Dennis RomeroTime might be running out for L.A.'s NFL dreams.
A deadline for team owners to express interest in moving to Los Angeles is looming, but few if any have expressed serious interest in coming here.
The problem might be the would-be sale of the developer of the proposed downtown stadium, Anschutz Entertainment Group:
Tim Leiweke, president of AEG, tells the Los Angeles Daily News that the lack of interest indeed might be a result of the company being for sale.
Reports indicated AEG wanted as much as $10 billion for all its properties, including venues like Staples Center, LA Live and London's 02 Arena, concert promotion companies (Goldenvoice) and sports teams (partial ownership of the Lakers).
The stadium's expected cost of $1.5 billion or so (including some redevelopment of the L.A. Convention Center), then, might be too much to chew for some prospective buyers, although AEG has indicated the sale would have no affect on the downtown plans for a 72,000-seat venue at the Convention Center.
The summer sale announcement, however, seemed to blindside some supporters. AEG demanded and received fast-track approval at City Hall for its stadium, dubbed Farmers Field.
Leiweke now says, via the Daily News:
Credit: Farmers Field / AEG / Genser
What I would guess … is that there is no club currently that's going to file for a transfer simply because they are waiting to see what happens with our ownership situation … I haven't been made aware of any team that is going to file for a move in 2013,
The NFL has said teams interested in moving to L.A must submit applications between Jan. 1 and Feb. 15 of this year.
Co-developers of Staples Center, Majestic Realty, also have NFL dreams of their own in the City of Industry, with a planned-and-approved project they call “shovel ready.”
They too just need a team.
[@dennisjromero / djromero@laweekly.com / @LAWeeklyNews]
Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.