San Diego Chargers President Dean Spanos will accept Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s request that the two men meet to discuss how the mayor can help keep the Chargers in San Diego, team special counsel Mark Fabiani said Feb. 18.
Meanwhile, a mayoral task force exploring where and how to build a new Chargers stadium announced it will host a public forum from 6 to 9 p.m. on March 2 in one of Qualcomm Stadium’s large club lounges.
On Feb. 17, Faulconer requested a private meeting with Spanos after characterizing recent criticism of the task force by Fabiani as “divisive” and something that could “undermine” the work of the volunteer panel of civic leaders.
The announcement of the public forum comes after some critics said the nine-member task force, appointed Jan. 30, would risk losing public support if it held its meetings in private and didn’t include ordinary San Diegans in the process.
Efforts to solve the Chargers’ 13-year pursuit of a new stadium took on a greater sense of urgency this winter, when a new Los Angeles stadium proposal made the threat of San Diego losing the team appear larger than ever.
Fabiani said Feb. 18 that Spanos is open to any kind of meeting the mayor wants.
“Whatever the mayor would like to do, it doesn’t really matter to us,” Fabiani said, noting that the men have met multiple times before. “We’ve always been available whenever he’s asked, whether it was with Dean or with me. We certainly don’t anticipate that changing.”
While no date has been set, a Faulconer spokesman said Feb. 18 that the mayor hopes the meeting can happen quickly.
“Mayor Faulconer looks forward to meeting with Mr. Spanos in the next few days to discuss how to chart a positive course moving forward,” said the spokesman, Matt Awbrey.
U-T San Diego