The developer of a planned downtown NFL stadium took aim Tuesday at a county supervisor who has criticized stadium lobbying efforts, saying he may have a financial conflict of interest that should bar him from involvement in actions tied to the project.
The potential conflict stems from claims by Supervisor Michael Antonovich's wife that she is owed hundreds of thousands of dollars by an affiliate of the stadium developer, according to an attorney for the firm, Anschutz Entertainment Group.
County supervisors Tuesday were scheduled to consider a motion by Antonovich opposing AEG's push in Sacramento to curtail the time period allowed for legal challenges to its $1-billion stadium proposal. But in a letter Monday, AEG lawyer James Sutton said a vote should not be cast until the county’s lawyers determine whether Antonovich should be disqualified from participating.
In a letter to the county’s legal team, Sutton said that Antonovich’s wife, Christine Hu Antonovich, has been locked in a dispute over fees for more than a year with AEG’s affiliate in Shanghai, AEG Business Management Consulting. Christine Hu Antonovich claimed that she earned those fees while introducing AEG executives to Chinese officials several years ago, Sutton said.
Antonovich opposes legislation that would shorten the time period for challenges to AEG's environmental impact report -- unless similar protections are provided to county hospitals, libraries, schools and transportation projects.
Tony Bell, spokesman for Antonovich, did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday morning.
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