LA Clippers Zoning in on Inglewood for New Arena

By Ariela Moraru

Gillian Zucker, LA Clippers president of business operations

The Los Angeles Clippers and the City of Inglewood have entered into a three-year exclusive negotiating agreement that will allow the Clippers to explore developing a new basketball arena, training facilities and team offices in Inglewood. The team’s current lease with Anschutz Entertainment Group for Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles, its home since 1999, runs until the end of the 2023-2024 NBA season.

The basketball club is eyeing a 20-acre site located at Prairie Avenue, south of Century Boulevard and opposite the $3 billion Rams football stadium and entertainment district, which is being developed by The Kroenke Group and is slated for completion in early 2020. The LA Clippers have three years to finalize project details, while the City of Inglewood will conduct an environmental review.

Funding

The project will be entirely privately funded and capitalized. The club will cover planning, entitlement and development costs. Within 24 hours of signing the agreement, the LA Clippers will pay the City of Inglewood $1.5 million in administrative costs.

“This agreement serves as an example of the team’s commitment to providing Clipper nation with the best game experience in the NBA,” said Gillian Zucker, LA Clippers president of business operations, in prepared remarks. “It is another step in the journey toward building a championship culture that will deliver positive results for Clippers players, fans and the greater Los Angeles community.”

The Clippers’ current owner is former Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer. The tech magnate acquired the team in May 2014 for $2 billion, in a deal forced through by the National Basketball Association, in the aftermath of a public scandal that featured former owner Donald Sterling. 

Image courtesy of the NBA