New stadium in LA

[ArtistFormerlyKnownAsBKR]

They have a hardon for the convention center to be contiguous and not have to make conventioneers walk across the street to the stadium space. They already force conventioneers to do this at the Hilton and last year at Comic Con we had to drive to the Hyatt by Seaport Village to pickup all of our freebies so I'm not sure why they're letting contiguous space (or lack thereof) be such a showstopper. Especially since the hoteliers don't seem to have a viable plan on their own right now.

This

[Mister Hoarse]

That

[KNSD]

https://www.google.com/maps/place/San+Diego+Convention+Center/@32.7057437,-117.1613786,17z/data=!3m1!5s0x80d9535a8260dfad:0x8b1140e189cc0e54!4m2!3m1!1s0x80d953574be55d8b:0x568846370a748ca5

See that 5th avenue Pier - Fill it in. Done.

Embarcadero park would make for some really cool tailgate parties too.

[spoonman]

The Coastal Commission would go ape-sh!t

[KNSD]

Only because they hold all their meetings at the Joe's Crab Shack next to the park.

[Mister Hoarse]

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Sa...8846370a748ca5

See that 5th avenue Pier - Fill it in. Done.

Embarcadero park would make for some really cool tailgate parties too.

I LIKE IT

[ArtistFormerlyKnownAsBKR]

The other.

[6025]

Regarding the Duhs.

http://www.kusi.com/story/28225234/local-business-man-to-help-keep-raiders-in-oakland

[Faded blues]

I think the cargers get done soon as well.

[TTK]

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2015/feb/28/chargers-stadium/

Is the old Q the new Q?

Momentum shifting to rebuilding Qualcomm Stadium where it sits - in Mission Valley

The search for a new Chargers stadium site seems to have ended where it started more than a decade ago:

The old, standby, Mission Valley's Qualcomm Stadium.

Real estate experts, politicians and the public seem increasingly convinced that the 166-acre site is where the team should continue to play, either in a vastly refurbished Qualcomm or in a state-of-the-art, $1 billion-plus new facility next to it.

The Metropolitan Transit System chief virtually sidelined the previously preferred downtown option last week, when he said it could take as many as seven years to make it available. CEO Paul Jablonski said it also could cost $150 million to clear the 7.75-acre bus yard at 16th Street and Imperial Avenue so that a new stadium could be built there and on the adjacent Tailgate Park, both east of Petco Park.

The mayor's stadium advisory group continues to meet weekly with its next session at 6 p.m. Monday at Qualcomm Stadium for a public forum. More than 3,000 people have already indicated they plan to attend. The next private meeting is to include representatives from the convention, hotel and tourist industry. Group Chairman Adam Day said he hopes to offer recommendations to the mayor within 90 days.

Next steps

The mayor's stadium advisory group continues to meet weekly with its next session at 6 p.m. Monday at Qualcomm Stadium for a public forum. More than 3,000 people have already indicated they plan to attend. The next private meeting is to include representatives from the convention, hotel and tourist industry. Group Chairman Adam Day said he hopes to offer recommendations to the mayor within 90 days.

But before declaring the site decision a fait accompli, four key questions remain to be answered about the Q by Mayor Kevin Faulconer's nine-member stadium advisory group over the next 90 days:

Should it be rebuilt or replaced?

The 48-year-old, award-winning concrete icon looks great from a blimp, but up close and beneath the seats, numerous structural and design issues stand in the way of the Q's continued glory, especially when it comes to hosting periodic Super Bowls.

Local architects and many fans are fond of the stadium and believe it would be much cheaper and more environmentally responsible to remodel and update rather than tear down and replace.

"With some imagination and focused design effort, San Diego can capitalize on these great bones and transform it into a state-of-the-art football venue," said the local chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Former City Attorney Mike Aguirre, whose criticism of the Chargers prompted the team to seek a site outside the city limits a decade ago, said the present site and building, properly upgraded and maintained, make the most sense for a community lacking the corporate financial muscle to afford a billion-dollar replacement.

"A lot of the focus is misplaced on where they play as opposed to how they play," Aguirre said.

The Chargers cite studies that remodeling could be nearly as costly as a new stadium. And the stadium's inherent shortcomings could keep it from equaling the state-of-the-art facilities recently opened in other NFL cities. At least $79.8 million in repairs were called for in 2011, and that didn't include major makeovers and structural reconfigurations.

"At what point is substantial further investment in an aging facility not fiscally responsible?" asked an earlier city task force in 2003.

How much development can the surrounding land accommodate?

The Qualcomm site, the equivalent of 66 downtown city blocks, is a 17,000-space parking lot most of the time, a steaming sea of asphalt in a community undergoing rapid growth. The city owns it and the Mission Valley community plan has long envisioned its redevelopment with other uses.

From a real estate and business standpoint, the Q's advantages come down to three, in the words of developer Perry Dealy, who presented his own plan for the property several years ago:

"It's got the land, it's got the location and it's got the ownership. Those are three key ingredients to make it successful."

The Chargers' original proposal of 2002-3 called for a rebuilt stadium surrounded by up to 3,200 apartments and condos, 1.2 million square feet of offices, a 450-room hotel and an 18-acre park.

Real estate consultant Alan Nevin, who worked on that plan, said the site could easily handle 6,000 units and some retail.

Alternately, Sen. Marty Block, D-San Diego, whose district includes Qualcomm, suggests the site become an annex of housing and academic buildings for San Diego State University.

Commercial real estate analyst Jeff Rice sent the mayor's advisory panel a 52-page proposal drawn from the Chargers' old plan, other recent stadium designs and development concepts from various experts.

"The clock is ticking on development for Mission Valley," he said. "One way or another, that site is going to be developed in the near future or the long term."

Architect and planner Frank Wolden had his students at the NewSchool of Architecture and Design replan the entire valley as a studio exercise last year. Out of that effort came the view that all of the valley should embrace the river, just as downtown has done with San Diego Bay.

"Qualcomm should be the center of public life in Mission Valley," he added.

What environmental, legal or political issues could stall the project?

Many months lie ahead to figure out the impact of a new stadium surrounded by millions of square feet of new development.

The traffic, particularly on game day and during the holidays, can be a "nightmare," as one expert put it. Studies are currently under way to assess current conditions and the updated community plan, due by 2018, is expected to propose more streets and roads to make traffic more efficient.

Much of the stadium property sits in a floodplain zone and would have to elevated to remove threats to new development from heavy rain storms that occasionally in history flooded valley from one side to the other.

One issue seems to have been resolved -- the cleanup of a plume under the stadium that originated from leaks at the nearby Kinder Morgan gas tank farm. Stadium manager Mike McSweeney said the work is nearly complete after more than 10 years.

It's unclear right now if environmentalists or anyone else would challenge the project legally. Also unclear is what sort of voter approval would be sought next year. Stadium supporters want to avoid a tax increase that would require two-thirds voter approval. The Chargers have warned against any "half-baked scheme to attempt to get around the two-thirds rule."

How much will it cost and who will pay what?

[6025]

"A lot of the focus is misplaced on where they play as opposed to how they play," Aguirre said.

Ouch.

[homeless simpson]

They should hire the guys from all those HGTV shows to do the renovating if they don't want a completely brand new stadium...