Dan Dierdorf on the CVC/Rams Arbitration (and Demoff...)

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SEGMENT 5-- News On The Stadium Front For The Rams And The CVC Came Out On Friday, Now A Man Who Knows More About This Than Us Dan Dierdorf Joins Us To Talk About The Arbitration That Took Place, I Know That The Rams Would Like To Stay Here In St. Louis, Does It Make Sense To Build A New Stadium Just North Of The Stadium In The Bottle District?, With Stan Kroenke Being A Real Estate Developer I Think That You Have To Trust Him In Building A New Stadium, The Good Thing For St. Louis Is That There Aren't A Lot Of Cities Out There That Want To Take Another City's Football Team, Now Let's Turn And Get Your Thoughts On The Super Bowl Game Last Night, When You Have A Super Bowl Where The Last Play Of The Game Means Something It Is Always A Good Thing, Joe Flacco Is The Real Deal With His Performance Throughout The Whole Postseason, The Ravens Are Not In The Super Bowl Because of Ray Lewis, The Dynamic Of The Ravens Has Changed From Defense To Offense, I Think It Is Interested To Hear Him Say That Not A Dollar Will Be Put Into That Dome ---







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Re: Dan Dierdorf on the CVC/Rams Arbitration

Dan Dierdorf is being interviewed on the Ryan Kelly Morning After on AM 590 the Fan, KFNS. I bolded the parts I liked selectively because I am a St. Louis homer.

When asked about what happens next since it's obvious that the CVC will not agree to dump 700 million dollars into the Dome, his reply (not an exact word-for-word quote, but pretty close):

First of all, it's important to note that the CVC does not spend any money, they have no money. They're dependent on taxpayer money from the city, county, and state. And right now, there isn't the appetite to commit public money to a football franchise, so I don't think Slay/Dooley/Nixon will go out on that thin ice and commit public dollars to Kroenke and the Rams. I do know, though, that there has been a lot of good work being done behind the scenes to pull all of these various entities together to find middle ground and get something done.

I know this: The Rams would like to stay. They are not looking for a reason to leave St. Louis, they want to stay here. As long as that sentiment prevails, I'm going to remain cautiously optimistic."

He noted that these days stadiums are built with a combination of public, team and NFL contributions.

When asked about what is likely to be built and where, they talked about the same three sites everyone knows about (Bottle District/Chrysler Plant/Maryland Heights).

He reiterated what many tuned into the situation, including Bernie Miklasz and Jim Thomas, have asserted, that we are probably looking at an open-air stadium. He also expanded on the same points we've heard that Stan is a real-estate developer and he will want to control his own developments around any new stadium.

When asked about the Los Angeles situation, he said that it is important to note that this is not twenty years ago, where cities were lining up to poach NFL teams by building them free stadiums, and the NFL has made it clear they own the NFL market and it isn't just sitting there for an EXISTING team to move into L.A. Many hoops would need to be jumped through between now and then for that to become a possibility.

When asked what he thinks we'll be looking at in seven or eight years, he reiterated his cautious optimism and said he thinks we'll have an outdoor stadium built in one of those three locations.

 

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Re: Dan Dierdorf on the CVC/Rams Arbitration

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ST. LOUIS -- An attorney for the agency that runs the home of the St. Louis Rams says it is unlikely it will implement the team's plan to upgrade the Edward Jones Dome.

Already, there is speculation about a new stadium.

Arbitrators ruled last week in favor of the team's plan for upgrading the dome to "top-tier" status as required by the lease agreement with the dome owner, the St. Louis Convention and Visitors Commission. The CVC had proposed $124 million in renovations. The Rams didn't put a price tag on their plan but CVC and city officials believe it would cost $700 million to $800 million.

The CVC has 30 days from the date of the ruling on Friday to decide if it will try to implement the Rams' plan, though attorney Greg Smith said in a statement that step was "unlikely."

Smith and a spokesman for the Rams did not return messages seeking comment Monday. But Jeff Rainford, chief of staff for St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay, said there was almost no chance the CVC will even try to garner public support for spending hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to improve the dome.

"It will clearly be the job of the St. Louis civic community to keep the Rams in St. Louis, but with the least amount of public subsidy possible," Rainford said.

Unless the CVC implements the plan approved by arbitrators, the Rams' lease of the dome becomes year-to-year starting in March 2015. That creates the possibility that the Rams could leave St. Louis.

Rams management has said the team wants to stay, and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said last week he was hopeful the stadium situation would be resolved. But the Rams have also been adamant that the dome is inferior to most NFL stadiums.

The CVC a year ago proposed improvements that included better amenities and a massive new scoreboard. It would have required the Rams to pay for $64 million of the $124 million cost. Voter approval in the city and county would have been required for the rest.

The Rams countered with a much more elaborate plan calling for a new roof with a sliding panel, replacing much of the brick exterior with a glass front, even re-routing a nearby street. The Rams did not say how it would be funded.

Three members of the American Arbitration Association -- retired Colorado judge Federico C. Alvarez of Denver, former judge David Blair of Sioux City, Iowa, and labor attorney Sinclair Kossoff of Chicago -- found problems with the dome that indicated a need for a massive overhaul. Among other things, they noted it is among the smallest stadiums in the NFL, and wrote the dome "lacks openness, light and air" that would require installation of an expensive retractable roof to resolve.

Some in St. Louis believe the answer is a new stadium.

Any plans for public funding to help build the stadium would likely go to a vote of residents of St. Louis city and county.

Taxpayers are already footing the bill for the existing dome, which cost more than $300 million when it was constructed in the mid-1990s. However, repayment for the 30-year bonds that financed it will total $720 million. The state of Missouri pays $12 million annually toward that debt; the city and St. Louis County pay $6 million each.

Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press

 

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2/3/2012 (morning of the Superbowl)

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With a decision finally coming through arbitration, the Rams will either receive major upgrades to the Edward Jones Dome or start looking for a new location hopefully still in the area. Discussing that, plus the biggest sporting event of the year, Rams COO Kevin Demoff joined Ron from New Orleans.