St. Louis Circuit Court Judge Thomas Frawley on Friday "delayed arguments in the Edward Jones Dome authority’s suit seeking to sidestep a public vote on new stadium funding" for the Rams, according to David Hunn of the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. Frawley gave St. Louis city counselors "a week to file arguments defending the city ordinance requiring a vote; Dome attorneys will get a week after that to counter." Frawley "didn’t say when he would rule" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 6/6). In St. Louis, Bernie Miklasz noted Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon "anticipated the scheduling" of a special meeting of NFL owners in August to discuss L.A. relocation and has "prepared accordingly." Nixon said, "The fact that the NFL has sped up its time frame is great news for St. Louis. The NFL has told us, in essence, to stay in the timeline, stay on top of the process, and we've shown the capacity to meet that faster timeline. My view is, that's a huge asset for St. Louis, and that's designed to help us." He is "confident that the stadium funding and remaining land acquisition will be locked in" by the August 11 meeting (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 6/6). The POST-DISPATCH's Miklasz wrote in "championing the effort to build a new stadium in St. Louis to preserve the city’s at-risk NFL membership," Nixon has "undoubtedly made new enemies." As Nixon’s "enemies list expands, he’s also been working to cultivate new friends," and that list "features a prominent name" in NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. Miklasz: "I’ve never seen a sitting state Governor so involved in engaging the NFL." Nixon "initiated communication with Goodell and has kept the dialogue going." Nixon traveled to N.Y. for a "comprehensive face-to-face meeting" and has "followed up with phone calls." He will "make more calls, and do whatever else is necessary to gain the league’s support." Miklasz: "Maybe it’s important. Maybe it won’t matter in the end. But Nixon is relentless." If the NFL eventually approves a Rams’ relocation to L.A., it "won’t be because of any negligence on Nixon’s part" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 6/7).
NEW TIMETABLE? In San Diego, Kevin Acee cited three sources as saying that there is a "possibility the league could put off relocation another year -- and then quickly shot that option full of holes." All three "emphatically opined" that Chargers Chair Dean Spanos has "gathered the nine necessary votes from owners to block the Rams from moving" to L.A. What "needs to happen" when the franchise and the city meet today about a new stadium in San Diego is the city and county "must show how they can get a vote done this year." If they cannot, they "must demonstrate they will listen to what the Chargers propose." For that, the Chargers "have to actually make a proposal." The team has to "provide at least an outline of what it would take for it to start earnestly negotiating" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 6/6). Also in San Diego, Michael Smolens noted it was revealed last week that City attorney Jan Goldsmith in late April "privately proposed that the city and county’s new hired guns immediately start talks with the Chargers and not wait for recommendations from the mayor’s stadium task force due three weeks later." Goldsmith in e-mails wrote that when the recommendations come out, they "shouldn’t be discussed publicly by the principals involved." Short of dismantling the task force altogether, this "figures to be pretty much what the Chargers wanted." The team knew that the panel would recommend Qualcomm Stadium as the "preferred site and that the Chargers and NFL must have some serious skin in the game." Goldsmith "didn’t want to release the emails where all this was discussed." The city "ultimately put them out after cajoling and legal threats." Whatever the legal reasons for wanting to keep the memos private, there are "at least two possible political reasons." Goldsmith could "come off as siding with the Chargers’ interests rather than the city’s, while undercutting the mayor in the process" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 6/7).
