Warriors set to move back across the bay

May 22, 2012 - 5:39 PM San Francisco, CA (Sports Network) - The Golden State Warriors are planning to move back across the bay to San Francisco.

San Francisco mayor Edwin M. Lee was joined by Warriors owner and CEO Joe Lacob at a press conference Tuesday on the proposed site of the new building at Pier 30-32 on San Francisco Bay near the foot of the Bay Bridge.

It will be a privately-financed, $500 million building on the waterfront that will seat between 17,000 and 19,000 people. The team and city are hopeful that it will open in time for the 2017-18 season.

"We are working with the Warriors to get a state-of-the-art, multi-purpose arena built on the waterfront in San Francisco and completed in 2017," said Lee. "The Warriors have been the Bay Area's basketball team for 50 years, and today sets the stage for the Warriors to be the Bay Area's team for another 50."

Lacob, who took over ownership of the franchise in November 2010, has been trying to find a new venue for the team, which left Philadelphia for the west coast and played in San Francisco from 1962 through 1971 before leaving for Oakland.

"This has been remarkable journey for us," said Lacob at Tuesday's news conference. "It was not an easy decision. We looked at a number of sites. We explored all our options in the Bay Area, including Oakland.

"Our fan base is really 50-50. We are the Bay Area's basketball team and have to find the best for our fans."

Under the agreement, the city of San Francisco will provide the land and the Warriors will pay to repair the crumbling piers, and privately finance the arena project. The cost of repairs is estimated at $75 to $100 million.

"We plan to build the most spectacular arena in the country," Lacob said Tuesday. "We intend to do everything in our power to have a team to match the standard of what this arena will be. This arena is about winning, just like the team on the court."

The Warriors were 23-43 during the truncated 2011-12 season and have not had a winning season record since the 2007-08 campaign. The club has had just one playoff appearance in the past 18 years.