Initial Steps Authorized to Reconstruct Coliseum

The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission authorized up to $15,000 to retain a consultant and begin preparing specifications for the environmental impact studies necessary to go ahead with a proposed reconstruction of the Coliseum.

The commission acted although talks with the Los Angeles Raiders, aimed at retaining the football team in a rebuilt stadium, have not yet come to a conclusion. The new commission president, attorney Matthew Grossman, said preliminary work laying out what kind of studies would have to be undertaken if an agreement is reached would save time.

Although the commission will pay for the consultant, the prospective private developers of a new Coliseum, Spectacor Management Group and MCA Inc., are expected to pay for an environmental report if and when one is prepared, Coliseum officials said.