The Los Angeles City Council is expected to approve on Tuesday an Anschutz Entertainment Group request for a six-month extension on a deal to build Farmers Field and revive hopes of the NFL returning to Los Angeles after a nearly 20-year absence.
The extension would give AEG another six months to attract one or two NFL franchises to the proposed $1 billion stadium adjacent to Staples Center and the Los Angeles Convention Center. The original two-year deal between AEG and the city called the sports entertainment giant to land an NFL team by Saturday.
The extension request comes as both AEG and city officials have expressed renewed optimism about the NFL returning to Southern California for the first time since the Raiders and Rams left after the 1994 season.
Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti said in a radio interview last week it was highly likely an NFL team would move to Los Angeles within the next year. In a letter to Garcetti and other city officials, AEG CEO Dan Beckerman said the company had resumed discussions with the NFL and emphasized the positive tone of recent conversations.
Other potential stadium sites have emerged since AEG and the city signed off on the agreement in October 2012. Rams owner Stan Kroenke purchased 60 acres around Hollywood Park in Inglewood in December. The Rams are on a year-to-year lease with the city of St. Louis for the Edward Jones Dome. The team can break the lease without penalty after this season. St. Louis officials in July rejected $700 million in stadium improvement proposed by the Rams.
The Raiders are also exploring potential stadium options. The Chargers can opt out of their Qualcomm Stadium lease between Feb. 1 and May 1.
Land around Dodger Stadium, a site in Carson and Orange Countys Great Park all have been mentioned as potential locations for NFL teams. NFL officials in recent months have also floated the possibility of the league building a stadium in Southern California. The stadium would be paid for in part by Super Bowl revenues.
But to several longtime observers of Southern Californias pursuit of the NFL, Farmers Field remains the most likely option for a franchise relocating to Los Angeles.
While Kroenkes acquisition around Hollywood Park gives him enough land to squeeze a stadium into, the spread is not large enough for parking and related infrastructure. And any new site would be years behind AEG in negotiating the series of governmental, environmental and political landmines that come with projects of such scale in California.
It took 18 months and tens of millions of dollars, if not more, for AEG and its political allies to overcome a series of challenges from community and environmental groups on issues ranging from traffic, pollution and the vulnerability of the citys already strapped general fund.
AEGs proposal not only calls for the building of a $1 billion-plus, 1.7-million square foot, 72,000-seat stadium but also a $350 million renovation of the Los Angeles Convention Center.
Still, even with the City Council approving an extension, there remain significant obstacles. For starters, any team looking to move to Southern California would have to pay a relocation fee that some longtime NFL observers estimated could reach $250 million. To make the Farmers Field project financially feasible for AEG, the company has to own at least part of the team and previous talks between AEG and NFL clubs have broken down over how much Colorado billionaire Philip Anschutz is willing to pay for a necessary stake in a franchise.
Any move requires the approval of two-thirds of NFL owners, a group which sent mixed signals about the timetable for teams relocating to Los Angeles. And there will be pushback against such a move from the Chargers if the team decides to remain in San Diego.
Chargers officials are working with the city to get a measure for a $1 billion stadium on the ballot for the November 2016 election.