Inglewood Basketball and Entertainment Center

The Inglewood Basketball and Entertainment Center (IBEC) is a proposed 18,000-seat arena to be located in Inglewood, California for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association. The arena would be located just south of SoFi Stadium, the home of the NFL's Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers, and the Hollywood Park development.

Inglewood Basketball and Entertainment Center
Rendering of the proposed arena
Inglewood Basketball and Entertainment Center
Location in L.A. metro area
Inglewood Basketball and Entertainment Center
Location in California
Inglewood Basketball and Entertainment Center
Location in the United States
LocationInglewood, California
Coordinates33.945127°N 118.343102°W / 33.945127; -118.343102
Public transitInglewood Transit Connector
OwnerLos Angeles Clippers
OperatorLos Angeles Clippers
TypeArena
Capacity18,000
Construction
Broke ground2021 (Planned)
Opened2024 (Planned)
ArchitectAECOM[1]
Tenants
Los Angeles Clippers (NBA) (proposed)
Website
Official website

Features

The 18,000-seat arena would be designed by AECOM. In addition to the arena the venue would also include a practice facility, sports medicine clinic, team offices, retail space and a large outdoor plaza with basketball courts that would be open to the public.[2][3][4]

The practice facility would be 85,000 square feet (7,900 m2), the team offices 55,000 square feet (5,100 m2) and the sports medicine clinic 25,000 square feet (2,300 m2). An additional 40,000 square feet (3,700 m2) are set aside for retail and 260,000 square feet (24,000 m2) for the outdoor plaza.

Competition with The Forum

As the new venue could also host concerts, it was reasoned the Inglewood Basketball and Entertainment Center could provide direct competition with The Forum.[5][6] Several lawsuits were filed to attempt to prevent the construction of the arena, which would ensure no nearby arena would compete with The Madison Square Garden Company-owned Forum.[7] In December 2018, the Clippers filed a countersuit against The Madison Square Garden Company alleging that they tried to prevent competition with The Forum.[8]

In March 2019, leaked emails revealed that Irving Azoff attempted to lure the Los Angeles Lakers back to The Forum after their lease at Staples Center was up. Despite nothing coming of the proposal, Azoff's proposal to re-purpose The Forum was seen as a way of preventing the LA Clippers from building their own arena in Inglewood and ensuring that the Madison Square Garden Company got an unfair advantage over rival AEG, which already owns part of the Lakers.[9]

In November 2019, a judge tossed a lawsuit by Uplift Inglewood seeking to stop the arena's construction.[10]

In December 2019, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) approved the new arena, after evaluating the arena's environmental impact.[11]

In March 2020, Steve Ballmer announced his intent to purchase The Forum for $400 million, ending the lawsuit. The Forum will continue to host concerts, and all venue employees who held jobs under the Madison Square Garden Company were offered jobs by Ballmer. The Inglewood Basketball and Entertainment Center, intended by Ballmer to serve as the new home for the LA Clippers, will be built as originally planned.[12]

Construction

On July 25, 2019, the Clippers released new images of the proposed arena. Construction is planned to begin in 2021 and be completed in fall 2024, following the expiration of the Clippers' lease with the Staples Center.[13][14]

References
  1. "L.A. Clippers unveil design for new Inglewood arena". Building Design + Construction. Retrieved 2020-09-09.
  2. "New details of Clippers' proposed Inglewood arena complex revealed". Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  3. "NOTICE OF PREPARATION OF A DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT AND PUBLIC SCOPING MEETING". Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  4. "Clippers take first steps to Inglewood arena while keeping options open". Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  5. reports, From NBA media. "LA Clippers owner Steve Ballmer still seeking Inglewood arena for team". NBA.com.
  6. "Clippers unveil renderings of proposed arena". ESPN.com. July 26, 2019.
  7. Chiland, Elijah (June 19, 2018). "Inglewood residents sue to block Clippers arena". Curbed LA.
  8. "LA Clippers launch MSG countersuit in Inglewood arena row - SportsPro Media". www.sportspromedia.com.
  9. "Must Reads: Lakers explored leaving Staples Center for return to Forum, emails reveal". Los Angeles Times. March 14, 2019.
  10. "Judge rules against lawsuit opposing proposed arena for Clippers". Los Angeles Times. November 7, 2019.
  11. "Clippers Arena Gets Approval, Inglewood Rises Again". cityofinglewood.org. Retrieved 2019-12-05.
  12. "Los Angeles Clippers Owner Buys The Forum In Pick & Roll Toward Building New Arena". Deadline.
  13. "Clippers unveil plans for privately financed L.A. arena next to new NFL stadium". sports.yahoo.com.
  14. release, Official. "LA Clippers unveil plans for new Inglewood arena". NBA.com.
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