New Rams Stadium Unrealistic, Officials Say : Sports: Four out of five Anaheim council members say it is unlikely the city would build a center to keep the team from moving.

A majority of City Council members say it is unrealistic for the city to consider building a new football stadium as a way of stopping the Los Angeles Rams from moving away.

The proposal, which has been floated by Mayor Tom Daly as part of a plan to prevent a Rams departure, has received little or no support from all four of Daly’s fellow council members in an informal poll last week.

The council will meet tonight in closed session to discuss what the city’s negotiating stance with the Rams should be. Daly’s council colleagues have criticized him for trying to move forward on proposals that do not yet have the backing of a council majority.

“Tom may have an agenda of his own,” Councilman Irv Pickler said, “but he has to be careful not to act for the council on stuff. It takes three votes. I don’t care if you’re mayor or whatnot. It takes three.”

Councilmen Pickler, Fred Hunter, Frank Feldhaus and Bob D. Simpson said they would prefer to find out what demands the Rams will make on the city before they move forward on further negotiations with the team.

Although they did not completely rule out the idea of a football stadium, they said it is only a remote reality, especially when the city is grappling with other more pressing problems, such as a $9-million budget shortfall.

Under Daly’s plan, the city would create a sports and entertainment center that would link Anaheim Stadium, Anaheim Arena and a football stadium with Disneyland, the convention center and the city’s other tourist attractions. Additionally, Daly has said the city should investigate building a large retail center near the stadium, similar to CityWalk in Universal City, where sports fans could dine and shop before and after games.

Daly said he is not sure how the football stadium would be financed but said he would look to the private sector to back it, much like the Anaheim Arena project was done. The arena was largely paid for by Ogden Corp. in exchange for rights to manage the facility for 30 years.

“A few years ago it was unclear how the arena project was going to get off the ground,” Daly said. “Anything is possible if we put our minds together to find solutions.”

But the rest of the council said they think it is unlikely that a private party, like Ogden, would be willing to build a stadium, allow the team to play there virtually rent-free and then give the club all the revenue from parking, luxury suites and concessions, like the city of Baltimore reportedly has offered to do for the Rams.

“Who would do that?” Simpson asked.

“I don’t think it’s realistic,” Pickler said. But, he added, if a stadium can be built without jeopardizing city funds, “more power to him. I guess I wouldn’t rule anything out . . . but I don’t think it’s realistic.”

Hunter said the idea of building a football stadium “is a joke.”

“There’s no way we’re going to build a football stadium,” he said. “For what? Eight games? Come on.”

Feldhaus said he admires “Tom’s aggressiveness in the matter, but most assuredly I would not put the city at risk for the Rams or any other football team.” He added that he does not believe the city should pursue a stadium proposal. “I think building our community center is more important than a football stadium,” Feldhaus said.

Rams officials have told the city that they intend to exercise an escape clause in their stadium lease May 3 and look to move to a city with greater financial opportunities.

Daly dismisses the criticism of his proposal and says he is only trying to prevent the football club from fleeing the city. At the same time, his plan could revitalize an area of the city that has tremendous economic potential, he said.

“These are things we should be looking at whether the team stays or goes,” Daly said.

Daly acknowledged that the departure by the Rams is not “nearly as much as a concern as other issues like crime and taxes. Those issues are at the forefront of the political agenda.”

At least two council members, Pickler and Hunter, have publicly said that regardless of what the city offers, they do not believe the Rams will remain in Anaheim. They said the city must try not to alienate the California Angels, who also play at the stadium, while trying to accommodate the Rams.

When asked about the likelihood of the Rams staying in Anaheim, Hunter simply waved his hand and said: “They’re gone.”

Pickler said as far as he is concerned, “the Rams are out of here. I’ve had it with their attitude. My main concern now is the Angels and doing what we can to extend their lease, not the Rams.”