California's famed Cow Palace could face demise

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The Cow Palace, in its glory days the site of an iconic conservative rallying cry and two shrieking Beatles concerts, would be reduced to rubble if sold under a proposal by a California lawmaker.

State Sen. Leland Yee said on Friday he has drafted a bill that would allow California to sell the state-owned Cow Palace arena to Daly City, which neighbors San Francisco and which wants to redevelop the scruffy area around the facility.

The sale would also benefit California's cash-strapped government by eliminating the cost of maintaining the aging arena, Yee said in a telephone interview.

"Where is the state going to find the money to rehabilitate the Cow Palace?" Yee said, adding that the arena is well past its glory days as premier convention and entertainment venue.

A Depression-era project, the Cow Palace opened in 1941 and hosted the first Grand National Rodeo. It remains the home of the Grand National Rodeo, Horse & Stock Show.

Barry Goldwater's fiery 1964 speech accepting the Republican Party's presidential nomination at the Cow Palace is still fondly remembered among conservatives.

The Beatles performed two concerts there, in 1964 and 1965 -- just one of many major rock bands to play the Cow Palace in the 1960s and 1970s. But the bands have moved on to newer local venues and the arena now hosts such events as flower, sports memorabilia, gun and home exhibitions.

The proposal to sell the venue comes at a time California's budget watchdog says the state budget shortfall may widen to $16 billion, up from the $14.5 billion deficit through June 2009 projected by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's administration.

By selling the Cow Palace, the state would avoid the cost of upgrading it to meet earthquake safety standards and to better accommodate disabled visitors, Yee said.

While events at the Cow Palace bring business to Daly City, town officials envision new development on the nearly 70-acre site providing local property taxes, which the arena does not pay, said City Manager Patricia Martel.

In place of the Cow Palace, Martel sees up to 400,000 square-feet of commercial space and up to 800 residences. Daly City would expect to pay $80 million to $100 million for the site, financed in part by tax-anticipation bonds, Martel said.

California lawmakers are also considering a bill to allow the state to sell its share in the iconic Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, which hosted Olympic Games in 1932 and 1984.

(Editing by Gary Hill)