San Francisco Inches Closer to America's Cup Win

The way things are going, you might as well start polishing your yacht right now.
 
According to reports, the city that hosts the next America's Cup will either be San Francisco or some port in Italy. Gavin Newsom and the Board of Supervisors have been gunning hard for the contest, passing legislation and making big promises to try to entice Larry Ellison to choose The City.

Ellison gets to choose because his team, the BMW Oracle Racing Team, won the last one.

Among the attempt to sweeten the deal: San Francisco would give the team long-term development rights to piers 30-32, in exchange for the team overseeing the $150 million renovation that the property currently requires. The team would also have to hire local workers, protect the environment, and coordinate a bunch of behind-the-scenes contracts.

Proponents of the race estimate that it could create 9,000 new jobs and generate $1.4 billion. Other estimates peg the benefits at 12,000 jobs and $1.9 billion. Opponents, chiefly Chris Daly, think that yacht racing is boring, the economic benefits are overblown, and that someone else should redevelop that land. It's unclear who else would take on the task.

The decision is expected to come soon. With the race scheduled for 2013, organizers will name their choice within the next two months.

"The economy of the entire San Francisco Bay Area will benefit exponentially from hosting the America’s Cup in 2013," said Board of Supervisors President David Chiu. "We are preparing to bring this world class sailing race to our world class waterfront."