Oakland Raiders and San Diego Chargers Complete Carson Land Transaction

CARSON (CNS) - One day after San Diego officials unveiled a financial
plan aimed at keeping the Chargers in town, the team and the Oakland Raiders
today completed a complex land transaction for 157 acres in Carson, where they
are proposing joint stadium.
   Mark Fabiani, the Chargers general counsel on stadium issues, told City
News Service the transaction ``that would enable the Chargers-Raiders joint
venture to build an L.A. NFL stadium in Carson has officially closed this
morning.''
   The key part of the complex land swap transfers the 157-acre parcel near
the San Diego (405) Freeway and Del Amo Boulevard to a ``joint powers
authority'' controlled by the city of Carson. Under the stadium proposal, the
authority will own and control the land, then lease it to a separate stadium
authority.
   If the stadium is not ultimately built, the city would retain control of
the property at no cost to the city, Fabiani said.
   The Carson City Council last month approved plans for a $1.7 billion,
72,000-seat stadium on the site that could house both the Chargers and Raiders,
if the teams do not reach stadium deals in their respective cities.
   On Monday, an advisory group appointed by San Diego Mayor Kevin
Faulconer unveiled a proposed $1.4 billion financing plan for a 65,000-seat
stadium for the Chargers near the team's existing home at Qualcomm Stadium.
   Fabiani said Monday the team would review the financial plan.
   Backers of the Carson stadium collected thousands of signatures to get
the stadium proposal directly before the City Council, bypassing the need to
complete extensive environmental reviews.
   A similar tactic was employed in Inglewood, where the City Council voted
unanimously Feb. 24 to approve an initiative allowing for construction of an
80,000-seat stadium planned by St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke at the former
Hollywood Park racetrack site. Although Kroenke is behind the project, the Rams
have not announced any intention of moving back to the Los Angeles area.
   An NFL team has not played in the Los Angeles area since 1994, when the
Raiders and Rams relocated.
   According to a Carson staff report, the 157-acre site -- located on a
former landfill -- is in the Boulevards at the South Bay Specific Plan area,
which calls for a mix of commercial, retail, hotel and housing projects. The
council's vote last month essentially created a ``stadium overlay,'' which
allows the stadium as an alternative use of the property.
   The report also notes that the Boulevards plan ``has already undergone a
significant amount of detailed land use, planning and environmental analysis,
and a certified Environmental Impact Report for the Specific Plan was adopted
by the city in 2006.''
   Despite city approval of the plans, the project was never developed due
to the recession, according to the report.
   In addition to the stadium, the latest project would also include a 350-
room hotel, 850,000 square feet of commercial, entertainment and other uses,
and a minimum of 10,000 parking spaces.