Burbank Council Votes to Negotiate on Sports Arena : Development: The move is the first step toward building a 20,000-seat facility. But many details remain to be worked out with investors.

The Burbank City Council took the first step Tuesday toward possible construction of a 20,000-seat sports arena that could attract a professional sports team to the city.

The council voted to negotiate exclusively with Lewis N. Wolff, co-owner of the Burbank Airport Hilton, and actor-investor Wayne Rogers, best known for his roles in the “MASH” and “House Calls” television series, on a contract to construct the arena at a to-be-determined site.

Executives of the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team, which plays at the Sports Arena in Exposition Park, have expressed tentative interest in the proposal.

The council voted 4 to 0 to approve the agreement. Mayor Michael R. Hastings was not present for the vote but had earlier expressed support for the proposal.

Such an arrangement might involve a private-public partnership between Burbank and Wolff, but specific details have yet to be determined, officials have said.

Wolff has said Burbank’s accessibility from the Golden State and Ventura freeways, in addition to Burbank Airport, was a major factor in locating the planned center.

Wolff said he would spend the next three years talking to teams and developing preliminary plans and concepts for the arena with Rogers, who is part-owner with Wolff of the Columbia Bar & Grill in Hollywood and several other business ventures around the country.

Although it would be preferable to have a team based in the arena, it would not be essential to secure a team to build it, Wolff has said.

Wolff said the Los Angeles area could benefit from a newer sports facility than the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, which was built in 1967, and the Sports Arena in Exposition Park, which was dedicated in 1959.

Wolff added that he is also interested in staging ice shows, circuses and concerts at the center, and he said he would talk with major entertainment companies headquartered in Burbank to gauge their interest in the proposed arena. Warner Bros., NBC and Walt Disney Studios are among the major media firms based in the city.

“Burbank has an appeal for a center with an entertainment nature that could host concerts and shows,” he said.

City officials insisted that the agreement would not tie up any undeveloped property but would simply allow Wolff to explore the concept of constructing a sports and entertainment center.

Councilman George Battey said he thought the center would have “a lot of potential for having shows and circuses. It wouldn’t be just a basketball court. There would be a lot of problems, and Mr. Wolff has a long, rocky road ahead of him. But this is worth pursuing.”

Wolff said after the vote that he can now contact architectural firms experienced in stadium construction and that he would like to talk to executives of local teams.

“We have to climb quite a few Mt. Everests before this comes true,” he said.

Development