Future of Candlestick burns dimly

Now that the 49ers will be leaving Candlestick in a few years, what does the future hold for the aging stadium?

Surely city officials can find a use for it. They can host high school and college football games. Candlestick has hosted soccer matches and concerts. There are plenty of ways to utilize the structure.

No one with any knowledge of San Francisco’s sports history would ever think about tearing the stadium down. Right?

Wrong.

Lennar Urban, the company in charge of redeveloping the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard, is ready to pounce the moment the 49ers leave town.

“If and when the 49ers abandon Candlestick, we will initiate discussions with The City to accelerate plans to demolish the stadium,” Kofi Bonner, president of Lennar Urban, told The Examiner.

Well that’s just depressing.

Bonner went on to tell the paper that when Candlestick is no more, 6,000 new homes will be built on the land as part of the Hunters Point redevelopment project.

49ers fans haven’t even had time to pick up the pieces of their broken hearts. First they lose on the doorstep of the Super Bowl, then the team bolts. Now people want to destroy Candlestick the moment the 49ers lock the doors behind them.

If the construction of the new stadium in Santa Clara goes as planned, the 49ers will spend just two more seasons in Candlestick.

So, go out and enjoy the old, cranky stadium while you still have a chance. Take your kids to a game and tell them this is where some of the greatest athletes of all-time performed. Tell them Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, Willie Mays and Barry Bonds built their legacies on that field.