The University of Southern California is negotiating with the state to buy the land under the Coliseum and Sport Arena, which would make USC the collector of rents from the Coliseum Commission.
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is the only stadium in the world to host the Olympics twice, in 1932 and 1984, and it is 43 years younger than USC, which was founded in 1880.
"USC has a vested interest in preserving the Coliseum," Kristina Raspe, the school's associate senior vice president of real estate and asset management, told the Los Angeles Times on Tuesday night. "This enables us to work more closely with the Coliseum Commission to ensure the success of the venue."
Raspe told The Times the school also is in negotiations to buy several parking lots in Exposition Park. Museums and the surrounding lots are not included in the talks.
Raspe said negotiations could be solid by the end of the month, according to The Times. Completing a deal will take several months and will be subject to approval of Governor-elect Jerry Brown's administration, The Times reported.
The deal was first reported by wearesc.com, and it would allow USC to address daytime parking shortages without affecting weekend and evening events at the Coliseum, Raspe said.
The Coliseum and Sports Arena are owned by the city, county and state. The state would still be part of the Coliseum Commission, which would have the same lease it currently has on the land, roughly $600,000 annually, according to The Times.
