Now leaders here wonder if the Rams really do want to buy the land; they have intimated they do, the suit says.

“I think it would be bad form and in bad character,” said Dave Peacock, co-chairman of the effort to build the riverfront football stadium, along with attorney Bob Blitz. “Just because you have the right to do something doesn’t make it right.”

It is unclear if anyone has asked Kroenke to give up the option. Kevin Demoff, the Rams’ chief operating officer, declined to comment.

The Rams lease on the Jones Dome expires Thursday. The lease on Rams Park was extended to April 30, according to the lawsuit.

On its face, the lease says the Rams have the right to buy Rams Park for $1. Moreover, it says, that option “shall survive any termination of the Lease regardless of the reason for such termination, and Lessee shall after any termination continue to have the right to exercise the Option as herein provided.”

But the lawsuit argues that the Rams’ departure doesn’t terminate the lease; the Rams went year-to-year, as allowed in the lease, and the year simply expires. The lease, the suit continues, says the $1 option survives a termination, not an expiration.