MSG Planning To Buy The Forum In Inglewood

Madison Square Garden, Inc might be most famous for owning the Knicks, Rangers and the iconic venue that gave the company its name, but recently, MSG has begun extending its influence outside New York. Four years ago, it purchased the famed Chicago Theater, and now, it’s branching out into Los Angeles. The company announced today it will buy the Forum in Inglewood, California.

The venue, built in 1967, once played home to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Los Angeles Kings, the 1984 Olympics and hundreds of A-list concerts every year. Unfortunately, the Forum has fallen on hard times since the Lakers left in ’99, and it is currently owned by a Baptist church. If that deal moves forward as expected, MSG will pour a reported fifty million dollars into refurbishing the building, and according to The Los Angeles Times, Inglewood will provide another eighteen million if all the conditions are met.

In addition to all the hungry fans in need of parking the Forum will potentially provide, Inglewood could see another big benefit from this proposed deal as well. If the Forum performs as expected, a two billion dollar real estate project may join it to help revitalize the surrounding area. The plan would put in a casino, a mall and three thousand new residences. Taken together, it could add a yearly revenue stream of millions into the community and begin an upward trend for local residents. We shall see.

Here’s to hoping the plan goes off without a hitch, and the Lakers play a few preseason games there every season as a tribute to their former house.