Stadium Scramble: Mayor on Spanos Call, Fabiani Future

San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer confirmed Tuesday there are no meetings scheduled between the City and the Chargers when he appeared on a local television news program to discuss the stadium negotiations.

Nobody could’ve predicted what happened in Houston on Jan. 12, the mayor said when describing how NFL owners rejected the Chargers/Raiders joint-use stadium project planned for Carson, near Los Angeles.

Rams owner Stan Kroenke will move his team to Inglewood and the Chargers have a year to decide whether they want to join the Rams in the Los Angeles area. The two teams were expected to begin formal negotiations Monday.

The mayor’s first interaction with Spanos after the NFL vote was a 5-minute phone call that Faulconer described as “cordial” when he appeared on KSWB Tuesday.

Faulconer wants to get back to the table with the Chargers, but Spanos was “not open” to meeting at this point, the mayor said.

The Chargers owner wanted to go through the negotiations with the Rams, according to Faulconer.

The two teams wrapped up Monday's meeting with a statement saying they would not be issuing statements on the developments.

When asked if San Diegans would even support a ballot initiative for a new Chargers stadium, the mayor admitted it’s been a difficult year. However, he said, “We have to be able to get back to the table. People have to see it. People have to believe it.”

When it comes Chargers Special Counsel Mark Fabiani, Faulconer said it’s up to Spanos who will be on the other side of the table.

“It’s a decision that Dean Spanos is going to have to make,“ the mayor said.

The Rams will play in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before moving into a new stadium in Inglewood at the start of the 2019 season. The move was announced last week after an owners meeting in Houston.

The team launched a season ticket waiting list Monday, offering fans a chance to put their names on a waiting list for the tickets. The team reported more than 5,000 deposits in the first five minutes that the site was live. Within about 45 minutes, more than 8,000 had been sold.

Kroenke, a billionaire land developer married to a Walmart heir, is building more than a football stadium with the reported $1.86 billion Inglewood project, which also includes office space, shops, a concert venue and innumerable other enticements.

Kroenke said his new stadium will host Super Bowls and Final Fours, which he has already discussed with the NCAA.

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