In 2019, the Warriors will move to a new stadium- “The Chase Center”- in San Francisco Mission Bay, given the new stadium gets approval from city legislators. Unsurprisingly, the debate regarding this move has been mired with controversy.

A bittersweet look at Oracle Arena- the home of championships and broken records. The new stadium will be in the SF mission bay district, and will be completed in 2019.

The new stadium  was proposed in 2012. Originally the stadium was to be built on Pier 30-Pier 32 in the SF Waterfront area. However, after heavy criticism that the stadium would severely affect traffic and disturb the family environment, the Warriors decided to move the stadium to the Mission Bay area, a district known for its heavy population of biotech companies and research institutions, most notably, UCSF’s Mission Bay medical campus.

Opponents of the stadium frequently cite traffic congestion as the biggest issue. For example, the Mission Bay Alliance, which is a group of donors to UCSF, argues that the stadium will create huge traffic jams, and make it difficult to get to the institution.

Some Burlingame High school students have interned at the UCSF Mission Bay campus and agree with the concerns of the Mission Bay Group.

“The traffic at Mission Bay, because of the abundance of the biotech companies, is already very congested. Adding a huge stadium to this area would definitely downgrade the quality of life for workplace,” former UCSF intern and senior Joseph Howard said.

Some fans are opposed because they believe that Oakland is where the team rightfully belongs.

In a poll conducted with 87 BHS students, 32.6% of students said they supported the move. The remaining 67.4% opposed the move for various reasons. 27.9% of students opposed the move because of traffic issues, 27.9% opposed because they believe Oracle is the rightful home of the warriors, and 11.6% marked “other reason.”

“The gentrification of Oracle Arena was apparent during last season’s playoff run. By moving to San Francisco, prices [of tickets] will only increase and corporations will buy season tickets to gift to clients. I can’t think of a real reason why this move will be beneficial,” Spencer Pratt said.

On the other hand, the new stadium does have its proponents. In a poll of 87 BHS students, 28 students (32.6%) supported the move to Mission Bay.

Some students believe that the warriors do need a new stadium, but question the location of the proposed move.

“I think the Warriors are in need of a stadium upgrade, but moving to an area like Mission Bay, which is close to crucial hospitals would probably do more harm than good,” BHS senior Cheryl Lee said.

Despite criticism, for now, the new stadium will move forward in its construction plans. In July, the San Francisco Superior Court ruled that the new stadium had passed environmental standards.

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee, in an article by the SF Gate said this decision was an “an important milestone in the process of bringing the Golden State Warriors back to San Francisco and to building a state-of-the-art entertainment venue the entire San Francisco Bay Area can be proud of.”