Clippers to buy Forum, vow to build new arena next-door

The Clippers are buying The Forum in Inglewood for $400 million in cash, clearing a path for the team to construct their own NBA arena in the same neighborhood.

The buyer of The Forum is officially CAPSS, a “newly formed” LLC controlled by Clippers chairman Steve Balmer and vice chairman Dennis Fong.

Not only will the Clippers be gaining a storied venue, they’ll be “simultaneously resolving litigation surrounding plans for the new NBA arena,” says an announcement from the Clippers about the sale.

The new $1 billion Clippers arena would be built less than a half mile from the NFL stadium slated to open this summer, and the massive mixed-use community next to it, at Hollywood Park. A building boom is underway in Inglewood—but it’s not just new homes and professional sports venues. The city will also have three stops on Metro’s Crenshaw/LAX Line.

The Clippers have been trying to build the 18,000-seat NBA arena on 22 acres of city-owned land near Century Boulevard and Prairie Avenue for more than two years. The project was besieged with lawsuits, including one from Madison Square Garden, which owned The Forum—until now.

Owning both venues will allow the Clippers “a much greater ability to coordinate and avoid scheduling events at the same time at both venues,” reducing traffic from events, said Chris Meany, a principal of Wilson Meany, which is developing the Clippers arena.

The sale is expected to close by the middle of the year.

“This is an unprecedented time, but we believe in our collective future,” said Ballmer in a statement. “We are committed to our investment in the City of Inglewood, which will be good for the community, the Clippers, and our fans.”