PromoTheRobot Posted May 31, 2009 Posted May 31, 2009 The fact is every NFL franchise not in NY, NE*, Dallas or a top 5 market is in danger of losing their team due to inheritence taxes. Not just Buffalo. Maybe Congress can argue for a sports franchise exemption since the teams are important parts of the community, but it will be hard to give up on hundreds of millions in tax dollars in this economy. Frankly after L.A. gets a team, where else can an NFL franchise go to find a pot of gold? This may actually drive down franchise values in a few years. PTR
JPicc2114 Posted May 31, 2009 Posted May 31, 2009 I have lived here in St. Louis most of my life and I noticed a very large difference between Buffalo and St. Louis in terms of football. In Buffalo, people live and die football and love the Bills. Here in St. Louis, this is a baseball town and people live and die for the Cardinals. If the Rams move I don't think anybody would really care.
VJ91 Posted May 31, 2009 Posted May 31, 2009 I have lived here in St. Louis most of my life and I noticed a very large difference between Buffalo and St. Louis in terms of football. In Buffalo, people live and die football and love the Bills. Here in St. Louis, this is a baseball town and people live and die for the Cardinals. If the Rams move I don't think anybody would really care. Even more hilarious that the St. Louis Rams have a SB trophy.
JPicc2114 Posted May 31, 2009 Posted May 31, 2009 Even more hilarious that the St. Louis Rams have a SB trophy. Ya that's very depressing.
Mr. WEO Posted May 31, 2009 Posted May 31, 2009 Didn't LA have a new stadium proposal up for a vote? Seems like this is all playing perfectly for that buyer. There is no stadium. There is no buyer. Some desolate LA outskirt called City of Industry voted to approve of "plans" for the building of a stadium. Since then, they have been sued by two neighboring towns who don't want a stadium nearby. One of the suits resulted in $20 million in hush money for one town. The other town is awaiting its windfall from City of Industry. Yup, things are going great for the "LA stadium project". Also, no teams "are in danger of losing their team due to inheritance taxes", except those with a sole owner approaching death with no plans on selling the team premortem.
PistolPetey Posted June 1, 2009 Posted June 1, 2009 There is no stadium. There is no buyer. Some desolate LA outskirt called City of Industry voted to approve of "plans" for the building of a stadium. Since then, they have been sued by two neighboring towns who don't want a stadium nearby. One of the suits resulted in $20 million in hush money for one town. The other town is awaiting its windfall from City of Industry. Yup, things are going great for the "LA stadium project". Also, no teams "are in danger of losing their team due to inheritance taxes", except those with a sole owner approaching death with no plans on selling the team premortem. One, it's not desolate. It's 22 miles from downtown LA, at the confluence of two major freeways. 12 million people live within 30 miles. (http://www.losangelesfootballstadium.com/) Two, it has a very good chance of being built -- it is financed completely by private funds. All it needs is a team. The problem is that the builder -- who also owns a stake in the LA Kings and the LA Lakers -- probably can't both build a stadium and buy a team. He would build the stadium for a stake in the team. But if anyone can get this done, Ed Roski can.
Flbillsfan#1 Posted June 1, 2009 Posted June 1, 2009 One, it's not desolate. It's 22 miles from downtown LA, at the confluence of two major freeways. 12 million people live within 30 miles. (http://www.losangelesfootballstadium.com/) Two, it has a very good chance of being built -- it is financed completely by private funds. All it needs is a team. The problem is that the builder -- who also owns a stake in the LA Kings and the LA Lakers -- probably can't both build a stadium and buy a team. He would build the stadium for a stake in the team. But if anyone can get this done, Ed Roski can. Why? What's so special about Ed Roski?
NewHampshireBillsFan Posted June 1, 2009 Posted June 1, 2009 The fact is every NFL franchise not in NY, NE*, Dallas or a top 5 market is in danger of losing their team due to inheritence taxes. Not just Buffalo. Maybe Congress can argue for a sports franchise exemption since the teams are important parts of the community, but it will be hard to give up on hundreds of millions in tax dollars in this economy. Frankly after L.A. gets a team, where else can an NFL franchise go to find a pot of gold? This may actually drive down franchise values in a few years. PTR The NFL is not the same league it was even 20 years ago. The financial aspect of the league has eaten up almost everything else connected to it. I will not project the demise of the NFL but I think fans in many of the cities will become more disillusioned with the NFL as it relates to the non-elite market teams. Even with a salary cap the NFL may become more like MLB where many teams don't have a real chance of winning the super bowl. Look at the Bills and Bengals now--we are almost in that boat now because we can't afford decent GMs and coaches. I think the NFL will push the "event" of football like big matchups and the super teams like the Patsies*, the fantasy leagues, and deep down be happy that many fans gamble and therefore have a rooting interest because of that. Fans of small size cites have become and will become more disillusioned and as teams like the Rams move that disillusionment may deepen as they wonder if their team may be next to move.
Lv-Bills Posted June 1, 2009 Posted June 1, 2009 Why? What's so special about Ed Roski? I once heard that Ed Roski climbed the Grand Canyon during a drought, pissed over the edge, and filled the Colorado River to normal, pre drought, levels. Despite this, and other similar "miracles" Roski has pulled off, he's still 0-1 against Tedi Bruschi in steel cage matches.
PistolPetey Posted June 1, 2009 Posted June 1, 2009 Why? What's so special about Ed Roski? Nothing, really. It's not so much Roski as his proposal, which is already approved and uses no public $$. All prior stadium proposals in LA have failed to get very far, even with involvement of such monied interests as Eli Broad and Michael Ovitz. That Roski is proposing a privately financed facility -- one that already has been approved by City of Industry council and voters -- means that he's already most of the way there. Plus, he built our Staples Center (where the Lakers and Kings play), so he's done it before. Perhaps I'm being too optimistic. I've been known to suffer from that fatal flaw, esp. as concerns NFL football in LA.....
Mr. WEO Posted June 1, 2009 Posted June 1, 2009 Nothing, really. It's not so much Roski as his proposal, which is already approved and uses no public $$. All prior stadium proposals in LA have failed to get very far, even with involvement of such monied interests as Eli Broad and Michael Ovitz. That Roski is proposing a privately financed facility -- one that already has been approved by City of Industry council and voters -- means that he's already most of the way there. Plus, he built our Staples Center (where the Lakers and Kings play), so he's done it before. Perhaps I'm being too optimistic. I've been known to suffer from that fatal flaw, esp. as concerns NFL football in LA..... I guess Ossining, NY is a big time town too, as it is within 30 miles of over 10 million people. City of Industry has 831 inhabitants who happily voted to have a huge stadium built on their large weed mound. He's "most of the way there", eh? Except for the financing. Quite simply, neither Roski nor anyone else has that kind of money. Roski's fortune is tied to that of the commercial real estate market in LA (OOPS!). So in order to raise $800 mil to a billion, he need's partners or investors/lenders and no one is going to give Ed this kind of money on spec. They will want to know which team, exactly, is moving to LA, and when, before they give him that kind of dough. But let's say he builds the stadium with private money. How does he get his money back? How does he service his loan? By charging his new NFL tenant $50 million a year in rent? Great plan! So, no team, no stadium. Oh, also, no stadium, no team----pretty much the NFL in LA situation for the last 15 years, in a nutshell.
The Dean Posted June 1, 2009 Posted June 1, 2009 Maybe they should move to the growing metropolis of Jacksonville. After all, they have GREAT football fans in Jax. The addition of the Rams could give them another team to not give a s#it about.
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