The company looking to build a stadium and attract an NFL team to downtown Los Angeles has chosen an architect. And there's a twist.
AEG announced Wednesday that architectural firm Populous will design the relocated West Hall of the Convention Center, which is on the proposed site of Farmers Field, the *Los Angeles Times* reported.
The wrinkle: Dan Meis, a senior principal at Populous who designed Staples Center, home to the NBA's Lakers and NHL's Kings and adjacent to the site, also designed Ed Roski's proposed (and competing) NFL stadium in the City of Industry, about 20 miles east of Los Angeles.
"We're not currently performing work for a competing NFL stadium in Los Angeles," Populous spokeswoman Gina Stingley said in a statement. "We're working on the Los Angeles Convention Center project."
Majestic Realty's John Semcken, an official with the Industry project, told the Times that no conflict exists because Meis has completed his assignment for Roski -- and Majestic gave Populous its approval to bid on the AEG job. Only one of the stadiums will be built, and not until there's a commitment from an existing NFL team or from the league for an expansion team.
"Populous will be our architect on the stadium," Semcken said.
Populous is a global firm with offices in eight U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, as well as in Australia, Brazil, Hong Kong, India and New Zealand.
AEG president Tim Leiweke this week announced tweaks to his company's plan and would ask the city to issue less than $300 million in bonds, down from an initial request for $350 million, to fund the demolition and relocation of the Convention Center hall displaced by the stadium.
