*More evidence that the downtown stadium is a bad idea

The L.A. Planning Commission, which lost a bunch of staffers due to the city's budget troubles, has formed a subcommittee for the sole purpose of studying Tim Leiweke's folly, otherwise known as Anschutz Entertainment Group's proposed NFL/convention center complex. Seems like a curious use of time and resources, considering that the Planning Department, which the commission relies on for its info, has lost a bunch of staffers due to the city's budget troubles. From the Daily News:

Commissioner Sean Burton, who will oversee the internal four-member group, said the sheer size and complexity of the project requires the city to give it special attention. The commission will be tasked with looking at how the various stages and elements of the project will be approved.

Planning is not the only city agency that's been brought in to review this needless project. There's the Department of Transportation, the City Attorney's Office, the City Council, and the mayor's so-called blue-ribbon committee. Would be nice for the city to let us know how much time and money all these reviews amount to - and, more to the point, what's being deferred in order to work on a project that no one seems to be clamoring for. Well, no one except Leiweke.

*More strong-arming: Leiweke tells the OC Register that his boss, billionaire Philip Anschutz ,is prepared to acquire majority ownership in an NFL franchise in order to bring a team to Los Angeles. He also said he has spoken with officials from five NFL franchises: Minnesota, San Diego, Oakland, St. Louis and Jacksonville. Having a franchise that's ready to move to L.A. obviously puts the pressure on L.A. officials to sign off on the stadium plan (even if the financial terms are far from ideal). But talk doesn't necessarily mean interest: Vikings vice president Lester Bagley said the team remains "100 percent committed to getting a stadium deal done in Minnesota."