Inglewood Stadium

"Inglewood Stadium" redirects here. For the stadium in Perth, Western Australia, see Inglewood Stadium (Western Australia).
Inglewood Stadium
Location Inglewood, California, United States
Coordinates 33°57′0″N 118°20′15″W / 33.95000°N 118.33750°W / 33.95000; -118.33750Coordinates: 33°57′0″N 118°20′15″W / 33.95000°N 118.33750°W / 33.95000; -118.33750,
Owner Stan Kroenke
Stockbridge Capital
Executive suites 250
Capacity 70,000 (expandable to 80,000 for Super Bowls, Final Fours, and other events and to 100,000)
Acreage 298 acres
Surface Artificial turf
Construction
Broke ground August 1, 2016 (planned)
Opened August 2019 (expected)
Construction cost $2.66 billion (estimated)
Architect HKS, Inc.
Tenants
Los Angeles Rams (NFL) (beginning in 2019)

The Inglewood Stadium is the temporary name of a sports and entertainment complex to be built in Inglewood, California. The stadium will serve as the home of the Los Angeles Rams of the NFL when it opens in 2019.

The stadium is a component of the City of Champions Revitalization Initiative, the working title of the development on the site of the former Hollywood Park Racetrack. On January 5, 2015, it was announced that Stan Kroenke, the owner of the then St. Louis Rams had partnered with Stockbridge Capital (owners of the Hollywood Park Land Company), to build an NFL stadium on the existing Hollywood Park development and on a parcel of land owned by Kroenke.[1][2] After collecting more than 20,000 petition signatures to allow for the rezoning of the proposed stadium site to allow for an NFL venue on the site, the Inglewood City Council approved the stadium with a unanimous 5–0 vote removing any possible legal obstacles and clearing the way for the developers to break ground in December 2015.

On January 12, 2016, the NFL approved the Inglewood proposal and the Rams move to Los Angeles 30-2, with a projected opening in time for August 2019. When the Rams (and possibly the Chargers or Raiders) move into the stadium, it will mark the return of professional sports to Inglewood for the first time since the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Kings abandoned The Forum for Staples Center in 1999.

History

On January 31, 2014, the Los Angeles Times reported that Stan Kroenke, owner of the St. Louis Rams, purchased a 60-acre parcel of land just north of the Hollywood Park site in an area that had been studied by the National Football League in the past and at one point attempted to purchase.[3] This set off immediate speculation as to what Kroenke's intentions were for the site: it was originally planned to be a Walmart Supercenter; however, in 2014, most of the speculation centered around the site as possible stadium site or training facility for the Rams.[4] Commissioner Roger Goodell represented that Mr. Kroenke informed the league of the purchase. As an NFL owner, any purchase of land in which a potential stadium could be built must be disclosed to the league. Speculation about the Rams returning to their home of nearly fifty years had already been discussed when Kroenke was one of the finalists in bidding for ownership in the Los Angeles Dodgers, but speculation reached a fever pitch as soon as the news broke that the Rams owner had a possible stadium site in hand.[5][6]

Nearly a year went by without a word from Kroenke about his intentions for the land, or the Hollywood Land Company about what the site may be used for. There was, however, ceaseless speculation about the future of the Rams franchise until it was leaked that the National Football League would not be allowing any franchise relocation for the 2015 season.[7] On January 5, 2015, the Hollywood Park Land Company announced that it had partnered with Kroenke Sports & Entertainment to add the northern 60-acre parcel to the rest of the development project and build a multi-purpose 80,000-seat stadium designed for the NFL.[8] The project will include the stadium of up to 100,240 seats (including standing room only seats) and a performance venue of up to 6,000 seats while reconfiguring the previously approved Hollywood Park plan for up to 890,000 square feet of retail, 780,000 square feet of office space, 2,500 new residential units, a 300-room hotel and 25 acres of public parks, playgrounds, open space and pedestrian and bicycle access. The stadium would be ready by 2019. On February 24, 2015, the Inglewood City Council approved the stadium plan and the initiative with construction on the stadium planned to begin in December 2015.[3][9]

The stadium is being built privately, but the developer is seeking significant tax breaks from the City.[10]

Current status

On February 24, 2015, the Inglewood City Council approved plans with a 5–0 unanimous vote to combine the 60-acre plot of land with the larger Hollywood Park development and rezone the area to include Sports/Entertainment capabilities. This essentially cleared the way for developers to begin construction on the venue as planned in December 2015.[11][12][13]

It was also reported in early February 2015, that "earth was being moved" and the site was being graded to be prepared for the construction that would begin later in the year.[14]

Excavation and construction of the stadium will begin on August 1, 2016 (due to El Nino).[15]

Tenants and events

The Los Angeles Rams have committed to moving to the stadium, as NFL approval for their relocation was obtained on January 12, 2016. The approval also gave the San Diego Chargers the first option to relocate to Los Angeles and share the stadium with the Rams, conditioned on a negotiated lease agreement between the two teams. The option expires on January 15, 2017, at which time the Oakland Raiders would acquire the same option.[16]

On January 29, 2016, the Rams and Chargers came to an agreement in principle to share the stadium. The Chargers would contribute a $200 million stadium loan from the NFL and personal seat license fees to the construction costs and would pay $1 per year in rent to the Rams.[17] The same day, Chargers chairman/CEO Dean Spanos announced the team would remain in San Diego, California for the 2016 NFL season, while continuing to work with local government on a new stadium.[18] If no stadium deal is secured, the team is expected to relocate to Los Angeles for the 2017 season.[17]

The stadium and surrounding development around the site includes 8.5 million square feet (790,000 m2) of office space, including a 6,000 seat theatre and a NFL Flagship Campus,[19] an NFL Network studio, and a headquarters for the league's digital properties. In addition to Rams (and possibly Chargers or Raiders) games, the stadium could also host the Super Bowl as early as the 2020 season, which would conclude with Super Bowl LV or the 2021 season at the same time of Super Bowl LVI.[20] Other possible uses for the stadium site include the NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four, World Cup, Olympics, WrestleMania, NFL Draft, college bowl games, international soccer friendlies, concerts, community events, award shows, movie showings, rodeos, high school sporting events, monster truck rallies, auto shows, flea markets, wedding expos, political conventions, comic book conventions, Star Trek conventions, a natural disaster shelter, religious rallies, circuses, the X Games, Pro Bowl, and NFL scouting combine, among others.

The stadium also allows other potential NFL opportunities on the campus such as an NFL retail store, the NFL Honors ceremony, NFL Films premieres, other NFL-themed events, a West Coast wing of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and NFL-themed hotels.

Hollywood Park Racetrack

Location of the former Hollywood Park Racetrack

Hollywood Park, later sold and referred to as Betfair Hollywood Park, was a thoroughbred race course until it was shut down for racing and training in December 2013. The casino still remains open, containing a poker card room located in Inglewood, California, about 3 miles (5 km) from Los Angeles International Airport and adjacent to the Forum. After closing, the racetrack was to be developed by the Hollywood Park Land Company (a subsidiary of Stockbridge Capital) into a mixed-use residential and commercial site while the casino would remain relatively untouched. As of May 31, 2015, the racetrack had been imploded.

Rival proposals

Main article: Carson Stadium

On February 19, 2015, the Oakland Raiders, and the San Diego Chargers announced plans for a privately financed $1.85 billion stadium that the two teams would build in Carson, California if they were to move to the Los Angeles market. Both teams stated that they would continue to attempt to get stadiums built in their respective cities. On April 22, 2015, Carson City Council bypassed the option to put the stadium to a public vote and approved the plan 3-0. The NFL approved the Rams relocation on January 12, 2016, with 30 of the 32 owners voting their approval to relocate effectively rejecting and killing the Carson proposal.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Stockbridge | Hollywood Park Land Company announces plan to build world-class sports complex in Inglewood". Stockbridgerealestate.com. 2015-01-05. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  2. ↑ "Owner of St. Louis Rams plans to build NFL stadium in Inglewood". LA Times. 2015-01-05. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  3. 1 2 "St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke buys 60 acres of land in Los Angeles". ESPN. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  4. ↑ "Will Stan Kroenke bring the Rams west?". Ocregister.com. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  5. ↑ "Kroenke's Bid For Dodgers Implies Rams Are Headed To L.A.". Forbes. 2012-01-26. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  6. ↑ "A return of L.A. Rams? Owner is said to buy possible stadium site - latimes". Articles.latimes.com. 2014-01-30. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  7. ↑ Schwab, Frank (2014-12-20). "No NFL team moving to Los Angeles for 2015, report says | Shutdown Corner - Yahoo Sports". Sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  8. ↑ Robert Campbell. "Text of the Measure - City of Champions Revitalization Project". Championsinitiative.com. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  9. ↑ Brandie Piper (2014-01-31). "Report: Rams owner bought 60 acres of land in Calif". Ksdk.com. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  10. ↑ High Public Cost of the Proposed Inglewood NFL Stadium
  11. ↑ "Inglewood Council Rams Through NFL Stadium Proposal | NBC Southern California". Nbclosangeles.com. 2015-02-25. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  12. ↑ "Inglewood unanimously approves stadium plan at Hollywood Park | ProFootballTalk". Profootballtalk.nbcsports.com. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  13. ↑ Tim Logan; Angel Jennings; Nathan Fenno (February 24, 2015). "Inglewood council approves NFL stadium plan amid big community support". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Inglewood stadium construction begins, sort of | ProFootballTalk". Profootballtalk.nbcsports.com. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  15. ↑ Marc Cota-Robles (January 13, 2016). "CONSTRUCTION UNDERWAY AT SITE OF LOS ANGELES RAMS' NEW HOME IN INGLEWOOD". ABC7.com. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
  16. ↑ Farmer, Sam; Fenno, Nathan (12 January 2016). "NFL will return to Los Angeles for 2016 season". Los Angeles Times.
  17. 1 2 Acee, Kevin; Garrick, David; Wilkens, John (29 January 2016). "Chargers here for a year -- then what?". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 2016-01-30.
  18. ↑ Wesseling, Chris (January 29, 2016). "Chargers announce they will stay in San Diego for 2016". National Football League. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
  19. ↑ Green, Nick (January 27, 2016). "Could a new light rail line connect Torrance with the NFL stadium in Inglewood?". Daily Breeze. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
  20. ↑ Schrotenboer, Brent (January 14, 2016). "With NFL back in Los Angeles, Super Bowl becomes a hot topic". USA Today. Retrieved February 1, 2016.

External links

Preceded by
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum		 Home of the Los Angeles Rams
2019–future 		Succeeded by
none
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