City title game to be played at the Coliseum

The City Section will hold its Championship Division football final at the Coliseum on Saturday, Dec. 13 at 1 p.m. The City Invitational final will be played on Dec. 12 at East Los Angeles College at 7 p.m.

Last week, the City Section and Coliseum were far apart on a fee for the Coliseum, and administrators had turned to East L.A. College for both games. But City Councilman Tom LaBonge intervened, with assistance from Coliseum General Manager Pat Lynch.

LaBonge, who was co-captain of the 1970 Marshall High football team, donated $5,000 from his council district’s discretionary funds and is working with the Coliseum Commission to solicit other contributions. “I think it’s absolutely important for the Coliseum to host the championship game,” he said.

The City Section will pay $25,000 to the Coliseum, and close to $18,000 in additional costs will be made up with financial assistance from others through the Coliseum Commission, section Commissioner Barbara Fiege said.

The Section had wanted to also play the City Invitational final at the Coliseum, as has been done in past years, but budget cutbacks prevented it.

“In better financial times, we’d want both at the Coliseum,” Fiege said.

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eric.sondheimer@latimes.com