Louis Board of Aldermen approves National Football League stadium funding plan

“It is emotional because it seems like I’m just living everything déjà vu”, Rams fan Bill Endicott, who has held season tickets since the team’s first season in St. Louis, told ESPN.

The St. Louis Board of Aldermen officially passed the measure to put about $150 million in city money toward the proposed $1 billion-plus stadium on the city’s north riverfront.St. Louis mayor Francis Slay is expected to sign the bill on Monday.

Late Friday, the alderman voted 17 to 10 in favor of the funding plan. Another $550 million is supposed to come from the NFL and the Rams, with the team adding $250 million and the league kicking in $300 million.

Businesses and local tourism are contingent on St. Louis sports being recognized around the world. The stadium would be built close to the banks of the Mississippi River.

Because, as is the case with any relocation deal, the league’s owners have to approve each team’s move by a two-thirds majority to pass and now that St. Louis has a number on the table it becomes a numbers crunch as the Rams, Chargers and Raiders all set their eye on LA.

Stadium task force co-chairman David Peacock has said the new stadium will create jobs, revitalize a dilapidated area of downtown St. Louis and help the city retain its image by keeping the NFL.

A task force appointed by Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has been working on a stadium proposal that could keep the Rams in St. Louis.

Alderman Sharon Tyus summed up the city’s frustration to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: “We’re like at the strip club … and the stripper is throwing the money back at us”.

On Thursday, commissioner Roger Goodell reminded organizers that the league provides only a maximum of $200 million to help teams build new stadiums. If the National Football League likes the plan, then the owners would vote on whether or not to contribute the extra $100 million, with 24 out of 32 votes needed for approval.

The St. Louis stadium approval Friday spells out that the city’s share of the costs of the estimated $1.1 billion would be $150 million.

The NFL owners will meet on January 12-13 in Houston to vote on whether any of the three teams will be permitted to relocate.