Los Angeles city officials have bumped up the cost projections by $40 million for a new wing on the Los Angeles convention center planned in conjunction with a proposed National Football League stadium.
Two city officials told the Los Angeles Times that the increased costs are a result of design changes, including plans to add a 45,000-square-foot ballroom to attract more lucrative national conventions.
The new wing is planned because the convention center’s west wing would be demolished to make way for Anschutz Entertainment Group’s planned new football stadium to be constructed in the city’s multi-block L.A. Live entertainment district that also includes the city’s convention center.
The cost estimates were slated to be reviewed Thursday by a City Council committee before heading to the entire council for a vote on Sept. 28, when the city is expected to approve a 35-year development agreement with AEG.
At that meeting, Los Angeles would also approve the developer’s environmental impact report.
Final agreements with AEG would not be executed, however, until after company has a signed agreement to bring an NFL team to Los Angeles.
Under the financing plan suggested by city budget officials, Los Angeles would issue between $287 million and $358.4 million in lease revenue bonds, as well as between $93.4 million and $109.7 million in Mello-Roos bonds, which cities can issue by creating special tax districts, according to news reports.
That figure is higher than the original estimate outlined in an memorandum of understanding with AEG last summer.
The report also says the new hall budget, originally targeted at $275 million, could exceed the total bond amount by as much as $27.6 million.
The city could be responsible for half of that amount, the agreement says, while AEG would be responsible for the rest, according to reports.
