As The City of Oakland Sleeps, LA Plans To Alter The LA Coliseum For The NFL

While the City of Oakland -- once again in 27 years - faces a stadium crisis, the LA City Council acts to gain an NFL team.

L.A. approves improvements to lure NFL team

NFL.com wire reports

LOS ANGELES (May 19, 2006) -- The Los Angeles City Council voted to spend $25 million on improvements around the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in hopes of luring an NFL team back to the city.

Under the plan, the city Community Redevelopment Agency would issue $25 million in bonds for street widening, site clearing and other work near the Coliseum, which would be paid for by expected tax revenue from the stadium.

In coming years, the city estimates it could spend up to $121 million more for additional transit and other improvements, which would also be funded by stadium taxes.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has said public funds will not be used for a proposed $800 million renovation at the Coliseum. The city-funded improvements approved by the Council amount to incentives to make the city's NFL pitch more attractive.

"The dollars will be limited to improvements around the stadium, not the actual construction," said Villaraigosa spokesman Joe Ramallo.

City officials hope NFL owners, who meet in Denver next week, will bring a team to the Coliseum by the 2009 season.

Under the city plan, the Coliseum would be extensively renovated with money from the NFL.

The Coliseum is used by the University of Southern California football team. It hasn't hosted a professional team since the Raiders left after the 1994 season.