Board approves short extension and one-year stadium operations agreement for Lake Elsinore Diamond

The Countywide Oversight Board on Jan. 15 approved a three-month, status-quo extension to the interim stadium management agreement and authorized a one-year stadium operation and maintenance agreement with the City of Lake Elsinore effective Jan. 1, 2027.

Barbara Lebold, who presented the item, said the Lake Elsinore Diamond stadium was constructed as a redevelopment project and that the original donation agreement imposes a 50-year restriction requiring the stadium to operate as a professional minor-league baseball facility; she said that obligation runs through Sept. 2043. Lebold described the existing interim management agreement as a wrapper for underlying enforceable obligations — a license agreement, maintenance agreement and concession agreement — and said those underlying contracts expire Dec. 31, 2026.

"Those underlying agreements ... expire on 12/31/2026," Lebold said, and staff proposed a three-month extension of the interim agreement so its term coincides with the expiration of the underlying contracts. She said the successor agency proposes that the City of Lake Elsinore operate and maintain the stadium beginning Jan. 1, 2027, with the successor agency negotiating new license and concession agreements with the Storm organization during 2026.

Counsel confirmed that the original offer-to-donate restriction and the underlying agreements are enforceable obligations under the Dissolution Act. The board voted unanimously to approve the extension and the successor-agency agreement with the city.

The successor agency will continue negotiations with Lake Elsinore Storm LP and expects to return with more details and any amendments needed for the Recognized Obligation Payment Schedule and related documents later in the year.