AEG revises bonds plan for proposed downtown L.A. stadium

The president of the sports and entertainment company seeking to build a stadium in downtown Los Angeles says he has spoken to officials from the Vikings, Chargers, Rams, Raiders, Jaguars and others about a possible move.

LOS ANGELES -- The chief of the company proposing an NFL stadium for downtown Los Angeles revealed tweaks to his pitch to the city, including plans for a revenue source that would help the city repay bonds to fund the demolition and relocation of a convention center hall displaced by the stadium.

AEG president and CEO Tim Leiweke said Monday at a town hall meeting attended by fans and skeptics of the stadium plan that he would ask the city to issue less than $300 million in those bonds, down from $350 million. The savings would be realized by privately building and managing parking garages that the company had previously intended to be city property.

AEG's pursuit of a football franchise is good news to Adam Rank, but the Southern California native says the Rams are the only team that belongs in L.A. More ...

The company would expect the city to apply ground lease payments for the stadium and new property tax revenue toward its repayment of that debt on the building, which would be publicly owned, Leiweke said.

Leiweke also wanted revenue from the signage rights that AEG has for outdoor advertisements around the city-owned convention center to go toward bond repayment. The combination of revenue sources would be more dependable than the previous proposal, which included ticket taxes and new parking lot revenue, he said.

"We're going to get you contracts from AEG that will pay off the bonds so you never have to be at risk on those bonds," Leiweke said, adding that the new repayment plan would be formally proposed at a City Council subcommittee meeting Thursday.

The Los Angeles officials overseeing stadium negotiations have said that city rules would permit just 50 percent of new city revenue to go toward bond payments. Leiweke didn't address whether those rules would apply to the new repayment plan or if the company expects rent on the parking lot parcel to be applied to debt repayment.

Leiweke vowed to guarantee the stadium's completion in case AEG had financial troubles that keep it from finishing the work. A bond would be posted after ground is broken on the new convention center building, he said.

AEG's $1 billion-plus plan for a 72,000-to-76,000 seat stadium on part of the city's convention center campus is one of two competing proposals to bring professional football back to Los Angeles, 17 years after the Rams and Raiders left the nation's second-largest market.

Warehouse magnate Ed Roski has permits in place to build a separate 75,000-seat stadium about 15 miles east of Los Angeles, in the city of Industry, but also hasn't secured a team.

Both camps have said they hope to recruit a franchise -- and possibly two -- from among those in the league that need a new stadium but are unable to get one built in their current locations. The San Diego Chargers, Oakland Raiders, Minnesota Vikings and Jacksonville Jaguars are among the teams mentioned as possible candidates.

Southern California has been the home of many professional football teams, from the L.A. Buccaneers in 1926 (a traveling team that never actually played in Los Angeles) to the XFL champion L.A. Xtreme in 2002. The Avengers were the last active team in L.A., but the team folded in 2009.

Teams that have called Southern California home1940-45Los Angeles BulldogsPCPFL1967Long Beach AdmiralsContinental1967-68Orange County RamblersContinental1974-75Southern California SunWFL1982-1994Los Angeles RaidersNFL1983-85Los Angeles ExpressUSFL2000-09Los Angeles AvengersArena

Leiweke wouldn't say at the town hall which teams were in his sights. He insisted some had expressed a reassuring willingness to move to Los Angeles.

"We are confident enough to spend $45 million dollars" for design drawings and other preparations, he said.

The gathering grew testy at times, especially when speakers suggested that the city-issued bond deal represented a subsidy or challenged Leiweke's faith that the project would vastly boost employment and become a major economic boon.

After speaker Quentin Fleming cited academic studies demonstrating that big stadium projects generate little economic activity, Leiweke dismissed the argument as coming from professorial types who have never built anything on their own. Fleming -- who happened to be a business professor at University of Southern California -- retorted that builders have no special insight on the effect of their creations.

"It doesn't take a weatherman to know which way the wind is blowing," Fleming said.

Many of Leiweke's answers garnished cheers, especially from clusters of men who were later identified as union members. Organized labor groups have been vocal supporters of both stadium proposals because of the building jobs they will provide during construction and the service-sector jobs thereafter.

Leiweke also said AEG was completing the lengthy environmental review required by California law, but he conceded that the company was talking to state lawmakers about how to protect it from what he characterized as frivolous legal challenges to its environmental clearance.

State lawmakers signed a bill in 2009 that suspended environmental laws to allow the venue proposed by Roski's Majestic Realty Co. to be built. The bill, which nullified a lawsuit filed by residents in the nearby city of Walnut over the project's environmental impact, infuriated environmental groups.

Leiweke said he hoped the deal AEG is discussing with lawmakers would contain elements that environmental activists would support. He also suggested that he was especially concerned that Majestic might try to scuttle AEG's stadium efforts with legal maneuvers.

"What we want to try and ask them to help us to avoid is a competing project suing us for the sake of just stopping us, which they're prepared to do, we believe," he said.

John Semcken, the Majestic vice president overseeing that company's stadium work, didn't return a message late Monday seeking comment.

Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press

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Stadium proposer Leiweke: NFL, L.A. don't trust each other

AEG president Tim Leiweke wants Los Angeles to commit to his company's downtown NFL stadium project by July 31. But, he claims, that might be hard because "there's a lot of distrust" between the city and the league.

Leiweke told the Los Angeles Times earlier this week that team owners "don't have a lot of faith" in Los Angeles, which in turn "doesn't have faith in the NFL, either."

The region hasn't fielded an NFL team since the Raiders (from Los Angeles to Oakland) and Rams (from Anaheim to St. Louis) both left after the 1994 season.

Southern California has been the home of many professional football teams, from the L.A. Buccaneers in 1926 (a traveling team that never actually played in Los Angeles) to the XFL champion L.A. Xtreme in 2002. The Avengers were the last active team in L.A., but the team folded in 2009.

Teams that have called Southern California home1940-45Los Angeles BulldogsPCPFL1967Long Beach AdmiralsContinental1967-68Orange County RamblersContinental1974-75Southern California SunWFL1982-1994Los Angeles RaidersNFL1983-85Los Angeles ExpressUSFL2000-09Los Angeles AvengersArena

Still, Leiweke hopes to receive a "memorandum of understanding" from the Los Angeles city council before it takes its summer break Aug. 1. Meeting that deadline would keep Farmers Field on schedule to open for the 2016 season.

"Can this city and these 15 council people figure out a way to get this project done? Huge question mark," Leiweke said. "This is not a city where a lot of new projects get done.

"These 15 folks sometimes don't know how to get out of their own way. Can they kill this deal? Yes, they are very capable of killing this deal. The key to this entire vision is going to be a deal with the city."

Leiweke said he'd like the city council to issue $350 million in municipal bonds to relocate the convention center's west hall, where the stadium would be built. But the bonds issue has caused some opposition to what Leiweke called "the best deal that's ever been made for any city in the history of the NFL."

"The biggest thing people don't understand about the deal is they're all convinced that the $350 million in bonds is going to end up coming back to haunt the city or ultimately affect the general fund, or become a liability to the taxpayers," Leiweke told the Times. "Once people understand the way we're going to structure the bonds, and the fact that we're going to come in and write a check every year to back those bonds, then the only issue in that area is, what if you go bankrupt? And we say, 'Please, if we go bankrupt, then you have a far bigger issue than a football stadium or bonds.' You've got a $3 billion project and a $6 billion company that goes away? That's not going to happen."

AEG needs an answer from the city by July 31, according to The Times, before the company commits an estimated $45 million on an environmental impact report, designs for the stadium and replacement for the convention center's west hall, and the pursuit of an NFL team to play at Farmers Field.

Finding a tenant for the stadium in the nation's second-largest market shouldn't be difficult, according to Leiweke.

"There are 32 teams, and six or seven of those currently don't have a home that economically works," Leiweke said. "Are all six or seven of those going to solve their problems in their current marketplace? No. We're confident that it's not just going to be one team. I think there are going to be at least two, probably more, that are going to have to look at moving in order to remain competitive within the league."

But for anything to happen, Leiweke insists the city must meet AEG's deadline. If not, he said, "I'm OK if we get to July 31 and we don't get a deal done, and we move on, and I didn't spend $45 million of (billionaire Philip Anschutz's) money."

Gerry Miller, who's heading the city's negotiations with AEG, declined to comment Thursday, but the July 31 deadline came as news to city councilman Bill Rosendahl, who said "we're all ears."

Added Rosendahl: "I don't work under threats or pressure or those types of situations. I truly know that AEG has a lot to gain downtown in having a continued successful partnership with the city of Los Angeles."

AEG operates Staples Center, home of the NHL's Kings and NBA's Lakers and Clippers, and L.A. Live, an entertainment district located across the street from the arena.

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L.A. stadium not subject of Vikings' meeting with AEG boss

AEG CEO Tim Leiweke was in Minneapolis this week and met with Vikings officials, setting off speculation that owner Zygi Wilf might be considering having his team fill the company's proposed downtown Los Angeles stadium.

Although that possibility might not be entirely off the table, it's far from the reason that Leiweke was in town.

A source with intimate knowledge of the situation said Thursday that Leiweke's Minnesota trip was to tend to business with Target Center, the home of the NBA's Timberwolves and a property managed by AEG. Leiweke has an existing relationship with the Wilf family and the Vikings, which prompted the meeting while the CEO happened to be in the area.

The Wilfs primarily were inquiring about the idea of developing an entertainment district around a new stadium in Minnesota. AEG recently has developed such projects in London, Edmonton and Kansas City, and it built the LA Live complex adjacent to Staples Center, home to the NBA's Lakers and NHL's Kings and at the epicenter of the proposed NFL stadium.

The Vikings on May 10 announced a deal with suburban Ramsey County to collaborate on a $1.1 billion retractable-roof stadium, but they are still seeking funding to build. The team's lease at the Metrodome expires after the 2011 season.

The St. Paul Pioneer Press first reported the meeting between Leiweke and the Wilfs.

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Report: Qualcomm Stadium requires nearly $80 million in fixes

The San Diego Chargers' stadium needs a costly facelift, a finding that further clouds the team's future in the city.

Qualcomm Stadium, the Chargers' home field since 1967, needs $79.8 million in maintenance, repairs and improvements over the next seven years, according to a new report obtained Friday by The San Diego Union-Tribune.

Qualcomm Stadium has been the San Diego Chargers' home since 1967. (Julia Robertson/Associated Press)

The two-part study, conducted for the city of San Diego, says the city will continue to lose more than $10 million per year operating the stadium through 2020 regardless of whether the Chargers stay, move to a new site in San Diego or leave the county.

Chargers spokesman Mark Fabiani believes the city has some tough decisions to make.

"We believe we've presented some better alternatives," Fabiani said after reviewing the report Friday. "If people don't want to pursue those alternatives, then obviously the city has to make decisions about what to do with the building, and the decisions will only get more difficult as the building gets older.”

The report concluded that the stadium needs repairs including $18 million in mechanical issues, $17 million in site repairs and $12 million in plumbing. A new video display board would come with a $9.6 million price tag.

The Chargers' lease runs through 2020, but the team can break it at any time by paying an early termination fee, which presently sits at approximately $24 million. The Chargers have been on the hunt for a new home for years, and they continue to be in talks with Mayor Jerry Sanders to build a new downtown stadium near Petco Park, home of baseball's San Diego Padres since 2004.

Sanders released a statement on the study highlighting the difficult position in which the city finds itself.

"It's certainly no secret that Qualcomm Stadium is one of the oldest stadiums in the country and will consume an ever-increasing amount of taxpayer dollars to maintain it," the statement reads. "That's just one of the reasons we're working with the Chargers to develop a multiuse sports complex proposal that we can present to the voters. ... The proposal will, of course, take into account the financial implications of leaving Qualcomm Stadium and converting the site to other uses."

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State lawmakers to consider bill for new Vikings stadium

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The Minnesota Vikings finally got their stadium bill Friday, but with just 45 days left in the legislative session, they must compete for attention from state lawmakers who are mulling deep spending cuts in response to a $5 billion budget shortfall.

The bill is set to be introduced Monday, but its text was released Friday. It proposes spending $300 million in money from state taxpayers to help cover the costs of the Vikings' long-sought replacement for the Metrodome. Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont, said she's glad to finally have a proposal for fellow lawmakers and the public to consider.

Despite the shrinking amount of time available, Rosen doesn't believe legislative committees would take up the bill in the next few weeks. She acknowledged the bill leaves many unanswered questions, chief among them which Twin Cities city or county will partner up as a home for the stadium and tap local taxpayers for another portion of the cost.

"I think there's plenty of time to get a Vikings bill done (this year)," Rosen said, noting that a previous bill was introduced last year with just 10 days left in the session. This year, the regular legislative session by law must end by May 23.

The bill would raise money for the stadium with a 10 percent state sales tax on sports memorabilia, along with a sales tax on luxury seats at the new stadium and on digital video recorders, and proceeds from stadium naming rights and a football-themed state lottery game.

The bill doesn't identify a location for the new covered stadium to replace the Metrodome, instead creating a Minnesota stadium authority with members appointed by the governor who will gather site bids from local governments and choose a stadium site by Feb. 15, 2012. The Vikings would be responsible for one-third of costs estimated to reach at least $900 million, plus any cost overruns.

City or county officials interested in the stadium would submit bids that include a financing package for a local share. Aspiring local partners could raise that share with a half-cent increase in their local sales tax, as well as by levying or increasing local sales taxes on liquor, lodging, entertainment, game admission, food and beverage.

So far, only Ramsey County has stepped forward as a potential local partner by offering the site of a former Army ammunition plant about 10 miles north of St. Paul. Vikings officials have expressed a preference for the current Metrodome site for a variety of reasons, but local leaders in Minneapolis and Hennepin County have been more hesitant to embrace the team.

Rosen said the creation of the stadium authority -- it would replace the current Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission -- and the 2012 location deadline will give the Vikings more time to recruit the right local partner.

Lester Bagley, the team's point man on stadium affairs, didn't immediately return a call to The Associated Press seeking comment Friday. He said one week ago that the details in the bill summary amounted to a good beginning framework for a stadium plan.

The Vikings have sought state assistance to build a new stadium for about a decade; their lease at the Metrodome ends after the 2011 season, and team officials have said the nearly 30-year-old venue is no longer sufficiently profitable. The collapse of the Metrodome's roof last December added urgency to the Vikings' pleas, and supporters have raised concerns that failure by the state to help pay for a new stadium could result in the team's relocation.

The Senate bill argues that spending state money on a private enterprise "provides to the state of Minnesota and its citizens highly valued intangible benefits that are virtually impossible to quantify." But so far, leaders of the Legislature's Republican majorities have avoided detailed discussions of the bill, saying the state budget takes precedence.

Gov. Mark Dayton has been more supportive.

"I'm glad the Legislature is taking that step, and I remain hopeful that they'll take the initiative to pass this," he said Friday.

Dayton said lawmakers could easily handle a stadium debate while completing a budget.

"There's plenty of time," he said. "I mean this respectfully -- they're good at multitasking. They do that all the time."

Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press

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Jones' derring-do in building stadium offers NFL inspiration

DALLAS -- Jerry Jones knows a thing or two about big expectations. In a part of the country where thinking big is a way of life, the Cowboys' owner has experienced firsthand how visions of grandeur at once can be something to live up to and a humbling equalizer.

Jones began the season with two visions. First, that his palace in Arlington, Texas, affectionately known by some as "Jerry's World," would set the standard for football stadiums around the globe. And, second, that it would host his team in the Super Bowl, thus making the franchise the first to play the NFL's signature event in its own building, in front of its own fans.

And although Jones' football cathedral -- complete with its 160-foot high-definition video screen, retractable roof and 100,000-plus capacity -- has lived up to every expectation, his second vision never came close to reality as the 6-10 Cowboys fell woefully short of the playoffs, let alone the Super Bowl. And as Jones watched his team sputter to a 1-7 start, he learned a thing or two about resetting some rather Texas-sized expectations.

"I think I crossed that bridge after about six or seven games with the Cowboys this year," Jones said Tuesday. "So I had my expectations set early.

"We had a league meeting with all the owners, and I told them early in the fall ... the way we're stinking it up on the football field there in Dallas, I know the idea of being the first team to have ever played in its own Super Bowl has passed me by now."

Jones' dream of having the perfect team in the perfect home never materialized -- this season. But Cowboys Stadium seemingly exceeded every expectation set for it as host for one of the world's most popular sporting events. Even in the face of a rare ice storm the week of the game.

"When I was thinking about building this stadium -- the fact that we're sitting here today with some sleet on the streets, yet we know the kind of football game we're going to have for the world to see and for the 100-and-some-thousand-something fans to see -- the fact we know what's going to happen ... says what this is all about," Jones said. "And that stadium needed to be enclosed. It needed to come as close to being enclosed but feeling like it's outside as you can do, which was a goal. And all of that as a vision had the Super Bowl in mind."

Jones was, as always, able to hold his head high as he discussed not only what he thinks Cowboys Stadium means for Super Bowl XLV, but also what it bodes for the NFL's future.

Jones emphasized that his $1.2 billion stadium was constructed in the face of a recession. But instead of limiting the scope of what he could build, Jones chose to go bigger in much the same way the NFL is pushing forward with the idea of expanding to an 18-game regular season with a potential work stoppage on the horizon.

"Rather than scale back, I pushed the gas pedal and basically increased the scope of the stadium and increased the cost of the stadium," Jones said. "I did that -- you can say crazy -- but I did that because I really do feel like there is a huge future, not only economically in the country, but there is a huge future in the NFL. So that stadium represented that."

Jones hopes his success in a time of economic uncertainty can serve as a metaphor for the current labor strife between players and owners -- that out of adversity can come a model for success.

"I built this stadium not based upon the system that had been in place," Jones said. "I based it on just common thought and a gut feeling that we will re-do the business model that we have. And when we re-do it, doing things like building this stadium make a lot of sense. It wouldn't make a lot of sense doing it in the system we're in."

Ever the forward thinker, Jones believes the NFL can think bigger, as he did six or so years ago, when plans for Cowboys Stadium's construction began.

"It is incumbent on us to recognize that what we have in place is not a good model," Jones said of the current collective bargaining agreement. "And rather than waiting until we're in the shape the country's in or the world is in, when things have gone to hell in a handbasket economically, that we make some of those changes we'd love to have made 10 or 15 years ago in this country. You do it before you're off the cliff rather than as you drive off."

Jones' lessons from this season -- those of both great success and failure -- certainly can be applied to NFL ownership's attempts to reach a compromise with a players association that's content with the league's economic structure as it stands.

"I've done my worst work when I thought I had a pretty good hand," Jones said. "I started the season off saying, 'What's not to like where we are?' And to me, that has always been not the kiss of death, but certainly an idea that you're not quite in the position you think you are."

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Financing issues delay opening of 49ers' stadium to 2015

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The San Francisco 49ers are pushing back the expected opening date of their planned $1 billion stadium in Santa Clara.

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Team president Jed York said Wednesday the stadium wouldn't open until at least 2015 because of problems securing financing. The team had expected to open the stadium in 2014.

York said the 49ers wouldn't be able to secure needed funding for the stadium from the NFL and other investors until the players' union and league agree on a new contract.

Santa Clara residents voted in June to lease land to the 49ers for a new stadium next to the Great America theme park. The vote allowed the team to move forward with its plans to leave San Francisco.

San Francisco officials said the 49ers wouldn't encounter the same financing problems if it chose to stay in the city.

Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press

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