A town hall meeting the National Football League calls it. A chance to hear from fans in San Diego about the decision the National Football League is going to make soon about which team or teams move to L-A. Photo by Chris StoneAs they did Tuesday at the Peabody Opera House in St. Louis, NFL executives Chris Hardart, Eric Grubman, Cynthia Hogan and Jay Bauman sat on tall director’s seats at a forum livestreamed on NFL.com.
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Members of Commissioner Roger Goodell’s executive staff will be in attendance to listen to comments and answer questions from the audience, according to the NFL.
The forum got off to a rocky start when Mark Fabiani, the team’s special counsel, drew boos from fans.
Fabiani, who works for Chargers chairman Dean Spanos, blamed politicians, not the fans, for the team’s stance.
“We’ve tried everything we can think of”, Fabiani told the audience.
In other words, the Chargers and San Diego are at an impasse – and the only option for the Chargers at this point is to move. Others pleaded to keep the “Chargers” name in San Diego. “By designing for the city’s strengths, the stadium will transcend generations and bring fans together around a lovely city and a shared passion for football”.
In a written summary of his planned comments, Fabiani said, “We believe that if we go along with the city’s strategy, we will suffer the same fate as the city’s recent convention center expansion project”.
During the forum, fans pointed out that San Diego’s proximity to Mexico provided an opportunity for the league to gain fans internationally, something it has long sought.
“You will rip a big part of me and San Diego if you take away the Chargers”, season ticket holder Robert Lozano said.
The crowd in San Diego, estimated by the NFL at 450 fans, was even more boisterous than the passionate group of about 800 in St. Louis, particularly in the first hour of the three-hour meeting, breaking into a “No Way L.A.!” chant before the league executives took the stage.
“Everyone assumes all three teams will file, and in that case we can’t afford to lose our market in Los Angeles and Orange County”, Fabiani said.
Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s citizens task force recommended a new venue at the current Mission Valley location where Qualcomm Stadium, which was built in 1967, stands.
Kansas City-based Populous incorporated unique San Diego elements into its design, such as a shimmering facade that will give off an ocean wavelike effect. Right now they play in the Mission Valley area.
The video, narrated by Hall of Fame sports announcer and La Jolla resident Dick Enberg, shows off various aspects of San Diego for the first minute before the stadium design proposal is revealed.
Fabiani, who has spearheaded the push for a new stadium for more than a decade, for years in San Diego and during the last year in Carson, was a lightning rod in the hearing. “That’s why we’re in the regrettable position we are tonight”.
“Under the City’s quickie environmental review plan, the City takes no risk”, the Chargers state.
As far as how to pay for it, the mayor’s office told us this video is a follow up to the plan released in August that would call for 2/3 of the stadium to be paid for with private money.
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“You could easily build your own stadium”, said one speaker.
