Demoff 4/24

—
http://www.insidestl.com/insideSTLcom/RadioShows/FeatureInterviews/tabid/339/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/17383/Kevin-Demoff-Talks-Rams-Future-St-Louis-Stadium-Situation.aspx

What has the ticket renewal rate been compared to 2014?

“Tickets have been slower this year, I think that’s certainly to be expected given the circumstance. We had an early-renewal deadline in February, we had another last week. Typically we work on renewals all the way through June, so I think we’ll have a better picture in full at that point. Whether someone is waiting to renew until they the know the last possible second what’s happening, that may be the case. It’s not necessarily the season tickets I’m focused on right now. It’s how many people are we getting in the building for each of the eight home games?”

What’s it been like in your position pitching Inglewood stadium plans, then asking fans in St. Louis to buy tickets to Rams games this year?

“It’s certainly unusual. It’s unusual but not unique. There are three organizations in the exact same position between the Raiders, Chargers and ourselves. I think the hard part for fans is to recollect getting options for a team outside your own city is never going to be easy for fans. Certainly it’s difficult for the organization. Our best job that we can do is to operate in 2015 doing the best possible job we can in St. Louis and keeping all of our options open on the stadium front. It’s not a position I wish we had been in. But it’s where we are today and we’re going to do the best possible job that we can. We’re going to run this team the same way in 2015 we had before. People can come to their own conclusions about whether they want to be at the stadium and want to buy tickets, and I certainly respect that.”

You said in October you had not had not active discussions with other cities about moving the Rams, but two months later the Inglewood stadium plan was unveiled. Can you talk about your statement?

“I think the statement was exactly accurate. Whether it held up over time in terms of what transpired between then and January when the Hollywood Park plan was announced. I said all conversations would be confidential and that implies there were plenty of conversations, and then it was pretty accurately said there were no active discussions at the time because there were no active discussions at the time with any other parties. The land was owned by Stan Kroenke. I think in hindsight, best choice of words would not have been to use something like ‘active,’ because that put a timeline and tense, that people can say ‘How long did that stay?’ We’ve always said we’re going to leave all of our options open. There were no promises and I don’t think we’ve ever tried to lead people to believe this always could have a positive outcome. Was it the best choice of words? Probably not. Was it inaccurate or a lie? Absolutely it was the truth.”

If the goal was truly to find a global solution in St. Louis, why be apart of a group that’s presenting a plan in a different market?

“Our job is to present all possible options and to make sure you have great flexibility. I think when you look at what’s happening in Los Angeles, you have three teams all participating in stadium projects in Los Angeles and all looking at their home markets and what options are going to transpire there. You have three teams who have had a struggle getting any progress made in the home markets. Clearly, the work work in Los Angeles has inspired all home markets to react with much more vigor. I do think the St. Louis plan has improved immensely. They are much closer to that global solution. They are not there yet. The stadium is not financed, we don’t know the economics of the building. I think they’re working on those things and all those things remain to come. I don’t think anyone knows the outcome of any of these projects at this point. They’re all on the drawing board. Nothing has come to reality.”

What would need to happen for the Rams to stay in St. Louis?

“I think at the end you need to see what the gameplan looks like, what the economics look like and what the outcomes in Los Angeles are.”

Is it a possibility that the Rams are playing football in St. Louis in 2016?

“I think that’s absolutely a possibility. Nothing is impossible at that point. Nothing is a given. I think our goal…is to focus on the year at hand on the field, on the product, on the marketing side and then really look at the stadium issues separately. To say right now in 2016 do we know where we’re playing? I don’t think anybody has any idea but it’s certainly possible that it could be in St. Louis. I don’t think that’s off the table or unlikely. It could be just as likely as it is unlikely.”

Does ownership worry irreparable damage has been done in its relationship with the fans?

“I think you always worry when you go through a process like this of severing that emotional connection. Everything we’ve done…has been about trying to build that emotional connection. That’s the great part about sports. The one thing I can say…I think there’s a sense of disappointment with how everything has played out, but it’s not irreparable. People just want the stadium situation to be solved. They want the team to continue to improve and get better.”

If there’s an interest in keeping a relationship with the St. Louis fans, why scrimmage in California with California?

“I think we looked at it from a football perspective. We were looking to scrimmage someone this year with the change in the CBA and the limited amount of practice, coach Fisher thought it was a good idea. When it turned out we were in Oakland for the Week 1 opener, we reached out to the Cowboys and they reached out to us. The third week of training camp is usually poorly attended. I don’t think it’s really taking anything away from the fans and if it’s an opportunity (for the team to get better), then we’ll look at this from the football perspective understanding there’s going to be some people disappointed from a PR standpoint.”

If the task force of Dave Peacock and Bob Blitz was formed in 2010, would we be in a different situation today?

“It’s a very interesting hypothetical. I don’t know the answer. I would like to think if you looked at the progress they’ve made from November to today, the approach probably from 2010 to now and through the arbitration, probably would have been vastly different. In terms of a desire to make a football home for the Rams, it certainly seems this group has renewed a passion for it that wasn’t there before.”

Is Kroenke set on going to Los Angeles or has he worked with the task force?

“I think the entire organization has worked with Dave and Bob…even before the task force was announced…to try and improve the St. Louis stadium and the St. Louis options. I’ve sat in every meeting that the task force has had with the NFL. I’ve sat in meetings with the task force the NFL wasn’t a part of. I think we’ve tried to provide a team and club perspective of what would be needed for a stadium to be attractive to an NFL team. And we’ve tried to give a lot of our experiences at the Edward Jones Dome to try to solve some of the problems that plague fans. I think the changes in the design from when I first saw the building in November to now reflect that input. I think that’s probably important for people to understand.”

Where do the Rams want to be playing football in 2016?

“I want to know what our options are. I think St. Louis is making great progress, but I don’t know what their outcome is. I don’t know what the final options are in Los Angeles. I think at this point, our job is to give ourselves the best possible options to make the best possible decisions for our franchise. Until we know the finality of any of these projects, I would be guessing as to say what the best outcome is.”

When it comes to season tickets, what would you say to fans who don’t want to buy?

“As someone who’s a realist, I understand this is a difficult position for fans. The whole situation is difficult. Anybody who uses attendance in 2015 as a pro or con in this situation, is really fooling themselves. We’ve put our fans in a very delicate situation. I hope they choose to come to games. I don’t think we’ve ever pointed to attendance as the driving force in any of this process. We haven’t played the best football, we haven’t had a winning record in 10 years, we’re playing in a building that’s outdated that people don’t like going to. And obviously there’s questions swirling about the team’s future. When you use that formulay, I think trying to judge attendance pro or con in this situation is a very misguided approach. If fans stay away, I completely respect that.”

If the St. Louis stadium comes to fruition, is it still the Rams’ preference to move?

“We’ve never said it is our preference to move to Los Angeles. I think our goal is to create the best possible options and go from there. I have seen three teams now acquire land and plan to build stadiums. I don’t know that anybody’s expressed their preference overall.”

Do you think the Rams have exhausted all options in staying in St. Louis?

“I think the relocation guidelines are subjective and quite honestly that’s up to the other 31 owners. If we present a case for relocation…they’re going to decide whether or not we’ve met the relocation guidelines. We continue to work with the task force. We went through the arbitration..but honestly, I think that’s a better question for the other owners than it is for us.”

Seems to be a lack of buzz surrounding the draft because of the LA situation. Thoughts?

“I think there are a number of factors…I think the first is that for the first time in a few years we only have one first-round pick. I also think this draft class has less sizzle than the past few years. Another factor is the Blues are in the playoffs. I think April in St. Louis is usually focused on hockey and baseball. Has the whole situation maybe zapped people of energy of their passion? I think probably it has.”

What’s the environment right now inside Rams Park?

“I think the mood has been pretty upbeat. Certainly this year is not the year anybody would choose to operate when they get in sports. I tell our group all the time ‘Control what you can control.’ With players back in the building this week, there’s been some renewed energy.”

Do you think Stan Kroenke will ever address what his plans are?

“I think there’s a certainly a point at which he may do so. If you look at his other teams…he tends to let his head coaches, his GMs, the people running the team do the talking. That operation is no different in St. Louis here.”

How would Kroenke deal with potentially being hated here?

“I think any time you go through a stadium process…the owners are always Public Enemy No. 1. When people build stadiums, usually everything’s swept under the bridge. As of right now, we always looked at this as a results-based business.”

Owners meetings next month:

“I have no idea what’s going to happen. Usually they walk the owners through the steps in each place. Obviously this process will continue the rest of the year and possibly beyond.”