Stadium Lease being Hammered out

[ICanSleepWhenI'mDead]

Real life interfered with my Bills addiction recently, so I've read less threads than usual - - but I did not see a link to Goodell's recent memo about LA relocation options posted anywhere (sorry if I just missed it):

 

http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jun/29/sports/la-sp-nfl-la-goodell-20120630

 

It's the league -- and not an individual team -- that will control the relocation process.

 

In making that point, Goodell put in writing what was discussed by owners at a May meeting in Atlanta and established rules for moving back to a market that has been without an NFL franchise since the Raiders and Rams left after the 1994 season.

 

That the memo refers specifically to the 2013 season does not necessarily mean the league is ready to reenter the market immediately, but it does underscore how seriously the NFL is considering the current opportunities. In order to be considered for relocation, Goodell wrote, a team must submit its application to do so between Jan. 1 and Feb. 15 of 2013.

 

What the league doesn't want is a team making the unilateral decision to relocate to L.A. intending to play in the Rose Bowl or Coliseum for a few years with the hope of moving over to a new venue once a stadium solution is found. The guidelines are partly intended to discourage squatting on the market.

 

And as I have seen reported elsewhere on TBD:

 

http://www.buffalonews.com/city/communities/erie-county/article952526.ece?twobillsdrive

 

"We've accomplished a lot. Every party knows where the other one stands," Poloncarz said. "Now, it's just that final time where you sort of butt heads with each other until you reach an agreement. So I feel confident we're going to get an agreement done by the end of the year."

 

Maybe it's just a coincidence, but I find it interesting that (i) in late June Goodell established a window that opens on 1/1/13 for filing an LA relocation application, and (ii) a short while later we learn that the stadium lease negotiations aren't expected to culminate in a signed agreement until "the end of the year."

 

I'm not suggesting that there is some hidden plan to move the Bills to LA, but it does seem like good negotiating strategy on Littman's part to pace stadium lease negotiations to conclude just before that window opens.

 

As others have pointed out, in the event Ralph passes before the lease negotiations are concluded later this year, it also leaves more immediate relocation options available to any new owner of the Bills. Seems like that scenario would create the highest number of potential bidders for the team if Ralph does pass before the end of the year.

[BRAWNDO]

Real life interfered with my Bills addiction recently, so I've read less threads than usual - - but I did not see a link to Goodell's recent memo about LA relocation options posted anywhere (sorry if I just missed it):

 

http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jun/29/sports/la-sp-nfl-la-goodell-20120630

 

 

 

And as I have seen reported elsewhere on TBD:

 

http://www.buffalonews.com/city/communities/erie-county/article952526.ece?twobillsdrive

 

 

 

Maybe it's just a coincidence, but I find it interesting that (i) in late June Goodell established a window that opens on 1/1/13 for filing an LA relocation application, and (ii) a short while later we learn that the stadium lease negotiations aren't expected to culminate in a signed agreement until "the end of the year."

 

I'm not suggesting that there is some hidden plan to move the Bills to LA, but it does seem like good negotiating strategy on Littman's part to pace stadium lease negotiations to conclude just before that window opens.

 

As others have pointed out, in the event Ralph passes before the lease negotiations are concluded later this year, it also leaves more immediate relocation options available to any new owner of the Bills. Seems like that scenario would create the highest number of potential bidders for the team if Ralph does pass before the end of the year.

 

Get the lease signed!!