On the heels of a season that left Chargers fans with a sour taste, now comes word that the St. Louis Rams are planning to move back into their longtime former Los Angeles "market."
That news, in a story broken by the Los Angeles Times, figures to put pressure on the Chargers and San Diego civic officials to accelerate plans for a new stadium complex here.
Since the Rams and the Raiders left the Los Angeles region 20 seasons ago, the Chargers claim to have cultivated 30 percent of their current fan base from north of the San Diego County line.
If they can't get a new stadium in their own midst -- and the Rams are able to colonize in the Los Angeles County city of Inglewood -- what then?
"No tax dollars have been requested -- nor will they be used -- if the project is approved,” Inglewood Mayor James Butts Jr. told reporters at a news conference Monday. “This proposal, if approved, is another step along the way to moving Inglewood from a city on the rise to a top-tier metropolis."
Butts said ballot petitions for the proposal are now circulating after papers were filed Friday, with organizers seeking valid signatures from at least a required 15 percent of Inglewood’s electorate: roughly 8,000 voters.
If they succeed in qualifying for the June ballot and it’s approved, the stadium possibly could open in time for the 2018 season, according to Butts.
That announcement has to warm the hearts of Rams fans who hoisted “LA Rams” placards in the stands at St. Louis' game against the Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium on Nov. 23.
The proposed stadium is targeted for the closed-down Hollywood Park racetrack site, to be bankrolled by an investment group that includes the Rams' multibillionaire owner Stan Kroenke, who already has title to 60 acres between Hollywood Park and the revamped Forum complex.
Folks in St. Louis seem to be done with him, given what Jeff Rainford, chief of staff to Mayor Francis Slay, told St. Louis television KDSK on Monday: "I don't think that all of a sudden we should be competing, upping the ante to try to give Stan Kroenke a better deal than he's going to get in Los Angeles.”
Meantime, fickle, fair-weather fans with other loyalties are always a problem within the Bolts' fan base.
Even when the team is winning, selling enough seats in an aging stadium (opened in 1967) to avoid NFL-mandated TV blackouts is a challenge.
The 'Q' and its 166 acres could wind up as a taxpayer donation to help the Chargers leverage the cost of a new stadium downtown on a 12-acre East Village site also added to money mix -- plus the Valley View Casino Center site and its surrounding 100 acres in the Sports Arena/Midway District.
There’s talk of creating a countywide joint powers authority, harnessing the influence and leverage of the county and all 18 of its cities, to come up with a game plan.
Local
Can a deal be swung in San Diego without getting bogged down in legalities?
"Oh, I think there's always lawyers involved, legislators and people against taxes,” says sports marketing consultant Rick Schloss. “I think with entertainment, like anything else in building an entertainment complex, it's part of a big-time city to have an NFL franchise."
Another question: Who's ready – outside of Inglewood -- for "The St. Louis Rams of Los Angeles"?
After all, Los Angeles football fans have managed to endure 20 seasons without an NFL team in the region.
Separate proposals for stadiums in downtown Los Angeles and city of Industry have been on the table for some time now, with no takers.
"People want to be part of great things,” Schloss told NBC 7. “I think the city will adapt and embrace an NFL franchise coming into their market. There's hundreds of cities that want it. It's the second biggest market in the country. People will figure a way to go to the games and watch."
Chargers management and San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s office are maintaining media silence on all this for the time being.
While money may be no object to Team Kroenke, the move from St. Louis to Los Angeles must be approved by at least 24 of the 32 NFL franchise owners.
And the stadium, which would be located under the flight path of Los Angeles International Airport, might raise post 9-11 security concerns with the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security and Federal Aviation Administration.
