Chargers Rumors: Stadium, Draft, Buckner

The Chargers’ plan for a new stadium in San Diego calls for the team (and the NFL) to pay $650MM while a 4% hike in the local hotel tax would provide an additional $350MM, Kevin Acee of U-T San Diego writes. In total, that would add up to the $1 billion needed to construct a new stadium. All in all, the plan is asking less of the city than most stadium proposals do, but it remains to be seen whether San Diego will greenlight the pitch.

Here’s more on the Chargers’ stadium situation as well as draft news:

  • It’s not immediately clear what percentage of the electorate would be required for passage, Dan McSwain and Lori Weisberg of U-T San Diego write. Recently, a California appellate court ruled that a motion to tax marijuana dispensaries needed only a simple majority (50% plus one vote) to pass, but the old rules require two-thirds of a vote. “We’re operating as if it’s two-thirds,” Fred Maas, a development consultant to the Chargers, said Tuesday.
  • The Chargers released a comprehensive FAQ regarding the Citizens’ Initiative. Within the FAQ, the Chargers acknowledge that there will still be logistical hurdles to deal with if the initiative passes.
  • Oregon defensive lineman DeForest Buckner visited the Chargers on Wednesday, per Rand Getlin of NFL Network (on Twitter). Buckner is regarded as one of the top prospects in the draft and could be in the mix for San Diego at No. 3.
  • The Chargers worked out former Nevada quarterback Cody Fajardo, Michael Gehlken of U-T San Diego tweets. Fajardo spent training camp with Oakland in 2015 as a UDFA.
  • UCLA product Myles Jack expects to play safety if he’s drafted by the Chargers, as Gehlken writes. “They feel like I can fill that spot Eric Weddle was at,” Jack said.
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