ANAHEIM, Calif. (Dec. 20, 2019) — The Anaheim City Council today approved a purchase and sale agreement for 153 acres of land including and around Angel Stadium of Anaheim as the first step in a three-step proposal for the future of baseball in the city.
The purchase and sale agreement calls for the city to sell the stadium and land to SRB Management Co. LLC, a company controlled and led by Angels Baseball LP owner Arte Moreno.
The land sale is valued at $325 million, or $2.1 million an acre, which is at the high end of Anaheim’s commissioned independent appraisal for baseball on the land with 12,500 parking spots and potential development.
The approval of the purchase and sale agreement will see a $5 million deposit from SRB Management due to the city in coming days. The deposit will be the first of $70 million in deposits toward the $325 million purchase price called for under the proposal.
A final cash payment could see an adjustment for community benefits sought by the city and provided as part of development around the stadium (see below for more detail).
“After years of uncertainty, I welcome what this step means for our residents, neighborhoods and fans,” Mayor Harry Sidhu said. “For everyone who said keep the Angels in Anaheim, this proposal would do just that. For those who wanted to see a deal at a fair market price, this proposal is that. For those who wanted something better than what we have now, this proposal promises to be that.”
The purchase and sale agreement includes:
- Angel Stadium of Anaheim: 45,483-seat stadium, approximately 20 acres
- 133 acres: stadium land, including 12,500 parking spaces for games and events, City National Grove of Anaheim, 1,700-seat theater
The purchase and sale agreement is the first step of a three-step proposal that would see the Angels play in Anaheim at least through 2050, potential development around the stadium and potential community benefits.
In early 2020, the city and Angels will discuss a disposition and development agreement for the land, a community benefits agreement and the formal details of an Angels commitment agreement.
Those proposals would go before the City Council for public consideration in spring to mid-2020.
The final stage of the proposal would be city review and approval of a master site plan and final tract plans potentially around 2023 to 2025. At that time, all agreements within the larger proposal, including the purchase and sale of the stadium and land, would finalize.
Step 1: stadium site sale
With approval of the purchase and sale agreement, Anaheim would sell Angel Stadium, which the city has owned since its 1966 opening.
The proposal reflects a trend toward private ownership, as with Dodger Stadium, SoFi Stadium in Inglewood and Chase Center in San Francisco, the new home of the Golden State Warriors.
Selling the Big A, as the stadium is known, would relieve the city of yearly payments toward improvements, currently at $700,000, $5 million through a potential close in 2025 and $17 million through 2038, the end date of the current lease.
A sale would also relieve the city of annual administrative costs to oversee a stadium lease and agreements with neighboring businesses.
At the same time, the city would forego revenue sharing on ticket sales and parking, which was $1.3 million — and $581,200 after expenses — for the 12 months through June 2019.
Any revenue lost stands to be offset by savings from the end of a stadium lease.
Anaheim also would be free of long-term decisions about the stadium.
SRB Management would be solely responsible for maintenance, improvements, renovations or the building of a new stadium.
“The future of a stadium, renovated or new, would rest with the Angels,” Mayor Sidhu said. “Anaheim taxpayers aren’t being asked to pay for anything. There are no city subsidies. There is no taxpayer funding of a stadium.”
Step 2: future development
In early 2020, Anaheim and the Angels are set to discuss a development agreement for land around the stadium.
Development could include homes, hotels and entertainment uses as part of Anaheim’s vision for the Platinum Triangle, the 820-acre area including and around Angel Stadium.
Planning for the Platinum Triangle envisions a downtown for all of Orange County built around sports with urban-style homes, restaurants, shopping, entertainment, offices and transit.
As land gives way to new uses, future development could, by conservative estimate, bring $10 million to $20 million in ongoing, net yearly revenue for Anaheim from hotel, sales and property taxes.
Development would undergo city and environmental review as plans are submitted.
Affordable housing, parks
As part of any development, Anaheim could seek affordable housing and park space beyond what the city normally sees. We could also seek a workforce agreement for union construction jobs and priority hiring for Anaheim residents, veterans and those recovering from homelessness.
To meet these critical city priorities, an agreement could include a to-be-determined adjustment to the final cash payment for the stadium and land. As with the stadium and land sale, any adjustment would be equivalent to the fair market value of the community benefits requested and provided as part of the agreement.
The goal would be to ensure significant affordable housing and much-needed park space in the Platinum Triangle as part of a stadium land master site plan, while still preserving ample land sale proceeds for the city to invest in the community.
A disposition and development agreement, potentially including an adjustment for affordable housing, parks and a workforce agreement, could be publicly considered by the City Council in spring to mid-2020.
The Council also would be expected to consider a detailed Angels commitment agreement that reiterates the team’s commitment to play in Anaheim through 2050 with five five-year options and also cover standards for stadium operation, maintenance and investment.
Step 3: City review
The final step of proposal would require the submission of a master site plan for the land and then final tract maps for how it could be developed in accordance with Anaheim’s Platinum Triangle Specific Plan for the area.
After seeing regular cash deposits, a final payment, potentially adjusted for any community benefits, would be due with approval of final tract maps.
You can learn more at Anaheim.net/BigA.