Slow and steady wins the race. That phrase works for a lot of things, but not when it comes to renovating a completely new stadium built from the ground up. San Diego has a lot of pressure to find at least $500 million that they can use to start building the Chargers a new stadium. The $800 million dollar project is still in the first stage with Mayor Jerry Sanders and Chargers President Dean Spanos going over the plans for the past two years. Future mayoral candidate, Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher, recognizes the strong tie between the Chargers and the city of San Diego. Fletcher has expressed his concerns for the taxpayers, as well as the concern of keeping the Chargers in San Diego. He believes that it’s incumbent on all of the stakeholders in San Diego to execute a plan and a program that can be shown to the public.

“[The taxpayers] need to see a concrete plan and they need to share in a vision for where [the stadium] is going to go,” Fletcher said. “The Chargers have consistently said that they want to stay in San Diego and I believe them.” Since 2002, the Chargers have been looking into the possibilities of building a new stadium. The team has said they would contribute $300 million, but that will not be enough to fulfill the projected monetary outcome. There are a few different areas of San Diego that the city is looking to build on, but the most sought after real estate is downtown. Other sites such as Chula Vista, Oceanside and Kearny Mesa have also been considered at one point or another.

The city is looking to get help from the taxpayers, as well as the state of California. The taxpayers would be looking to put forth $300 million between now and 2020, when the Chargers lease expires. Putting the money issues aside, many locals in downtown San Diego don’t want to add another stadium to the chaotic scene that exists, mostly due to Petco Park. The San Diego Stadium Coalition has been working with the Chargers and the local residents to find out what, if any doubts there may be about the stadium, as well as what they are looking to see in the future.

Chairman of the San Diego Stadium Coalition, Jason Riggs, has said that although he does not believe that the stadium proposal will be on the 2012 ballot, he does believe progress is being made. The Chargers are working with Mayor Sanders to expand the Convention Center into what could become the new stadium, and would also hold activities and events. The new Collective Bargaining Agreement is also potential funding for the G3 loan. “Over the next few years, in about 12 to 24 months, the picture will become a lot more clear about how viable it is to build a stadium downtown,” Riggs said. “I believe something will be built that makes sense for everyone and that will adapt to Petco Park and keep the Chargers in San Diego.”

The NFL fund, called the “G3”, is provided by the league to help generate a loan when building a new stadium. Roger Goodell has discovered that if players on the Chargers contribute a portion of their salary to the G3 account, they might be able to build it back up and create more revenue to put toward the stadium. In the past, teams such as the Jets and Giants have been granted $300 million toward a new stadium. However, the fund has been dried out since 2007, leaving no money for any teams in California.Chargers Special Counsel, Mark Fabiani, believes that if the new stadium is turned into an arena that can be used 365 days of the year, it could benefit the city much more than Qualcomm Stadium has. According to Fabiani, Qualcomm Stadium is losing an average of $17 million dollars every year. There has been proof of this loss for many years, but Qualcomm Stadium still remains a 44-year-old venue that is being used solely for Chargers’ home games.

The Los Angeles Staples Center has become a huge success due to the amount of events they are able to host within the venue in a given year. Los Angeles is not holding back or giving San Diego any time to think. There have already been two proposed stadium plans in the city of Los Angeles to bring professional football back after 16 years of being without a team. Recently, there has been little to no progress on stadium efforts in San Diego, therefore it seems to all come down to the fans' willingness to invest and the outcome of the Chargers upcoming season.

With the 2011-12 season approaching quickly, the Chargers are getting ready to prove their ability to win to San Diego fans. If they do not perform well and don’t end up in the playoffs, local taxpayers will not be any more willing to put money toward a stadium. That being said, there isn’t much San Diego residents can do right now, besides wait for results.