Private Rams Task Force Goes to Two-Month Offense

A countywide task force seeking to keep the Los Angeles Rams in Orange County must present a competitive proposal within two months to have a chance of retaining the team, the group’s chairman said Tuesday.

“Timing is important, and moving forward on a concerted effort is important,” sports agent Leigh Steinberg after a task force meeting Tuesday. “We have six weeks to two months to promote a plan.”

Task force members said they believe the Rams will decide in a few months whether to leave Anaheim.

The Rams exercised an escape clause in their stadium lease in May, giving them 15 months to shop the franchise to cities that might offer more lucrative arrangements.

Steinberg’s group, known as the Task Forces to Keep the Rams in Orange County, has about 40 members. Among the members are Anaheim Mayor Tom Daly, Supervisor William G. Steiner, hamburger restaurateur Carl N. Karcher, developer George Argyros and former Disneyland President Jack L. Lindquist.

On Tuesday, task force members formed several subcommittees to look into the possibility of building a new football-only stadium, refurbishing Anaheim Stadium, securing season ticket and luxury box commitments from the corporate community, and coordinating and soliciting the support of various governmental agencies.

Steinberg said the group also has identified potential investors who might be interested in buying a part of the team. He declined to identify them.

“The key to it all is a thorough understanding of the Rams’ needs,” Steinberg said. He and Lindquist, the group’s co-chairman, tentatively are scheduled to meet with Rams Executive Vice President John Shaw later this week.

Steinberg, who represents many star athletes in the National Football League, said the issue of retaining the Rams is important not only to Anaheim, but to the county and state.

“This would be the first football franchise to leave California and the implication of that is not encouraging for California’s economic and business scene,” he said.

Steinberg also said that if the Rams leave, Orange County has little hope of ever getting another NFL franchise.

Many county residents, however, don’t seem to care. According to a recent Times Orange County Poll, 68% of county voters said the Rams were unimportant to them personally.

Anaheim Councilman Irv Pickler said he believes the city should focus its energies on pleasing the California Angels, the city’s other tenant at the stadium, and not the Rams. He said task force members may be wasting their time.

“I think they are spinning their wheels,” Pickler said. “I think they are flogging a dead horse. My main thought is going to be keep the Angels. I’m not holding my breath for the Rams staying here.”