49ers season ticket holders don't live in San Francisco - they live on the Peninsula or in the South Bay. Santa Clara is ideal, and any new stadium anywhere in the Bay Area would be a vast improvement over Candlestick, which has to be the worst stadium in all of US professional sports.

[fish hawk]

But you can imagine them in the city of queers, cross dressers and perverts??? If you want to get technical, they should move to Sacramento where gold was discovered and the name forty niner came from.

[Brandie]

LOL she does.