Clippers Could Sail into Inglewood Buoyed by Ballmer’s Billions

Land use attorney Ryan Leaderman recently shared his thoughts on the battle between owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, Steve Ballmer, and a neighborhood group over surplus land in Inglewood, California. The group, Uplift Inglewood, filed a lawsuit against the city following Ballmer's 26 acre purchase of city-owned land intended to be the new home arena for the Clippers. The lawsuit claimed that this purchase violated the California Surplus Land Act, a law that stipulates cities who sell their land must prioritize it for affordable housing. However, in November, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Daniel Murphy ruled in favor of the Clippers and Inglewood.

Mr. Leaderman agreed with the Superior Court indicating that while Uplift Inglewood had a plausible legal argument, it was relying on “bad facts, since the city has been looking to dispose of this property for commercial development since the ‘80s.” 

READ: Clippers Could Sail into Inglewood Buoyed by Ballmer’s Billions