OXNARD : City Sues Raiders Over Taxes on Lease

The city of Oxnard has filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Raiders, contending that the team owes $30,190 in taxes on property that it leases from the city for its summer training camp.

The lawsuit, filed Monday in Ventura, contends that under the terms of the lease, the Raiders are required to pay a possessory interest tax on the practice fields and field house next to the Radisson Suite Hotel on West Vineyard Avenue.

According to the Superior Court lawsuit, the city has paid the $30,190 in taxes assessed by Ventura County the past three years. The city has repeatedly sought reimbursement from the National Football League team, the lawsuit states.

Attorneys for the Raiders could not be reached Wednesday.

Alan Holmberg, an attorney representing Oxnard, said the city has no intention of trying to evict the team over the money.

“That certainly is not the goal of this proceeding,” he said. “We like them. I don’t think there is a great deal of animosity (over the lawsuit).”

Holmberg said the tax is not unusual and is assessed simply for having possession of the property and using it. The city appealed to the county for an exemption from the tax, but its appeal was denied, he said.

The Raiders have used the site for its summer training camp since 1986, Holmberg said. The current four-year lease was signed in 1990.