DISNEY TEAMS WITH ANGELS : Costs of Building Stadium, Complex Have Some on Edge : Development: Anaheim has learned that Disney ventures have a way of being grand--and costly to city.

Minutes after celebrating the Walt Disney Co.’s 25% purchase of the California Angels this week, Anaheim City Manager James D. Ruth felt a twinge of dread, despite all the enticing possibilities the deal seemed to offer.

“It’s going to be tough,” he said, realizing that he now may have to deal with Disney to fulfill the city’s dream of building a new baseball stadium and sprawling sports and retail center. “It’s going to be a challenge.”

With Disney in the picture, it’s a whole new ballgame, and Anaheim officials have learned from history that a Disney partnership could be costly. The entertainment giant is certain to try to put its unique stamp on the city’s vision of a small sports and entertainment metropolis. And Disney is likely to ask that the city foot much of the bill.

Disney officials are known as shrewd negotiators who win enviable concessions and achieve astonishing profits. None of this, however, is lost on city officials, who remain somewhat bitter over Disney’s decision earlier this year to shelve a $3-billion Disneyland expansion project after years of difficult negotiations.

Disney officials weren’t talking Friday about their plans for the Angels or their involvement in plans for a new stadium.

City officials hope that any Disney involvement in their sporting and retail plans will be more successful than previous negotiations.

“Our goal is to make a deal, but one that will provide a win-win situation for all parties involved,” said Ruth, who is known as a tenacious and hard-nosed negotiator in his own right. “It is not in our interest to make a deal that would jeopardize taxpayers in Anaheim.”

Mayor Tom Daly also said the city needs to be cautious.

“We will have to be as careful as we always are when dealing with any large corporation,” Daly said.

Nonetheless, some sectors of the community already are expressing fears that Disney’s sphere of influence in Anaheim is too great.

“I think everyone has concerns,” said one prominent business leader in the city, who asked to remain anonymous because of Disney’s clout in the city. “What are they going to ask for? . . . Disney is sometimes a big gorilla and can swing a lot of weight.”

“They should rename the place Disneyheim,” added a consultant to major developers in the city. “Whatever Disney wants Disney gets.”

Steve White, a member of a local homeowner’s group and frequent opponent of city ventures, said he is leery of a new Disney and city union.

“We’ve been saying that Anaheim is a company town from day one. Whatever asset there might be, Disney seems to have cornered the market,” White said. “We’re not necessary anti-corporation or anti-Disney. The problem is the political leadership and the inordinate impact that Disney has.”

Currently, the city has an assortment of fanciful projects on its drawing board. City officials have plans to build a new, state-of-the art stadium for the Angels. They also hope to renovate the existing Anaheim Stadium for football-only purposes in hopes of luring another team to the city now that the Rams have fled.

Those facilities would then be linked to The Pond arena, possibly by water canals and lushly landscaped walkways lined with stores and restaurants. The city would also like to use monorails or cable cars to connect those sporting facilities to Disneyland and the Anaheim Convention Center, only a couple of miles away.

Just how big a role Disney intends to have in the city’s plans remains unclear.

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Angels owner Jackie Autry said she will discuss stadium negotiations with Disney officials next week and is willing to let them participate.

“Disney is well aware what a major league park should look like,” she said, “and I’m sure they’ll bring about a park that is comparable to [state-of-the-art facilities in] Baltimore, Cleveland and Texas.

“Disney has the capability, imagination and creativity to do things with a stadium that would be ancillary to the game.”

Anaheim Stadium General Manager Greg Smith sees exciting possibilities.

“I’m looking forward to working with Disney,” Smith said. “The showmanship of Disney and the baseball savvy of the Autrys will make it a great partnership.”

If his track record is any indication, Disney Chairman Michael D. Eisner will want the Angels’ new stadium designed by top architects and offer plenty of opportunities for people to spend money on food and gifts.

Ruth said he hopes Disney’s involvement in the stadium would speed up the project, but realizes that “it could slow it down.” He said he’s already had some preliminary discussions with Disney on the project.

“This is a great opportunity to sit down with Disney and let them have some input. The timing is almost perfect,” Ruth said. “Look at all the things they could bring to the table. They have a lot at stake, and so do we.”

Smith, who has been a participant in negotiations with the Angels, said the city has already made its best offer to the team.

“The city has given it its very best shot with the money it has,” Smith said. “If Disney was to bring its resources in to enhance the package, that’s the only thing that could happen.”

John Dreyer, a spokesman for Disney, said Thursday that the company is going to review the opportunities around the stadium and look for ways to market the Angels and Mighty Ducks hockey team with the park and Disneyland Hotel.

Beyond that, Disney officials remain mum.

In the past, however, Disney officials have frequently said they are committed to the city, and will continue to grow here. Even though they have stalled plans on their massive Disneyland resort project, they have vowed to come back with an alternative that might be smaller. And, the company is pleased with the success of its hockey franchise.

For now, though, city officials remain cautiously optimistic that a new era is upon them.

“In this day and age it’s never easy to negotiate these types of projects,” Ruth said. “It is going to be very challenging, but we’re prepared to do it.”

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Corporate Players

While individual millionaires or partnerships still own most professional sports franchises, a number of major corporations also are in the business as the sole or main owner of teams.

MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL:

Team Owner Atlanta Braves Turner Broadcasting System Inc. Toronto Blue Jays John Labatt Ltd. Chicago Cubs Tribune Co. St. Louis Cardinals Anheuser-Busch Inc.

NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSN.:

Team Owner Atlanta Hawks Turner Broadcasting System Inc. Denver Nuggets Comsat Video Enterprises New York Knicks ITT

NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE:

Team Owner Anaheim Mighty Ducks Walt Disney Co. New York Rangers ITT Boston Bruins Delaware North Montreal Canadiens Molson Cos. Ltd. Tampa Bay Lightning Consortium of Japanese companies Vancouver Canucks Northwest Sports Enterprises Ltd.

Note: The National Football League does not permit corporate ownership of franchises.

Sources: Major League Baseball, National Basketball Assn., National Hockey League, individual teams

Big League Shopping

Gene Autry spent $2.45 million for the Angel franchise, and its $120-million current estimated value is one in a long line of examples of his investment savvy. Here’s how that price tag compares to other, recent baseball franchise sales: Year: 1995 Team: Pittsburgh Pirates Price (millions): $85.2* Buyer: John Rigas, cable-television franchise owner; also owns one-third of Buffalo Sabres

*Year: 1995 Team: San Diego Padres Price (millions): $85 Buyer: John Moores, Texas computer software tycoon

*Year: 1992 Team: San Francisco Giants Price (millions): $100 Buyer: Peter Magowan, Safeway Stores chief executive

*Year: 1992 Team: Detroit Tigers Price (millions): $82 Buyer: Mike Illitch, founder of Little Caesar’s Pizza

*Year: 1992 Team: Houston Astros Price (millions): $103 Buyer: Drayton McLane Jr., Texas supermarket magnate, second-largest stockholder of Wal-Mart

*Year: 1992 Team: Seattle Mariners Price (millions): $100 Buyer: John Ellis, CEO of Puget Sound Power & Light Corp. (purchase was financially backed by Hiroshi Yamauchi, president of Nintendo)

*Year: 1991 Team: Montreal Expos Price (millions): $72 Buyer: Consortium of Canadian business and civic interests led by Claude Brochu, Expo president

* Preliminary figure

Sources: Major League Baseball, Times reports, Who’s Who in America; Researched by CAROLINE LEMKE, JENNIFER OLDHAM and DAVID NEIMAN / Los Angeles Times