Spare Change– Clippers’ Owner Steve Ballmer Buys the Inglewood Forum for $400M

In a $400 million cash deal, L.A. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer has purchased the Inglewood Forum. The acquisition—through a newly formed entity, CAPSS LLC—will put to an end the bitter battle with Madison Square Garden, clearing the way for the new Clippers arena project.

The Forum will continue to operate as one of the nation’s premier live-music venues. As part of the transaction, expected to close during the second calendar quarter of 2020, all of MSG’s current Forum employees will be extended employment offers.

Reaching an agreement with MSG will simultaneously resolve litigation surrounding plans for the new NBA arena. The new Clippers arena project would be a privately financed, state-of-the-art, 18,000-seat basketball arena, team headquarters complex and community center located on West Century Boulevard between South Prairie Avenue and South Yukon Avenue. The project is currently undergoing an environmental review by the City of Inglewood. Public hearings to approve the project are expected to be held later this summer.

“This is an unprecedented time, but we believe in our collective future,” said Ballmer. “We are committed to our investment in the City of Inglewood, which will be good for the community, the Clippers, and our fans.”

Having the Forum and the new Clippers arena under the same ownership will allow for coordinated programming between the two venues, improving traffic congestion around basketball games and concerts.

“We know traffic is something that many Inglewood residents worry about. While we have gone to great lengths to provide an unprecedented traffic-management plan for the new basketball arena, this acquisition provides a much greater ability to coordinate and avoid scheduling events at the same time at both venues,” said Chris Meany, a principal of Wilson Meany, the developer overseeing the new basketball arena project.

The L.A. Clippers’ new arena will create an estimated 7,500 high-paying construction jobs and 1,500 permanent jobs once the complex is open. In addition to the economic and civic benefits, the Clippers have proposed a $100 million package of community benefits.