Chiefs Chair & CEO Clark Hunt and Giants President & CEO John Mara, members of the NFL's Committee on L.A. Opportunities, each said they hoped a special January meeting would occur to resolve the relocation conundrum, though each added such a meeting is not certain. Mara yesterday in advance of today's owners meeting said "It's time to get it done." But Hunt noted a decision on whether to hold a special January meeting may not occur until shortly before today's gathering. The uncertainty is due to neither of the competing L.A. proposals appearing ready to capture the 24 owner votes necessary to win (Daniel Kaplan, Staff Writer). Hunt said, "It’s important to have a deadline and make a decision." Mara added of a January decision, "You can’t go too much longer than that and be ready to play a season in 2016 in a different place." Some owners have said that a vote "might be delayed until this spring." But Mara said that he "didn't expect most to want that." He added, "My sense is that more people support getting it done sooner." In St. Louis, David Hunn notes all the team owners will meet today and have "set aside the afternoon to discuss L.A." Some involved in the process "have called it a critical week." Owners, while unlikely to vote on relocation this week, "are forming their opinions and could schedule a vote for January" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 12/2). In L.A., Farmer & Fenno write there are "strong indications that ownership remains divided on some fundamental issues." For instance, Hunt was asked whether ownership had reached a consensus on whether L.A. is a two-team market, and he said, "I think that's an open issue." Asked if he anticipates the L.A. committee making a recommendation to the full ownership, Hunt said, "That's a possibility. It's something we are continuing to discuss. We're still discussing the process" (L.A. TIMES, 12/2).
COULD BE EMBARRASSING: In L.A., Vincent Bonsignore writes a January vote "has been the target for months, although fellow owners seemed so gripped with indecision the possibility of a delay has been mentioned more prominently recently." The chance this "might get punted" to '17 has "crept into conversations as well." That would be "embarrassing and a damning indictment on a league that’s been a magnet for controversy and poor decisions the past few years." But it "speaks to the difficulty owners face figuring out a three-team, two-stadium race" back to L.A., which "has room for a maximum of two teams and one stadium" (L.A. DAILY NEWS, 12/2).
FLIGHT PLAN: In L.A., Nathan Fenno reports developers of the Inglewood proposal "are working to resolve the Federal Aviation Administration's concerns about the venue's impact on radar" at L.A. Int'l Airport. In a preliminary report issued last month, the FAA said the stadium backed by Kroenke is "presumed to be a hazard to air navigation." The report "isn't a final determination, but a starting point for negotiations between the FAA and developers." A primary issue "is a large portion of the stadium's exterior covered in metal skin." The FAA report "warned that the building's proximity to LAX runways plus the metal skin could interfere with radar that tracks inbound aircraft" (L.A. TIMES, 12/2). Meanwhile, in California, Scott Reid notes Kroenke recently met with Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon at Rams Park. Kroenke "has been encouraged in recent weeks by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to begin communicating" with Nixon and St. Louis stadium task force co-head Dave Peacock (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 12/2).
HEAD SCRATCHER: In San Diego, Dan McSwain notes city Mayor Kevin Faulconer "has suggested to NFL executives that 'potential impacts' from a ballot initiative to a stadium deal 'could certainly be mitigated' if the Chargers opposed the initiative." McSwain: "This is a head scratcher, because the initiative in question, authored by public-interest lawyer Cory Briggs, would remove key environmental obstacles to stadium construction -- including those confronting the mayor’s preferred site in Mission Valley, as well as an alternative downtown near Petco Park." What this all means is "less clear." McSwain: "Is San Diego’s mayor asking the NFL to compel the Chargers to spend money fighting the initiative?" Faulconer's Chief of Communications Matt Awbrey said that he "most certainly is not." Faulconer's team said that although they "think the Qualcomm Stadium site is superior, they are willing to work with the team on a downtown stadium if the NFL wants to give everybody more time." But the Chargers "seemed skeptical" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 12/2).
