INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) – A development group that includes a company controlled by the owner of the St. Louis Rams announced plans Monday to build an 80,000-seat stadium in the Los Angeles suburbs that could become home for an NFL team.
The proposal that could see a stadium rise on the site of a former horse track again raised the hopes of fans that Los Angeles could end its two-decade drought without a football team. It becomes the latest of numerous NFL stadium plans in the Los Angeles area since the 1994 exit of the Rams and Raiders from Southern California.
The proposal stands out, however, because of the involvement of St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke, whose company has entered a joint venture with Stockbridge Capital Group, which had been developing a 238-acre tract in Inglewood, on the edge of Los Angeles. Kroenke’s company owns an adjacent 60 acres, which would be added to the project, much of it for stadium parking.
“This is a perfect location for a venue like this,” said Christopher Meany, a senior executive with the developer Hollywood Park Land Co., alluding to its proximity to major freeways, Los Angeles International Airport and The Forum, the former home of the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers. “I don’t know of a place that compares to this.”
Meany was cautious not to depict the stadium as a likely NFL venue, emphasizing that any decision on moving a team is “entirely in the hands of the NFL.” He repeatedly referred to the stadium as “multipurpose,” also capable of hosting soccer games.