That is fine, bring Soka here. I’ll be glad to discuss it with him.

Grits

First of all ZN where is the money coming from in St Louis or the State of Missouri to build the Rams a new stadium? The CVC has no money and in fact is going bankrupt. The city of St. Louis has no money and is tied to the CVC. The State and the Governor has stated multiple times there is no money available from the state budget to build a new stadium. Any public monies to be used for a new stadium would come from taxes and that would have to be voted upon by a public vote. Keep in mind that millions are still being paid annually on the original loan for the Edward Jones Dome.

The Rams are ranked either 30th or 31st out of 32 NFL teams in franchise value. Even the Kansas City Chiefs just up the interstate are worth more. When Kroenke moves the franchise to LA its value will go up tremendously. You have paid attention to the fact that the Dodgers sold for 2 billion dollars and the LA Clippers were offered 2 billion dollars just recently? This is not lost on the owners in the NFL or Kroenke.

When Kroenke purchased the 60 acres in Inglewood, CA at the start of the year he reported it to the league. If this was just a purchase of commercial real estate the league does not require him to report it. However if the site is intended for a possible new stadium location then they are required to report to the league. Just this past week Sam Farmer of the LA times and the St Louis Business Journal both confirmed that Stan is looking into buying all of the Hollywood Park land. As you may or may not know the Hollywood park site has been coveted by the league as a possible stadium site for a long time. Al Davis reportedly had received approval from the league in 1995 to build a stadium there.

And as far as Kroenke caring about what the people of St. Louis think about him? Well, keep in mind that he has refused to speak to the media in St. Louis and not once has let it be known either way verbally where his leanings are emotionally. If Stan was concerned about this then all he would have to do is make a statement that he loves St Louis and would like to stay there. He never has.

So, the Rams are getting closer to the end of their lease, Kroenke has bought land suitable for a new stadium and is reportedly interested in buying more land next to it. The CVC is broke and going bankrupt and there are no public funds for a new stadium. And nobody from the corporate side in St. Louis has stepped forward to offer backing for a new stadium and there is no sites for a new stadium in St Louis are have either been purchased by Kroenke or even began the approval processes. Lets not forget that the league is not talking about building a stadium in LA.

One more thing. We have seen these past few years where the Commissioner has voiced strong support for the Viking s staying in Minnesota and the Bills staying in Buffalo and just recently suggested the Raiders share Levi Stadium with the 49ers. We have not seen any such statements from Goodell or the league regarding the Rams.

We shall see how it goes but, I think the pros outweigh the cons in favor of the Rams being in LA very soon.

Good posts Mac and Rock. I was expecting more resistance to these stories as I received o the Herd Board but I think its pretty obvious now how this going to go.
To me it was obvous all along but of course I am biased for LA. But the financial difficulties for St Louis and the CVC cannot be ignored and the fact they are going to be bankrupt very soon doesn’t help them any.

Also, yes, I beleive based upon what I have observed these past two years with the arbitration process and the statements by the CVC, the City of STl, the NFL the purchase of the land and now the story that Kroenke may just buy all of Hollywood park, there is only one good reason he does that. As you may know, before Al Davis skipped town in 95 back to Oakland, the NFL had actually approved the Hollywood Park site as a place to build a new stadium.

Most unusual of all is now the league itself is talking about funding the building of a stadium in LA. When has that ever happened? That statement by the league in of itself is monumental. I think with their network being based in LA the league very much would like to make LA the cornerstone city for league activities and perhaps they see LA as being able to handle the production of the NFL draft each spring better than NY could.

Big plans for LA it seems. Not just the Rams but the league as well Probably two teams in LA as well. My guess is Rams and Chargers with the Raiders sharing Levi Stadium in the bay area.

Grits

Here is an article today about Stan eyeing more land at Hollywood park in Inglewood CA. It would give him plenty of land for a stadium, parking and even a practice facility.

Grits

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Is Kroenke eyeing more L.A. land?

http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/morning_call/2014/07/is-kroenke-eyeing-more-l-a-land.html

Angela MuellerReporter-

St. Louis Business Journal
Rams owner Stan Kroenke reportedly is looking into adding to the 60-acre site he purchased in Los Angeles last year, which would give him more space for a potential NFL stadium development.

Kroenke purchased a 60-acre parking lot that sits between the Forum and Hollywood Park in Inglewood, Calif., late last year. That property would have been sufficient for a new football stadium but not for all the parking the NFL would require.

Now Kroenke is looking into buying the entire Hollywood Park property, the L.A. Times reports. That deal would give him all the space he’d need for the stadium and required parking and ancillary services, according to the newspaper.

“And seeing as the Rams and St. Louis are about $600 million apart on how much the city, county and state should chip in for a new stadium, Kroenke’s interest in L.A. should not be underestimated,” the Times reports.

You can find more articles by Derek and Rams Talk on facebook.

Grits

http://www.latimes.com/sports/nfl/la-sp-nfl-la-qa-farmer-20140720-story.html

LA Times and Sam Farmer on the NFL Wanting back into LA

Here is an excellent article by Sam Farmer of the LA times. Is the NFL really considering financing its own stadium in LA?

Yesterday in San Francisco, Goodell suggested that the Raiders have two choices. A new stadium in Oakland or joining the 49ers in Levi Stadium. This has long been the rumor that the league desired both the 49ers and the Raiders in Levi Stadium. In recent years only three times has Goodell and the league publicly voiced an opinion on where a team should be. Minnesota, Buffalo and now the Raiders.

Not once during the last two years during the negotiations with the CVC and the arbitration and now as the Rams come closer to the end of their lease has Goodell or the league voiced any kind of support for the Rams remaining in St. Louis. But they are strongly talking the desire to be in LA and they have stated that their will be no expansion teams.

Grits

The 79 team holds a special place in my heart. They suffered horrendous injuries as a team during the season. At mid-season they were considered pretty much dead in the water.
Their whole secondary at one point was nothing but guys who normally played Safety. All their corners were hurt. Nolan Cromwell who played QB at the University of Kansas and was an Olympic triathlete was playing one corner spot. I can’t even tell you who the other corner was. Eddie Brown who was acquired during the season was one starting Safety and I can’t remember who the other safety was. Memory fading I guess.

This team showed more guts and character than any Rams team I’ve seen. There should have been some kind of special award or recognition for guts and will power. Because these guys had all that. Just keep in mind that the Pittsburgh Steelers who had pretty much dominated the 1970s and had rolled through the Dallas Cowboys “America’s Team” a couple times, including the previous year, were trailing in the 4th quarter to this team and it took a long bomb to Stallworth and then an ill timed interception by Ferragamo to allow the Steelers to win that game.

Grits

Me to. Blue and yellow or blue and white. Either is fine by me.

Grits