USA – Venue management company AEG Ogden has made its pitch to the Los Angeles City Council (LACC) to construct a National Football League (NFL) stadium next to the downtown Los Angeles Convention Center.
The development, according to the Los Angeles Times, has now prompted the LACC to launch a formal working group, would be a privately financed US$1bn, 64,000-seat stadium, requiring $350m in city-approved bonds. It would also involve the renovation and improvement of the convention hall, a move that AEG president Tim Leiweke claims will bring substantial benefit to the city.
AEG’s plans were made public at the end of last year, but negotiations have now moved into the planning stage.
Leiweke said that a new stadium would provide 130,000sqm of ‘contiguous convention space’ and add 1,400 parking spaces. The proposal would also see the construction of a retractable-roof stadium allowing for expansion to 78,000 seats for NFL Super Bowls, and would be opened to allow greater capacity for conventions.
Janice Hahn, chair of the council's Trade, Commerce and Tourism Committee, said there was a strong case to move the project on quickly. "We get a better convention center out of this, more hotel rooms, more tourism; that's an increase to our general fund, we want all hands on deck," she said.
"This is not just about eight games and a Super Bowl but for LA to be able to compete for conventions,” Hahn said at the meeting. "The convention-centre piece is the key." LA currently ranks around 15th in terms of US cities capacity to attract conventions.
The LACC has now moved to conduct an independent financial analysis to review AEG's plans.
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