Coliseum Panel Members Seek Long-Term Commitment From Raiders

Key members of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission on Wednesday implored Raiders owner Al Davis to negotiate a prompt agreement with the commission on a long-term lease in exchange for the construction of luxury boxes on the Coliseum rim by the fall of 1995.

The agreement, they said, must be reached by the end of this year or there won’t be time to secure financing, finish the design work and build the boxes next year.

“If he (Davis) just keeps giving us the runaround, we can’t do it,” said Los Angeles City Council President John Ferraro, commission vice president.

“We need a basic understanding,” said James Dickason, chairman of the commission’s budget committee. “Without that, it’s difficult to nail down the price and the financing. We need some indication of goodwill before we can go any further.”

Raider officials, whose typical negotiating style is to keep everything as close to the vest as possible and to reach an agreement only at the last possible minute, did not respond to a call for comment.

Commissioners made their remarks shortly after being told by Coliseum General Manager Pat Lynch that the rent-free agreement the Raiders negotiated to play in the Coliseum this year will mean a $500,000 operating loss for the facility in the coming fiscal year.

The Coliseum has just reopened after a $60-million earthquake refurbishment, and few events have been scheduled there other than Raider and USC football games. Lynch said it is possible the picture could improve if concerts, religious conclaves, soccer and other non-football events are secured. One three-day evangelical religious gathering has been scheduled for Sept. 16-18.

At present, Lynch said, the Coliseum Commission may only have $1.3 million in its coffers by next fall. The commission could borrow money to construct the boxes, but it has not been successful in gaining financial assistance from its parent agencies, the city, county and state.

The repair project director, Don C. Webb, probably will represent the commission in negotiations with Davis and Raider attorney Amy Trask for a long-term agreement that would entail building the boxes and perhaps making improvements to adjacent Exposition Park, such as more parking, that could be funded by other means.

Webb said at Wednesday’s meeting that the Raiders are donating 2,000 tickets for their home opener Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks to the men and women who worked on the earthquake repair. USC donated a like number of seats to the workers at its opener last Saturday.

“Who said the Raiders didn’t have a heart?” Ferraro quipped.