Angels receive millions for canceling stadium sale after FBI investigation

Anaheim taxpayers will not make any money from Angel Stadium for the next two to three years, thanks to a legal settlement signed by the city government that awards the Major League Baseball team $2.75 million after a deal to buy the stadium fell through.

The stadium deal fell through when FBI investigators intervened in 2022 and said then-Mayor Harry Sidhu had illegally helped the Angels negotiate by giving them access to confidential city documents in exchange for an expected campaign donation.

“It appears that on at least two specific occasions, Sidhu provided the Angels with city-specific information that the Angels were able to use in their negotiations with Anaheim,” FBI investigators wrote in a 2022 affidavit.

Sidhu resigned and eventually pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators last year. He is still awaiting sentencing.

The FBI affidavit and subsequent investigations by the county grand jury and state auditors put an end to any talk of a stadium deal. Angels owner Arte Moreno then sued the city for $5 million in transaction costs that the city had already spent on completing the deal.

As part of the purchase agreement, city officials agreed to reimburse team officials if the deal did not go through.

(To read: Angels Baseball still wants $5 million from Anaheim over illegal and failed sale of Angel Stadium)

Under the new agreement, team leaders will waive the right to collect the rest of the money in return for $2.75 million in compensation.

The payment structure reduces the profit the city currently makes from the stadium.

Instead of paying the team in one lump sum, city leaders are waiving the admission tax and other stadium fees until the full amount is paid off, which city spokesman Mike Lyster said could take between two and three years.

According to Forbes, the team earns around $117 million each year in entrance fees alone.

In addition, the city is still required to maintain the stadium, which Councilman Lyster said will cost at least $1.5 million over the next two years.

City leaders celebrated the deal on Monday, noting that it also gave them the authority to build a new fire station on city-owned land currently leased by the Angels.

“This is a fair settlement for our city,” Mayor Ashleigh Aitken said in a statement, adding, “Clearing the way for a fire station is a priority for Anaheim.”

Angels representatives did not respond to requests for comment Monday afternoon.

Noah Biesiada is a reporter at Voice of OC and a corps member of Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Reach him at [email protected] or on Twitter at @NBiesiada.

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