SAN DIEGO -- The final word from the Citizens' Task Force on Chargers Issues is expected Thursday night as the group holds its final meeting on what to do about the Bolts.

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SOUND OFF Are The Chargers Important To San Diego?

The panel is expected to adopt a report that will be submitted to the City Council sometime next month.

The task force is expected to recommend that the City Council open negotiations with the team for a new contract and possibly a brand new stadium.

The panel has been considering several options for a new football stadium: leasing the property to the Chargers and letting the team develop it; finding or creating a new revenue stream, perhaps from a sales tax increase, to help fund the stadium and associated redevelopment; and the Chargers' proposal of building a stadium with 50 percent public financing.

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The idea of using any public money to build a stadium, however, has been met with strong opposition by many San Diegans who feel that the team is simply bilking the city.

Task force member Bruce Henderson added that the proposed new stadium is slated to cost the city $200 million, according to the Chargers. But that figure is unrealistic, he said.

"It leaves out so many things that we are up to $600 million. The Chargers need to come back with a realistic proposal," he said.

Henderson also expressed concern about negotiating a new contract with the team. Doing so, he said, could free the team of some $150 million it owes to the city.

Chargers attorney Mark Fabiani says negotiating a new contract is a step in the right direction.

Giving in to a new contract would free the city of the infamous ticket guarantee (in which the city covers the cost of tickets unsold at Chargers games) and would eliminate the team's threat to move to Los Angeles or elsewhere.

"We understand that people are skeptical, and we realize that we have to persuade people," Fabiani said. "Long term, I don't think the team could be financially competitive here in the next few years in the existing facility. It's just the reality of the situation."