The owners of the Los Angeles Clippers will buy The Forum concert venue in Inglewood for $400 million as part of a settlement agreement with Madison Square Garden Co..
The agreement ends years of legal battles that threatened the feasibility of a proposed $1.2 billion Clippers arena in the city that soon will be home to an adjacent $5 billion NFL stadium for the Los Angeles Rams and Chargers. That 18,000-seat arena just south of the new NFL stadium will still move forward.
Under the newly formed CAPSS LLC, the Clippers’ owners will continue to operate the historic Forum — the former home of the Los Angeles Lakers and Kings — as a music venue and has offered to hire all of current employees, according to a press release Tuesday.
“This is an unprecedented time, but we believe in our collective future,” said Steve Ballmer, the chairman of the L.A. Clippers. “We are committed to our investment in the City of Inglewood, which will be good for the community, The Clippers, and our fans.”
Ballmer and the Clippers previously offered to spend an additional $100 million on a community benefit package, including $75 million to support affordable housing. The exact terms of the package are still under negotiation.
Traffic concerns
The new ownership of the Forum will alleviate potential traffic congestion in the corridor by allowing the two venues to coordinate programming, according to the Clippers.
“We know traffic is something that many Inglewood residents worry about. While we have gone to great lengths to provide an unprecedented traffic-management plan for the new basketball arena, this acquisition provides a much greater ability to coordinate and avoid scheduling events at the same time at both venues,” said Chris Meany, a principal of Wilson Meany, the developer overseeing the new basketball arena project.
An environmental impact report released in December estimated a simultaneous concert at The Forum and a basketball game at the arena could impact 61 intersections and eight freeway segments. The arena is expected to contribute to a “significant and unavoidable” increase in traffic, noise and pollutants, according to the report.
Millions spent on lawsuits
Madison Square Garden Co., which bought The Forum for $23.5 million in 2012 and invested $100 million in renovations, has waged an all-out war to try to stop the Clippers from coming to the city. MSG sued Inglewood and its mayor, James T. Butts Jr., in 2018, alleging he tricked the company’s executives into giving up their rights to the land needed for the proposed arena.
The Forum’s owners claimed their fight was not about stopping the competition and instead was an attempt to protect Inglewood residents from a project that would “inflict severe traffic congestion, pollution and many other harms” on the city.
Both sides spent millions on the war, with the two parties heavily lobbying state and local officials for support. MSG’s opposition stalled efforts to fast-track the arena by nearly a year.
As part of the settlement agreement, MSG will drop its lawsuit against the city and others challenging the environmental review of the project at the corner of Century Boulevard and Prairie Avenue, just across the street from SoFi Stadium.
“This is the best resolution for all parties involved and we wish the new owners every success,” the company said in a statement.
With MSG out of the way, the Clippers will have eliminated the last of the arena’s roadblocks.
Smiling mayor signs settlement
The Inglewood City Council approved the settlement at its meeting Tuesday. Butts, smiling ear to ear, paused the agenda so he could sign the document immediately. A copy of the agreement was not available Tuesday.
“The city of Inglewood is overjoyed to welcome Steve Ballmer as the new owner and operator of the Fabulous Forum,” Butts said in a statement Tuesday. “He’s a true community partner.”
The purchase is expected to close during the second quarter of 2020, according to the Clippers. The team, which currently plays at Staples Center, wants the arena ready by the 2024 season.