After hearing from several sources that drastic renovations to Dodger Stadium were all but dead, we were surprised to see Frank McCourt tell the press that he was proceeding with planning on a new football stadium at Chavez Ravine.
After hearing from several sources that drastic renovations to Dodger Stadium were all but dead, we were surprised to see owner Frank McCourt tell the press that he was proceeding with planning on a new football stadium at Chavez Ravine.
The comments came in a chat with a local industry group, chronicled by the Los Angeles Times. McCourt was blunt about his desire to see an NFL stadium at the Dodger Stadium site, something he's been pursuing for years now:
"There's no question L.A. should have an NFL franchise," he said. "It's probably the worst-kept secret in Los Angeles that the NFL would love to be at Chavez Ravine. Other than that, I can't comment right now."
That he would be so blunt about these plans is a little surprising: he's involved in a nasty divorce battle with Jamie McCourt over the Dodgers, their shared assets and so much more. While the experts are giving the slight edge so far to McCourt — her lawyers are asking the courts to invalidate an agreement giving McCourt the Dodgers and Dodger Stadium, even though that agreement violates California's community-property laws — the divorce could take years to settle (there's no trial date set yet), and until then it's hard to see McCourt obtaining financing to build am NFL stadium on the Dodger Stadium site.
Indeed, it appears the divorce is already impacting business for the Dodgers. We've heard from several sources in the know that plans to renovate and expand Dodger Stadium with a center-field promenade and concourse are dead: planning work has ceased, and the team is not talking about any timelines. Now, one could see some sort of Dodger Stadium renovation that includes a shared promenade/entertainment area with a stadium. But as far as we can tell no one is working on those plans either within the Dodgers or outside the team.
Share your news with the baseball community. Send it to us at editors@augustpublications.com.
Subscribers to the weekly Ballpark Digest newsletter see articles before they're posted to the site. You can sign up for a free subscription at the Newsletter Signup Page.
Join Ballpark Digest on Facebook and on Twitter!