ChiefsCountry
04-21-2006, 10:32 AM
http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_3733231
NFL wants 2 teams in L.A.
Coliseum upgrades doubly attractive
BY BETH BARRETT and RICK ORLOV, Staff Writers
LA Daily News
With a showdown looming over whether professional football returns to Los Angeles, the National Football League has quietly raised the prospect of bringing not just one but two teams to a rebuilt Memorial Coliseum, the Daily News has learned.
Looking to boost revenues and amortize the soaring cost of transforming the historic Coliseum into a state-of-the- art stadium, sources said the NFL has asked the Coliseum Commission to consider expanding the cap on Coliseum events from 25 to 35 a year. The controversial proposal is certain to increase resistance from the landmark museums in nearby Exposition Park because traffic congestion and limited parking would impact their operations.
"It's just in the talking stage," said one source, adding that the concept was voiced by NFL representatives as part of the lease negotiations over the past couple of weeks.
"When you spend a lot of money on a stadium, you want the right to bring a second team in if that makes sense," the source said. "It would have a huge economic impact. It would be a better economic deal."
Far from certain is whether the NFL would grant Los Angeles one of its 32 existing franchises or whether the city would play host to an expansion team.
The NFL owners have worried that they would not have a balanced schedule if they added a single expansion team. A second Los Angeles team would solve that dilemma.
The second team would be considered five to 10 years after the first team is established, the source said.
NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said the league also is looking at the possibility of a second team in Anaheim if that city is selected by the owners for a Southern California franchise.
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said he had heard some discussion about the possibility of a second team, but that it hasn't been proposed to him officially.
"We have to focus on getting one team, and on our terms," Villaraigosa said. "I want a football team. I think the people of the city want a football team. But, we have made clear we are not prepared to give away the store to get one.
"I think they realize where we stand on this and I think we've gone as far as we can."
City Councilman Bernard Parks, who has been leading the local effort to return pro football to the Coliseum, said he did not believe the two-team concept would detract from the ongoing negotiations to win the right for one team.
Parks and a team from the Coliseum Commission are scheduled to make a presentation May 2 to NFL owners, hoping to persuade them that Los Angeles should be selected over Anaheim or Pasadena for a Southern California football team. The owners are scheduled to make a decision May 21 when they meet in Denver.
"So far, the idea of a second team is just something that's been bouncing around back and forth for the past six months," Parks said. "I don't know how serious it is. I am looking to get one team."
Councilman Herb Wesson, who serves on the City Council's Ad Hoc Committee on Stadiums, said he would be surprised if L.A. got a second team.
"It would be a new wrinkle to me," Wesson said. "I think we would be open to just about anything, but that we ought to concentrate on bringing one in now."
Some officials are concerned, however, about giving too much of the Exposition Park operation to the NFL at the expense of other attractions, such as the Natural History Museum, the California Science Center and the California African American History Museum.
Jane Pisano, president of the Natural History Museum, said any increase in the number of event days presents a potential problem for the museum.
"My first reaction is that whatever the state and the NFL agree to, it's very, very important that the missions of the cultural and community institutions of the park be respected, and that those institutions be able to continue to serve the public.
"The challenge for all of us is to accommodate a fairly, fully utilized Coliseum and all the events at the cultural institutions. It will require give and take, and working together for all the entities in the park to carry out this mission."
County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, who also serves on the Coliseum Commission, said he is not opposed to a second football team - although he finds irony in this latest proposal - but will hold firm on the number of dates made available to professional football.
"It is pretty funny that for 11 years, the Coliseum wasn't good enough for one team and now they're talking about bringing in two," Yaroslavsky said. "I think we could accommodate two teams without taking away any more prime dates.
"The 25 prime dates we negotiated was a compromise between the NFL, the Coliseum and the stakeholders in the park."
Also, Yaroslavsky said he is concerned about the amount of time it is taking to reach a conclusion on the negotiations for one team.
"I'm not sure what to make of this," Yaroslavsky said. "We have a lot of issues that could have been and should have been resolved already, but they keep raising new ones. There are a series of things they keep raising and this is just the latest."
Coliseum Commissioner Bill Chadwick, an appointee of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, said he doesn't expect the second-team issue to be a matter of consideration at the May 2 presentation to the NFL owners.
Instead, he said, it is more of a long-term issue for the Coliseum Commission to consider.
"It is something we could do without a dramatic increase in prime events," Chadwick said. "What we are talking about is six USC games, 10 games for one professional team and possibly 10 dates for a second professional team. That's a total of 26 for us to accommodate."
Chadwick, who said he has yet to take a position on a second team at the facility, said there is some concern by others in the Exposition Park area on the impact.
"You can look at this in a couple of ways," Chadwick said. "One is, a rising tide lifts all boats. You could be talking about 1 million more visitors to Exposition Park, who see all the stuff we have here and will want to come back.
"The other side of that is, OK, all these people might be coming here for a football game, but will they come back to the Natural History Museum, the Science Center, the African-American Museum? I don't know.
"And, what does it do to these locations to lose prime time to a second team? These are all questions that have to be answered."
NFL wants 2 teams in L.A.
Coliseum upgrades doubly attractive
BY BETH BARRETT and RICK ORLOV, Staff Writers
LA Daily News
With a showdown looming over whether professional football returns to Los Angeles, the National Football League has quietly raised the prospect of bringing not just one but two teams to a rebuilt Memorial Coliseum, the Daily News has learned.
Looking to boost revenues and amortize the soaring cost of transforming the historic Coliseum into a state-of-the- art stadium, sources said the NFL has asked the Coliseum Commission to consider expanding the cap on Coliseum events from 25 to 35 a year. The controversial proposal is certain to increase resistance from the landmark museums in nearby Exposition Park because traffic congestion and limited parking would impact their operations.
"It's just in the talking stage," said one source, adding that the concept was voiced by NFL representatives as part of the lease negotiations over the past couple of weeks.
"When you spend a lot of money on a stadium, you want the right to bring a second team in if that makes sense," the source said. "It would have a huge economic impact. It would be a better economic deal."
Far from certain is whether the NFL would grant Los Angeles one of its 32 existing franchises or whether the city would play host to an expansion team.
The NFL owners have worried that they would not have a balanced schedule if they added a single expansion team. A second Los Angeles team would solve that dilemma.
The second team would be considered five to 10 years after the first team is established, the source said.
NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said the league also is looking at the possibility of a second team in Anaheim if that city is selected by the owners for a Southern California franchise.
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said he had heard some discussion about the possibility of a second team, but that it hasn't been proposed to him officially.
"We have to focus on getting one team, and on our terms," Villaraigosa said. "I want a football team. I think the people of the city want a football team. But, we have made clear we are not prepared to give away the store to get one.
"I think they realize where we stand on this and I think we've gone as far as we can."
City Councilman Bernard Parks, who has been leading the local effort to return pro football to the Coliseum, said he did not believe the two-team concept would detract from the ongoing negotiations to win the right for one team.
Parks and a team from the Coliseum Commission are scheduled to make a presentation May 2 to NFL owners, hoping to persuade them that Los Angeles should be selected over Anaheim or Pasadena for a Southern California football team. The owners are scheduled to make a decision May 21 when they meet in Denver.
"So far, the idea of a second team is just something that's been bouncing around back and forth for the past six months," Parks said. "I don't know how serious it is. I am looking to get one team."
Councilman Herb Wesson, who serves on the City Council's Ad Hoc Committee on Stadiums, said he would be surprised if L.A. got a second team.
"It would be a new wrinkle to me," Wesson said. "I think we would be open to just about anything, but that we ought to concentrate on bringing one in now."
Some officials are concerned, however, about giving too much of the Exposition Park operation to the NFL at the expense of other attractions, such as the Natural History Museum, the California Science Center and the California African American History Museum.
Jane Pisano, president of the Natural History Museum, said any increase in the number of event days presents a potential problem for the museum.
"My first reaction is that whatever the state and the NFL agree to, it's very, very important that the missions of the cultural and community institutions of the park be respected, and that those institutions be able to continue to serve the public.
"The challenge for all of us is to accommodate a fairly, fully utilized Coliseum and all the events at the cultural institutions. It will require give and take, and working together for all the entities in the park to carry out this mission."
County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, who also serves on the Coliseum Commission, said he is not opposed to a second football team - although he finds irony in this latest proposal - but will hold firm on the number of dates made available to professional football.
"It is pretty funny that for 11 years, the Coliseum wasn't good enough for one team and now they're talking about bringing in two," Yaroslavsky said. "I think we could accommodate two teams without taking away any more prime dates.
"The 25 prime dates we negotiated was a compromise between the NFL, the Coliseum and the stakeholders in the park."
Also, Yaroslavsky said he is concerned about the amount of time it is taking to reach a conclusion on the negotiations for one team.
"I'm not sure what to make of this," Yaroslavsky said. "We have a lot of issues that could have been and should have been resolved already, but they keep raising new ones. There are a series of things they keep raising and this is just the latest."
Coliseum Commissioner Bill Chadwick, an appointee of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, said he doesn't expect the second-team issue to be a matter of consideration at the May 2 presentation to the NFL owners.
Instead, he said, it is more of a long-term issue for the Coliseum Commission to consider.
"It is something we could do without a dramatic increase in prime events," Chadwick said. "What we are talking about is six USC games, 10 games for one professional team and possibly 10 dates for a second professional team. That's a total of 26 for us to accommodate."
Chadwick, who said he has yet to take a position on a second team at the facility, said there is some concern by others in the Exposition Park area on the impact.
"You can look at this in a couple of ways," Chadwick said. "One is, a rising tide lifts all boats. You could be talking about 1 million more visitors to Exposition Park, who see all the stuff we have here and will want to come back.
"The other side of that is, OK, all these people might be coming here for a football game, but will they come back to the Natural History Museum, the Science Center, the African-American Museum? I don't know.
"And, what does it do to these locations to lose prime time to a second team? These are all questions that have to be answered."