UCLA May Have to Vacate Jackie Robinson Stadium Due to Legal Ruling

By City News Service

UCLA Athletic Director Dan Guerrero said Friday that unless a resolution is found regarding use of Veterans Administration land in West Los Angeles, the university may have to vacate Jackie Robinson Stadium, where Bruin baseball has been played for decades.

A Los Angeles federal judge ruled Thursday that the land was reserved for the benefit of disabled veterans, not outside interests, as a result of an 1888 deed of land to the United States, guaranteeing help to veterans who need it.

U.S. District Judge S. James Otero determined that by not using the land to provide health care for vets, the VA is in violation of federal law.

The land is currently leased to businesses and interests that include UCLA's Jackie Robinson Stadium, a hotel laundry, a film studio storage lot and other businesses.

The judge delayed the ruling's impact for six months in order to give the VA an opportunity to file an appeal.

"If the ruling stands and, unless a settlement can be reached, the decision could force UCLA to vacate Jackie Robinson Stadium," Guerrero said in a letter posted on the UCLA Athletics website.

"The ruling is especially disappointing because I consider UCLA's partnership with our nation's veterans to be truly exceptional," Guerrero wrote.

UCLA serves veterans through Operation Mend, providing reconstructive surgery to U.S. military personnel injured and disfigured in Iraq and Afghanistan, Guerrero said.

At the baseball stadium, "UCLA has employed hundreds of veterans through the years, furnished our heroes with complimentary admission to games, and provided a home field for local American Legion baseball teams for several decades," he wrote.

"Our services to vets includes, but is not limited to, our use of Jackie Robinson Stadium and we intend to press our case to both sides in this lawsuit, to show how UCLA's continued presence on the campus supports the core mission of the VA and those who have served our nation," Guerrero stated.

"It is my expectation that we will, indeed, continue to play Bruin baseball at the current home of the NCAA Champions," according to the letter. "I have been in regular communication with Coach John Savage, and he, along with our fans, has my commitment that UCLA will continue to do everything possible to work toward making this a reality."

Guerrero said that despite his optimism about playing the 2014 season at Jackie Robinson Stadium, "we are doing our due diligence to identify other viable locations, in the event that the federal court forces us to vacate the stadium."

In his ruling, Otero said the VA had abused its discretion by leasing land for purposes "totally divorced from the provision of healthcare."