Mayor and luncheon crowd welcome Chargers to Costa Mesa
Decked out in a powder-blue Costa Mesa hat and clutching a ceremonial key to the city, Los Angeles Chargers owner Dean Spanos took hold of a microphone Monday in Costa Mesa.
“I know we’re going to love living here,” he told a crowd at the Center Club.
Spanos and about 200 others attended a welcome reception and luncheon at the club for the National Football League franchise, which plans to open its new headquarters, training and practice facility in Costa Mesa later this year.
“We want to be a part of this community and we’re going to do whatever we can to make you proud of us,” Spanos told the crowd. “We feel honored to be here.”
Spanos announced in January that the team would move to Los Angeles after more than five decades in San Diego.
“We are thrilled to have the Chargers family in our Costa Mesa family,” said Mayor Katrina Foley, who presented Spanos with the city memorabilia. “We have a world-class action sports industry, we are in the center of a world-class performing arts center and now we have a world-class football team.”
Michelle Steel, chairwoman of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, told Spanos, “We’re going to do whatever we can to make you feel at home here in Orange County.”
The Chargers will join the Los Angeles Rams in a new stadium in Inglewood that is scheduled to open in 2019. In the meantime, the Chargers will play home games at the StubHub Center in Carson.
In December, the Chargers agreed to lease part of the Hive — a Costa Mesa office complex north of the 405 Freeway at 3333 Susan St. — to use as its headquarters and training and practice facility. The lease runs for 10 years, City Manager Tom Hatch said last month.
Foley said she hopes the team makes Costa Mesa its long-term home.
“We’re here to support you, we’re here to make you feel at home and we are excited about seeing the players around town and coming out to training camp this summer,” she said at the luncheon. “Welcome to Costa Mesa.”
The Chargers’ lease is for a two-story, nearly 102,000-square-foot office building and an adjacent 3.2-acre parcel called “The Corner.”
Spanos said the team’s goal is to be completely moved into the new facility by July.
During Monday’s event, members of the Chargers organization said they want to become part of the fabric of Costa Mesa.
“We have coaches, players, staff members and spouses and families — they’re all going to move up here, so we’re going to be part of this community,” Chargers General Manager Tom Telesco said. “We’re going to be buying houses, renting apartments, our kids will be going to the schools here locally. Our kids will be playing youth sports.”
Throughout the season, Telesco said, the Chargers will be at the Costa Mesa facility “every day except for game day.”
It’s possible the team’s summer training camp could be in the city as well, he said.
“I’m a big believer in service, and I will encourage our players to get out and be a part of this community,” said Anthony Lynn, the team’s new head coach. “I believe in giving back to your community where you live and taking care of your neighborhoods.”
The team hired Lynn in January, shortly after revealing its plans to relocate to L.A.
“It’s definitely an exciting time in Chargers history, and I’m proud to be a part of that,” he said.
Twitter: @LukeMMoney
