Inglewood prepares to welcome the Rams

Things sure are changing quickly in Inglewood. NFL owners voted to allow the Rams to move back to Southern California less than a year ago, and already construction on a state-of-the-art new stadium—and massive residential community—on the former site of the Hollywood Park Racetrack is well underway.

A new documentary by Loyola Marymount Film School student Diona Okunbo examines the potential impacts of that project on the community through interviews with residents, business leaders, academics, and even the city’s mayor. The 20-minute short captures both the excitement surrounding the team’s return to the Los Angeles area and the apprehensions of some Inglewood stakeholders about the stadium’s approval and its possible effects on the neighborhood.

Almost as soon as the Rams were given the go-ahead to return to LA, real estate speculators descended upon commercial properties surrounding the team’s new stadium site. As the video notes, the rising property values that the stadium and surrounding developments are expected to bring will be a boon for homeowners, but could displace many of the city’s renters if prices shoot up as much as some expect.

Author and journalist Erin Aubry Kaplan notes in the video that Inglewood residents were given little chance to weigh in on the stadium, given the unusual way in which its plans were approved. Rather than undergo the time-consuming environmental review process mandated by the state of California, Rams owner Stan Kroenke instead gathered enough petition signatures to place the project’s approval on a local ballot measure. Instead of submitting the measure to voters, however, the Inglewood City Council decided to go ahead and approve it themselves.

Check out the full video below.

• Inglewood's Artists Brace For Big Neighborhood Changes [Curbed LA]
• Here's the Huge New Neighborhood Rising Around the Rams Stadium in Inglewood [Curbed LA]
• The Future LA Rams Stadium is Already Driving a Real Estate Feeding Frenzy in Inglewood [Curbed LA]
• New LA Rams Stadium in Inglewood [Curbed LA]