urbanSTL

That is a bold prediction, considering we here in STL are notorious for not getting things done and blowing chances to achieve greatness. I hope your right and I will eat crow if I am wrong, but I think the Rams will find a way out of STL.
Again, I hope I'm wrong, but there is too much money to be made for the owners, to care about keeping the STL market filled, over LA. Expansion has not been mentioned in years. I'd be shocked if the NFL expands. The divisions are set up perfectly right now. Most allegedly in the know, have said expansion is off the table, as of now.

An NFL franchise leaving town is akin to a major corporation leaving town except worse in my opinion. It does in fact take a city down a notch or two. No two ways about it. I'm a lifelong fan of another team but I generally pull for the Rams because I love STL and I would consider going to nearly every game just for fun but I'm one of those guys who thinks football should be played outdoors and all that stuff. If there was a stadium here with a fun atmosphere I'd go just for the hell of it.

Now, that area of South Los Angeles is about to undergo the largest wave of gentrification that any city has ever seen - everything south of the Santa Monica Freeway through Inglewood and Compton all the way to San Pedro and the Pacific Ocean. Personally, I've been eyeballing it for years. In an odd twist of fate, I might be following the Rams around. Weird huh?

^ So, if Inglewood, Compton, Watts, etc... become gentrified, where will the people in those areas move, when they are priced out?
(Assuming this actually happens of course)

^Very true!That is the value the Rams add, that many refuse to acknowledge. The Rams add so much value, beyond Sundays. They are a great source of pride and community cohesion. That is something we really need right now, considering most of the news has been negative, as of late. We will be viewed as nationally, as a decaying city, even though that is not the case. We have lost a lot in recent years. Corporate HQ's, large manufacturing plants, significant population, great buildings and housing stock and now maybe the Rams. We need this trend to reverse and rebuilding areas north of Downtown and Old North, would be a huge part of this. A mixed-use stadium project, along with other things like the Stan-Span, Northside Regeneration (if it ever happens) and Old North's progress, could transform a dead area of the City. It is SO much more than revenue on Sundays. I think most smart folks realize that.

DogtownBnR wrote:^ So, if Inglewood, Compton, Watts, etc... become gentrified, where will the people in those areas move, when they are priced out?
(Assuming this actually happens of course)

St. Louis.

he said committed to keeping an nfl franchise in stl. i could be wrong but there is only the Rams here...so its not like we have 2 teams and he is being coy about which one we want to keep

dweebe wrote:

dbInSouthCity wrote:he said committed to keeping an nfl franchise in stl. i could be wrong but there is only the Rams here...so its not like we have 2 teams and he is being coy about which one we want to keep

The list is pretty short. IIRC the Jacksonville Jaguars can't leave cleanly until 2030.

True, but Stan can't leave for LA cleanly as long as there's an offer of a new stadium in STL either according to NFL bylaws. There are ways.

There are also three teams fighting for one or two spots in LA. It's possible one of the CA losers - the Chargers, who've already spoken to San Antonio about relocating there, or the Raiders - could be wooed here.

Imagine STL hosting Bidwell-, Kroenke-, *and* Davis-owned NFL franchises...

-RBB

DogtownBnR wrote:With a declining population...

Not a big deal but just to clarify: the fan-shed for the Rams consists of the entire metro and beyond, so i would think that the fan base has actually increased even though the city population itself has decreased.

Everything but the stadium was approved and construction started on by Stockbridge, so basically their deal with Stan seems to be for some additional land to lease and they also get main attraction to their development. Also Jason Cole of bleacher report said his sources told him that as recently as Saturday that Stan told the inglewood mayor that he is moving the Rams with or without the permissiom from the NFL...

Here's something interesting and also a little eery that I just figured out. It also tells you all you need to know about Stan.

On Nov. 5, 2014, Governor Jay Nixon announced his stadium task force. He gave them a 60-day window to finalize a plan. Two hours and 48 minutes (central time) into the 61st day, Stan Kroenke released his LA stadium plan.

On Feb. 11, 2014, the Rams announced that Shad Khan had reached an agreement to buy the majority share of the Rams. Stan Kroenke had 60 days to exercise his contractually-granted right of first refusal to buy that majority share. On the 60th night, Kroenke released his intent to purchase that share.

The 60 days things is a little weird.

But more than that you can see how Kroenke operates. He makes power moves. He makes sure the people involve know who's in charge and on who's schedule things will be dealt with.

jstriebel wrote:I've been told through a "friend of a friend" sort of situation that Kroenke hasn't engaged with the task force at all. He was probably acting this way before. So yeah, I'm sure they knew they couldn't count on the Rams for anything at that point.

Shame on that friend..

stlien wrote:

jstriebel wrote:I've been told through a "friend of a friend" sort of situation that Kroenke hasn't engaged with the task force at all. He was probably acting this way before. So yeah, I'm sure they knew they couldn't count on the Rams for anything at that point.

Shame on that friend..

Huh?

I'm tired of our region being held hostage by this billionaire a$$hole.

I'll vote for anyone who promises to raise his tax rate to 99 %

jstriebel wrote:

stlien wrote:

jstriebel wrote:I've been told through a "friend of a friend" sort of situation that Kroenke hasn't engaged with the task force at all. He was probably acting this way before. So yeah, I'm sure they knew they couldn't count on the Rams for anything at that point.

Shame on that friend..

Huh?

Your friends friend is reporting incorrect information.

But you're right, Stan works on his time.

Ah. Could be the case. Although, Mike Bush reported the same thing tonight.

The RAMS have met with the task force, but that's not a couple reports and the info I heard that suggest Kroenke himself isn't engaging.

Doesn't mean it's true. If you've heard other info, maybe that's a good sign.

Jason Cole tweeted last night that the Chargers owner has enough votes to block a move...

Randy Karraker reported yesterday afternoon, that Kevin Demoff turned down an offer to be interviewed yesterday. He used to be very accommodating. Is that changing now that he has to admit the Rams are eagerly pursuing a move? Where is Roger Goodell in all of this? He had to know that Stan was planning this. If the NFL controls the market, they should be commenting. I hear so many people talking about how this is situation compares to other teams threats to move. IMO, there is NO comparison. NO other team has had an owner buy land in LA and now announce plans to build a venue in LA. This is no threat. This is an admission that all of the chatter was true, outside of applying for a move in time for the 2015 season.
There are so many factors that prove Stan wants to be in LA and this is not just a leverage move. I think he truly wants out of STL. Yes, he is a brutal businessman, but he has not said anything at all, definitive since taking full ownership of the team. Even at that press conference in 2010. Here is a blip that says, I want to be in STL, BUT.......

I've been around St. Louis and Missouri a major portion of my life," he said. "I've never had any desire to lead the charge out of St. Louis. That's not why we're here. We're here to work very hard and be successful in St. Louis."

"Now, the realistic part of that. I live to be competitive. To be competitive, you have to have revenue. We're going to work really hard to have a model that produces revenue where we can be consistently competitive. Anyone can be a contender in the pro sports business every so often. The real challenge is to be competitive every year."

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=5496516

IMO, he has NEVER fully committed to STL himself. If you read between those lines, there is a BUT.....
Why not say without a doubt, 100%, we are committed to making this work in St. Louis. Bernie Miklaus and a few others said back then, that they had some fears in the back of their mind. There must have been a reason for that. I think Stan had a plan back in 2010 and the conspiracy theorist in me thinks it could go back as far as 1995. John Shaw pushed for the 'top tier' lease clause and somehow convinced the idiots negotiators here to agree. Could he have planted the seed in Stan's head when he brought him aboard. He might have enticed him with this out clause if things did not work in STL? Could that have been his piece of mind in investing in the Rams. Did the inclusion of Stan's 'first right of refusal' clause get put in there for this very time, 20-30 years later, when the Dome was to become a bottom tier venue? So many things make me think that moving the team was always on the table, assuming things went south in STL. To Stan, not having a football palace, means the situation has gone south. A palace not paid for by him, even better. In LA, you can drop a lot of "jack" and get a bigger return. If things go south in LA, he will likely be 6 feet deep and not have to worry about it. His family has enough money. He does not have to worry about their well-being, if the Rams falter in LA. Just wanted to throw that conspiracy theory out there.

Regarding Kevin Demoff, he has been a talking head for years, but he is just a PR - frontman. He has said it will get worse before it gets better. Does getting worse involve us losing the Rams and then getting better when we realize how wide-open our Sundays our, since we do not have a team to watch any longer? Must be the case!