Commission Approves Overhaul of Coliseum : Stadium: The proposal is designed to keep the Raiders in L.A. or lure another football team to the city. The vote clears the way for final negotiations with owner Al Davis.

The Los Angeles Coliseum Commission voted 8 to 0 Wednesday to support the concept of demolishing and reconstructing the Coliseum as a means of either keeping the Raiders playing in the city or attracting a new professional football team.

The only commission member opposed to the idea, Los Angeles County Supervisor Pete Schabarum, left the meeting before the vote for another engagement. The decision cleared the way for the stadium’s private managers, Spectacor Management Group and MCA Inc., to proceed with negotiations with Raiders owner Al Davis in hopes of reaching a firm agreement to keep his team in Los Angeles.

One part of the motion offered by commissioner Matthew Grossman stipulated that the goals of reconstructing the Coliseum and retaining professional football would “be achieved without expense to the public or any liability or commitment of public funds on the part of the Commission.”

The motion also said the commission supports “the concept of privatizing the management and operation of the Coliseum,” an apparent commitment to approving a long-term ground sublease of the facility to Spectacor, as the lead private partner, so that the proposed project could be brought to fruition.

Despite the reference to attracting a new team if the Raiders do not stay in Los Angeles, it is unlikely that the project could secure financing and go forward without a professional team already here or committed to come.

Commission President Richard Riordan expressed delight at the vote, particularly the ayes from Grossman and two other commissioners who together represent the Museum of Science and Industry, a state body which in the past has often been loath to approve Coliseum redevelopment.

Before any agreement with Davis could be completed, the board of directors of the museum would apparently have to support an extension of the primary lease under which the Coliseum Commission now holds the Coliseum grounds. The museum lease has only 15 years to run, and an extension would presumably be necessary before banks would agree to finance Coliseum reconstruction.

After Wednesday’s vote, Irving Azoff, a spokesman for the private management team, said Spectacor and MCA, joined by the Pritzker family hotel interests, already have a firm offer on Davis’ desk and Azoff said he hopes for its quick acceptance.

Davis’ office said the team owner was out of town and unavailable for comment.

In past statements, Davis has said he wants a more “intimate” stadium in which to play football than the present 92,000-seat Coliseum, and he has been pursuing that goal in negotiations over the past 2 1/2 years in Irwindale, Oakland and Sacramento as well as Los Angeles.

Just last Friday, he was in Sacramento meeting with real estate people and sports entrepreneurs who have proposed building a stadium there. On Friday, he is due in Oakland to meet with promoters. Spokesmen for both groups expressed impatience in interviews this week over how long it has already taken Davis to make up his mind among the various offers.

Little was said at Wednesday’s public Coliseum Commission session about the details of the latest Los Angeles offer. At a 35-minute closed-door session that preceded it, however, there was reportedly some discussion of the concept of making millions of dollars of purportedly tax-free payments to the Raiders as a “settlement” of the commission’s $57-million breach-of-contract suit against the team. These payments would be part of what Schabarum said would be up to $40 million in a cash “franchise fee” for the team.

Sources privy to the negotiations have said the proposed deal would also include demolishing the Coliseum except for its eastern peristyle end and building a new $140-million facility with about 70,000 seats, including 200 luxury boxes and several thousand club seats. In addition to the cash at the outset, the Raiders would also be guaranteed at least $56 million in cash later against expected receipts.

The Coliseum Commission vote, coming after brief debate, is only one in a series of steps necessary to bring such a deal into being.

If Davis agrees to the deal, the Coliseum Commission would have to vote again to approve the exact details, the new lease of the Coliseum grounds would have to be negotiated, complicated historic preservation and environmental requirements met and financing secured. Azoff said at least six months of architectural drawing work would have to be done. It could also be that the joint powers agreement under which the Coliseum is run by a tripartite body composed of representatives of the city, county and state would have to be revised.

Several historic preservationists were present at the commission meeting Wednesday to reiterate that any substantial change in the structure of the Coliseum, which is both a state and national historical landmark, would require consultation with state agencies charged with protecting such landmarks.

Riordan appointed a committee composed of himself, Schabarum and Grossman, to discuss all details with the private managers as they proceed to try to close the deal.