Los Angeles City Council approves NFL Stadium

[TinyEvel]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap100...headline_stack

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LOS ANGELES -- Los Angeles took a major step Friday toward building a downtown stadium to lure an NFL team back to the nation's second most populous city, despite questions about how a 72,000-seat venue in the city's urban core would impact notorious freeway traffic, nearby housing prices and air quality.


The 12-0 vote by City Council came after starkly contrasting predictions about what the $1.5 billion project would mean for an economically troubled city that has fretted over the loss of professional football since the Raiders and Rams fled Southern California in 1994.

Supporters said the deal with developer Anschutz Entertainment Group would create thousands of jobs, a hub of civic pride and new tax dollars for cash-starved City Hall, while critics warned that affordable housing would vanish in the neighborhood while traffic would come to a virtual standstill on game days.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said in a statement after the vote that it demonstrates "what we can accomplish when the city family joins together with private partners in a transformational development."

"This is truly a game changer for Los Angeles," Villaraigosa said.

The vote was overshadowed by the recent announcement that AEG was seeking a new owner, though company officials have assured City Hall the stadium plan will remain the same, even if the company changes hands.

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The biggest question about the stadium is the most obvious: There's no one to play in it. But the Democratic mayor and other supporters hope the agreement will eventually attract a team - or two - to one of the nation's most lucrative media markets.

AEG, also the owner of Los Angeles' Staples Center arena and the NHL's Los Angeles Kings, has deep ties to City Hall. Any deal to buy the company, a subsidiary of Denver-based Anschutz Co., would mean a major shift in sports and entertainment in the region and around the world.

AEG's holdings include pro soccer's Los Angeles Galaxy, part-ownership of the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers, and major entertainment and real estate holdings in downtown Los Angeles. Outside the city, AEG owns Major League Soccer's Houston Dynamo and all or part of several arenas around the U.S. and in Sweden, China and Australia.

The project, which calls for the renovation of an adjacent convention center, is facing a lawsuit filed by anti-poverty and environmental activists that some predict could delay or derail plans for the stadium, known as Farmers Field. The activist group, Play Fair at Farmers Field Coalition, is challenging a state law intended to help swiftly resolve legal challenges to the stadium, and it also wants AEG to pay $60 million toward affordable housing in the long-struggling downtown neighborhood.

There are some risky assumptions. In a city where everyone drives, planners predict many fans will leave their vehicles at home and travel to the stadium by bus or rail.

A rival group, Majestic Realty, has proposed building a stadium in the City of Industry, outside Los Angeles.

AEG is hoping to have an NFL team on the field by the 2017 season. The company has pledged about $35 million to reduce traffic problems.

[Chiefs Pantalones]

Originally Posted by Sweet Daddy Hate

I was going to say Santa Cruz, but I figured the townsfolk would fight that shit tooth and nail.

Lol I just couldn't see it. It'd be like Gotham before Batman cleaned it up.

[bigjosh]

Originally Posted by Chiefs Pantalones

Well if not Oakland or LA, then where will the Raiders end up?

I think most of them live in lompoc during the offseason.

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

I'm thinking Riverside would be the PERFECT home for those idiots. Or Los Gatos.

PERFECT.

[Coach]

Nah.

Alcatraz.

[Chiefs Pantalones]

South Dakota Raiders? Maine Raiders? Little Rock Raiders? Indiana Raiders? Waterloo Raiders? Hmm

[007]

Originally Posted by Chiefs Pantalones

South Dakota Raiders? Maine Raiders? Little Rock Raiders? Indiana Raiders? Waterloo Raiders? Hmm

Death Valley Raiders

[Chiefs Pantalones]

Originally Posted by Guru

Death Valley Raiders

Oregon Raiders?

[GloryDayz]

Originally Posted by Guru

Death Valley Raiders

Low Ridin Raiders....

[CrazyPhuD]

Originally Posted by Sweet Daddy Hate

I'm thinking Riverside would be the PERFECT home for those idiots. Or Los Gatos.

PERFECT.

Nah man, Washington D.C. Raiders!

[Chaunceythe3rd]

Originally Posted by Braincase

Raiders will have some sort of legal action before the end of next week.

This. The American way.

[Chaunceythe3rd]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

The real story, which many people don't know, is the Irsay, Sr owned the Rams and swapped them for the Colts in 1972. The new Rams owner, Carol Rosenbloom, married a stripper named Georgia Frontiere, who likely murdered him years later.

She moved the team to Anaheim because they offered her a sweetheart deal. After she ran the team into the ground during the late 90's, mostly due to incredible mismanagement of the front office in the aftermath of the Dickerson trade.

St. Louis came calling because they screwed up their ownership group during the last league expansion phase (which went to Jacksonville), gave her a sweetheart deal and now, they're looking to opt out again.

Blame the organization, not the city.

A thoughtful, incisive and well-reasoned reply.

[houstonwhodat]

LA Chiefs?

[ChiefsCountry]

If you know the back story on how the Rams moved to St. Louis, it is a lot of moving parts that affected a few other franchises as well.

Before Bidwell moved the Cardinals in 1987, you have to go back to 1984 in Boston. The Sullivan family, one of the original AFL owners, decided to get into the concert promotion business. Their son decided to promote the Jackson 5 World Tour in 1984 aka the Victory Tour. This ironically kicked off in Kansas City because of the Sullivan family’s respect for Lamar Hunt. What happened is the tour actually bankrupted the Sullivan family, while they owned a NFL team they were not very wealthy. They did have two separate assets in the Patriots and Foxboro Stadium. In 1988, they sold the Pats to Victor Kiam and Robert Kraft bought Foxboro Stadium. Well Kiam ran into major debt and into picture steps James Orthwein. Orthwein, from St. Louis owned a major ad agency and a cousin to the Busch family. First he was an investor then in 1992 purchased the Patriots out right.

Of course at the same time was the NFL Expansion of 1993. St. Louis was in the running with Charlotte, Baltimore, Memphis and Jacksonville. We know the Panthers were the first vote and St. Louis was supposed to get the second team but the ownership situation was with two groups. The first and main group was with Jerry Lincoln, a big Budweiser distributor in St. Louis, Fran Murray, and Orthwein. The original plan was for Murray to own the new franchise; he was a part owner of the Patriots before but ironically he didn’t have any money either. After Murray got the new St. Louis franchise, he was going to switch it with the Patriots that Orthwein owned. Murray was then going to move the Pats to Hartford. At the same time, Stan Kroenke steps forward with a group made up of other prominent St. Louis business owners. This turned out to be a very solid NFL ownership group i.e. they had the money to do it. Trouble was Orthwein held the lease to the Dome. The first group also backed out of the ownership late.

Well the second team was awarded to Jacksonville. Baltimore had a strong bid, just as strong as St. Louis with a stadium in place. They had 3 ownership groups running for it. One was Malcolm Glazer; the other was Al Learner, and a third. Trouble was a lawsuit was going to be brought out if Learner won the team by the third group. Jacksonville had no law suits and Weaver was a strong owner.

Guess who was on that expansion committee – Art Modell. Of course we know Modell moved the Ravens to Baltimore. Guess who got the Browns expansion team – Learner. Look who bought the Bucs – Glazer.

Now back to St. Louis, well Orthwein wanted to move the Patriots to St. Louis trouble was he couldn’t get out of the lease at Foxboro Stadium. Remember who bought that – Bob Kraft. Kraft wouldn’t allow them out of it for any price, so in 1994 Orthwein sold the Pats to Kraft. With him no longer in the picture it allowed Kroenke to help get the Rams to St. Louis.

If you go back to the 1974 deal between Isray and Rosenbloom. Look at all the NFL teams effected by that switch.
Indianapolis
Arizona
New England
Carolina
Jacksonville
St. Louis
Oakland
Baltimore
Tennessee
Tampa Bay
Cleveland
Houston

[Mojo Jojo]

And throughout the Colts move...Jacksonville was the leader and it was an all but done deal then Irsay changed his mind at the last minute and moved to Indy. Another reason when Weaver came up with a strong offer and none of the other dramas the NFL felt they owed Jax a shot because of Irsay.