AOL Patch continues to hire

The AOL Patch network of city blogs continues to expand in Southern California.

Redmond Carolipio, formerly night editor at the San Bernardino Sun, will take over as assistant regional editor for San Gabriel Valley Patch sites.

Melanie Johnson, who got laid off from the Press-Enterprise in Riverside and was a former Sun reporter, will edit the city of Walnut and City of Industry patch sites - expect a good deal of news about Ed Roski Jr.'s planned football stadium project.

Gina Tenorio, who worked at the Desert Sun in Palm Springs, will become editor of the Loma Linda Patch.

Apparently, AOL wants these two Patch sites up and running by Dec. 13.

Rose Bowl renovation approved, stadium dominoes fall

It only took 10 years to get it done, but the Pasadena City Council on Monday approved a $152 million bond package to renovate the 88-year-old Rose Bowl stadium. From the LA Times:

The renovations include widened tunnels and added aisles for smoother entering and exiting. A modern version of a 1940s-style scoreboard will replace the existing one on the south end, and a video board will be installed on the north side. Premium seating will be bumped from 600 to 2,500 following the expansion of the press box building.

 The financing plan will have repercussions far beyond "smoother entering and exiting" through the vomitoria. For one, this all but locks out any future deal to bring the NFL to Pasadena, leaving Industry and the Coliseum as the two remaining bidders for a professional football team in L.A. Everyone knows the NFL does not like the Coliseum as its currently configured - too big, too old - and so the Rose Bowl renovations would seem to give the Industry bid a boost.

But the Rose Bowl deal also extends UCLA's lease there until 2043, robbing Industry of a potential tenant and much-needed source of revenue. This could make it harder for Industry's backers to finance a new stadium, unless they can convince the USC Trojans to break ties with the Coliseum. The Industry stadium's design has already been altered for soccer play as a way to attract off-season tenants, but here again they'll have to compete with the renovated Rose Bowl, which has a storied history of World Cup play.

All of which puts added pressure on the Coliseum to pay for upgrades and possible redesign. Public financing for such a project will be hard to come by in this economy and the NFL has no appetite to get behind an expensive deal when they dictate to Industry just what kind of comfy accommodations the league would prefer. Big downtown developers have shown no interest in a public-private partnership to improve the Coliseum, choosing instead to explore building a brand new stadium near Staples.

The NFL just isn't that into L.A.

As Ed Roski and the city of Industry continue their courtship dance with the National Football League, Michael Hiltzik of the Los Angeles Times recounts the many, many broken hearts the league has left across Southern California:

The NFL's goal has been to extract the most favorable deal for itself, regardless of the public costs. It has been offered public land for free or at a cut rate, tax abatements, concessions — in the latest round, the Legislature even abrogated a major state law to facilitate a stadium that isn't built to host a team that we don't have and to meet a deadline that doesn't exist.

Can't anyone here learn a lesson? For all that the NFL says it really wants to be back in the Los Angeles market, it finds it quite advantageous to leave this market wide open. Why? Because it's a permanent threat to every other NFL community that dares to think about driving a hard bargain with its pro team.

DA probes mayor of Industry

The Los Angeles Times and San Gabriel Valley Tribune report that District Attorney's public integrity unit is investigating Mayor David Perez of the city of Industry over allegations that he's benefiting financially from city contracts. The probe comes at a sensitive time, as a proposal to build an NFL stadium in the city pushes ahead. LAT, SGVT

(Updated)

Four in the afternoon

1. An affair to remember: Common Cause has filed a complaint with the state's ethics commission against the lobbyist who allegedly engaged in an extramarital affairs with former Republican Assemblyman Mike Duvall. SacBee

2. Bankrupt: The 5,000 carries who deliver the Orange County Register will not get the $22 million the paper set aside to settle a lawsuit. Instead, the paper has wrapped the money into its list of assets as part of its bankruptcy filing. OC Register

3. In the red zone: The California Senate could pass a bill as early as today that would exempt the proposed NFL stadium in the city of Industry from environmental regulations and thereby eliminate a citizen lawsuit to block the project. PSN

4. Skinny paper: The Los Angeles Times loses an inch. ChiTrib ... LA Times pressman and blogger Ed Padgett had this story last month.

Roski's NFL dream a step closer

The cities of Walnut and Industry appear to have settled their differences over Ed Roski's planned NFL stadium. The terms of the deal, which Walnut approved tonight, remain confidential until both cities have ratified them. This should reopen the door to make unnecessary the California Legislature's effort to fast-track the project by granting the plan a waiver from state environmental regulations.

The City of Industry gambit

The budget deal struck by the governor and the leaders of the state Legislature included a provision to allow cities to extend the lifespan of redevelopment zone by 40 years, provided the cities pass 10 percent of their earnings on to the state. Observers argue the provision is designed to help out one specific project, the planned NFL stadium in the City of Industry.

From the Los Angeles Times:

...adding decades to the life of the redevelopment area would allow Industry to use hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to build roads, sewers and other facilities to help accommodate the stadium and commercial projects, said Christine Minnehan, legislative director of the Western Center on Law and Poverty.

The County of Los Angeles has already moved to sue the state to block the provision from taking effect. The San Gabriel Valley Tribune quotes County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky:

Opponents said the state is violating the Constitution because redevelopment money is only allowed to be invested in blighted neighborhoods.

"They've done their job," Yaroslavsky said of Industry's redevelopment agency. "They've removed their blight. Instead you're providing subsidies to private landowners."

Industry approves $500 million bond

Given the state of the economy, it might seem an odd time to ask voters to approve a half-billion dollars in new borrowing. But the City of Industry did just that Tuesday, and 60 voters agreed to go along with the plan. Only one voter said no to the bond.

The main impetus for the borrowing, despite what city officials say, is a planned $800 million NFL stadium that billionaire Ed Roski wants to build. At least a third of the money would go toward improvements around the proposed stadium site.

Industry also convinced voters to approve no-bid contracts, which should grease the skids if and when a stadium project gets underway, and a new tax on tickets.

The Industry electorate also passed a law that restricts enfranchisement to residents with a permanent city address - hotels excluded.

Big bond, no bid

Just as the state brings its public works projects to a halt, the City of Industry prepares to ask its 82 registered voters to approve a $500 million bond. The money would pay for infrastructure around billionaire Ed Roski's NFL stadium of dreams. As of yet, no NFL team has agreed to move there.

Industry officials also want voters to end the pesky requirement of awarding contracts to the lowest bidder, which could come in handy if and when they start spending that half billion. They also want voters to bar anyone without a permanent address from voting in future elections.

(San Gabriel Valley Tribune via LA Observed)

Another stadium proposal

Shiny!

Los Angeles and the National Football League love to flirt. But they're afraid of commitment. Billionaire Ed Roski thinks he can solve that problem. In the city of Industry. What are the chances? Not too good, according to Los Angeles Times football writer Sam Farmer.

One of the smartest men in sports business, David Carter of the Sports Business Group, is one of the consultants on the project. Not surprisingly, he thinks the odds are a little better. "I'm bullish," he says. "It's a solid plan from a guy who knows how to get things done."

Carter isn't new to the dance. He helped write the business plan that spurred the ill-fated NFL proposal at the Rose Bowl. In that case, the NFL balked at the expense of a nice stadium and the neighbors balked at pro football fans running roughshod in their neighborhood park.

Industry doesn't have any problems with neighbors. The primary roadblock there is money. Will the NFL step up with a loan? In this terrible economy? Or will Roski put up the whole purse? In this terribly economy? Someone is going to have to blink.

So far, all the blinking has come from government officials. The state has already said no to an $820 million, um, development subsidy, and politicos in L.A. and Pasadena know well the risk to their stadiums if something brand new is built nearby - a point Carter made clear in the Rose Bowl plan. They'll sure do what they can to interfere.

At the very least, the proposal has sparked intrigue - just what L.A. loves best.