AEG Looks At Dynamo Stadium

Anschutz Entertainment Group is expected to begin negotiations with the City of Houston to develop a 21,000- to 22,000-seat stadium near downtown for its Dynamo soccer team.

"We have agreed with the City of Houston to negotiate through the middle of July, to determine with the parameters we’ve been given if we can hammer out a deal," team president Oliver Luck told Pollstar. "That was the letter of intent we agreed on."

The price tag is $70 million, according to the Houston Chronicle, with private investment a key element.

AEG would provide a substantial cash infusion, but company spokesman Michael Roth told Pollstar it would be inappropriate to elaborate, considering the ongoing negotiations.

The proposal arrives just as the nearby city of Sugar Land dropped a soccer venue proposal. Sugar Land is also reportedly talking to AEG about building a performing arts center.

The Dynamo is in the second year of a three-year lease at Robertson Stadium, and AEG has made it known it wants the team to have a new stadium by 2009. The company also owns Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles Galaxy and Chicago Fire.