Disney, Anaheim Agree on Stadium

Facing the threat that the Walt Disney Co. would abandon plans to buy the Angels, the Anaheim City Council has acquiesced to the company’s demand that it pay $30 million of the cost to renovate Anaheim Stadium.

A majority of the council last week had balked at Disney’s proposal to fund $70 million of a proposed $100-million renovation of the Big A if the city paid the rest, sources said Tuesday. City officials made a counteroffer, which Disney rejected. On Monday afternoon, in a closed session, the council relented.

The deal would include a new 30-year lease for the Angels, and conversion of Anaheim Stadium from a multi-sport stadium to a more intimate, baseball-only venue. Disney also would operate the stadium in an arrangement similar to the Pond, which is owned by the city but run by a private contractor.

The deal could be finalized in two weeks, culminating several weeks of intense negotiations. Disney had threatened to walk away from buying the Angels if the two sides could not agree on stadium renovations by March 17.

If the two sides can out iron out details in the coming days, City Manager James D. Ruth said, the council could take a final vote on March 19.

Disney officials continued to be silent on the negotiations Tuesday.

A major stumbling block in the negotiations has not been the division of renovation costs as much as the division of profits from the stadium’s various revenue sources.