$21.5-Million Bond Approved for Rose Bowl Renovation

A multimillion-dollar overhaul of Pasadena’s Rose Bowl will begin this month after the City Council on Monday backed its previous pledges to renovate the aging stadium and approved a $21.5-million bond to pay for the task.

The council’s 6-1 decision removes the final hurdle to construction and provides most of the funding for a major renovation of the 73-year-old stadium, including theater-style seats, a permanent video board, a new scoreboard, new sound system, more restrooms and extra concessions for the venue that is home to UCLA football, Galaxy soccer, the Rose Bowl game and more Super Bowls than any other stadium.

Later this month, work will begin on an elevator to the field while the majority of construction will begin in late June, said David Jacobs, Rose Bowl general manager.

After this fall’s UCLA games, four concession stands and six restrooms will be added, the tunnels repaired, locker rooms renovated and theater-style seats installed throughout, reducing the stadium’s capacity from 100,000 to about 90,000, he said. A video board could arrive during the Los Angeles Galaxy’s ongoing season, he said.

At a time when some Southland deal makers are talking about constructing state-of-the-art stadiums, bowl boosters call the decision an investment that saves the stadium from becoming a museum and helps secure its future as the home to the Galaxy and UCLA.

“What better way to protect ourselves than to invest in an asset we already have,” said Councilwoman Ann-Marie Villicana. “The Rose Bowl brings approximately $9 million in funding into our city per year.”

The city in June will issue $21.5 million in certificates of participation, a type of bond that can be approved by a council rather than voters, said finance director Jay Goldstone. After financing costs, $19 million will go toward construction. The remainder will come from existing Rose Bowl and public golf course funds.