City council members of Inglewood voted 5-0 on Tuesday to approve construction of a new football stadium, a project that could get underway this year and bring an NFL team back to Los Angeles for the first time in over 20 years.
The project was fast-tracked by the city, which decided to put the vote in the hands of the council rather than the residents. Their decision may have been influenced by last week’s announcement from the Raiders and Chargers on potential plans to build a joint stadium in Carson, also in Southern California.
The Inglewood stadium would be built on a plot of land where Hollywood Park racetrack used to be. The complex is partially owned by St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke, who already had plans to develop the land with housing, shopping, parks and much more.
The key part about the stadium is that it would be privately funded. Construction is projected to cost nearly $2 billion. The LA Times also reports that the average ticket would cost $140 per game, which would have been the highest average price in the NFL last season.
Inglewood, which used to be the home of the LA Lakers and Kings when the teams played at the Forum before moving to Staples Center in Downtown LA, would benefit from a 10 percent tax on tickets sold to events at the stadium.
Opponents of the project have 30 days to file a referendum to force a public vote.
As much as people are getting excited about the NFL returning to Los Angeles, I still refuse to get pumped about matters. All the teams considering a move to Los Angeles are using the city as leverage for negotiations with their current cities. Do you really think Kroenke prefers to pay billions to build a new stadium if he can get St. Louis to build him a new one for free? This is just a matter of billionaires using LA, just as they have the past 10 years every time we heard about a potential team moving back to the city. Wake me when St. Louis votes against doing what it takes to keep the Rams.
