NFL to Let Cities Fight to Keep LA from Getting their Teams

The National Football League announced today that representatives of three cities that could lose their franchises to Los Angeles will make presentations on their stadium proposals at a meeting of team owners Nov. 11 in New York.

The presentations by Oakland, St. Louis and San Diego will be made to a joint meeting of the league’s stadium, finance and Los Angeles relocation committees. NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said no votes are scheduled next week.

He said it will be the first time officials of the three cities will be able to state their case before a broad group of owners. It will also be the first presentation of plans by Oakland to any owners’ group.

In San Diego, the city and county have proposed building a 67,500-seat facility in Mission Valley, adjacent to Qualcomm Stadium, in an effort to keep the Chargers from leaving.

The Chargers have been asking for a new stadium for 15 years and have acquired land to build their own stadium in Carson, potentially in concert with the Oakland Raiders. Team special counsel Mark Fabiani said an environmental impact report for the Mission Valley proposal is likely to be struck down by the courts.

St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke has proposed building a stadium in Inglewood.

The NFL has acknowledged efforts by St. Louis and the state of Missouri to create a stadium project to keep the Rams in town, and said it is further along the process than the Mission Valley plan.

Oakland did not appear to have a similar plan in the works until recently. On Monday, the city of Oakland announced the hiring of a consultant to study ways to finance a $900 million project without the use of taxpayer funds.

NFL owners are expected to decide early next year which, if any, teams will move to Los Angeles for the 2016 season.

City News Service