An initiative aimed at building a football stadium in Carson, possibly to house the San Diego Chargers and Oakland Raiders, has qualified for the city ballot, backers of the proposal said Wednesday.
Members of Carson2gether delivered more than 15,000 petition signatures to the city last month, and the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s office verified that enough of the signatures were valid. A total of 8,059 valid signatures were required to get the issue on the ballot.
The issue will now move to the Carson City Council, which will have the option of either placing the $1.7 billion proposal on the ballot or approving the stadium plan outright.
The Chargers and Raiders announced Feb. 19 they are working on a joint proposal to build a 72,000-seat stadium at Del Amo Boulevard and the San Diego (405) Freeway in Carson if they are unable to strike deals for new facilities in their respective cities.
Going through the initiative process allows the project to avoid lengthy and expensive environmental reviews.
A similar tactic was employed in Inglewood, where the City Council voted unanimously Feb. 24 to approve an initiative allowing for construction of an 80,000-seat stadium planned by St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke at the former Hollywood Park racetrack site. Although Kroenke is behind the project, the Rams have not announced any intention of moving back to the Los Angeles area.
An NFL team has not played in the Los Angeles area since 1994, when the Raiders and Rams relocated.
