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Santa Clara threatens to take over management of Levi’s Stadium

Published October 29, 2016 05:37 PM
Levi's Field of Jeans

SANTA CLARA, CA - NOVEMBER 12: A general view of more than 18,850 pairs of jeans that are displayed on the field at Levi’s Stadium creating a Field of Jeans on November 12, 2014 in Santa Clara, California. 26 billion pounds of textiles end up in landfills each year in the U.S. Levi Strauss & Co. teamed up with the San Francisco 49ers and nonprofit partner, Goodwill, to show the tremendous impact that can be made by the small act of donating clothing instead of tossing it aside. Over a two-week period, more than 18,850 pairs of jeans were donated to Bay Area Goodwills and transformed into a Field of Jeans by San Francisco-based artist, Hannah Sitzer. 12 tons of clothing were kept out of landfills as all the jeans were donated to Goodwill. The work of art took more than 50 people and over 16 hours to create at Levi’s Stadium. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images for Levi’s)

Getty Images for Levi’s

The 49ers’ bad year on the field could become even worse off it.

Via NBC Bay Area, the mayor of Santa Clara has threatened to seize control of Levi’s Stadium if the team doesn’t comply with contractual obligations to disclose budgetary information regarding the venue.

“We have to stop the bleeding of the General Fund money into the stadium. It’s against the law,” Mayor Lisa Gillmore said. “If they don’t cure the breach, we are going to take steps to take back management of the stadium.”

The lack of documentation prevents the powers-that-be from determining their cut of any non-NFL activities at the stadium, and to assess whether taxpayer money has been used improperly for football-related expenses, such as field maintenance. An independent auditor told NBC Bay Area that it is possible the field has been reseeded multiple times with public funds.

The 49ers said in a statement issued to NBC Bay Area that the requested information will be provided to the auditor on Monday. It’s unclear whether the team provided an explanation for the failure to make the data available earlier.