In a sign of the tough economic times, even billionaire NFL team owners are looking for ways to save a few bucks. So naturally, renovating an existing stadium instead of building a brand new one would be a great way to do this, right? Wrong.

Renovations to existing stadiums are not only inconvenient in the short term, but can be just as expensive in the long run.

The city of Los Angeles, which has been looking to lure an NFL team since the Raiders left town in 1994, has considered renovating an existing football stadium in the area to bag a would-be team. The cost to modernize one of the prospective concrete behemoths: as much as $1 billion, according to NFL officials.

On the other hand, the price tag for the new home of the Indianapolis Colts that opened last year, Lucas Oil Field, was only $720 million.

So much for saving money.

Renovating decrepit stadiums also raises a slew of other dilemmas -- namely, finding a place to play while the stadium is being upgraded. Getting temporary housing for a team and its tens of thousands of fans isn't exactly easy, as not every professional sports city has a local university with a stadium they can borrow.

Even once renovations are complete, problems not relating directly to the stadium itself still exist: case in point, Candlestick Park, home of the San Francisco 49ers.

For a stadium known for its headache-inducing traffic access, renovating the 49-year-old Candlestick Park won't make it any easier for fans to get to or leave the game. So unless renovations also include new freeway access ramps, dressing up The Stick would be as useful as putting lipstick on a pig.

While baseball stadiums like Wrigley Field and Fenway Park have been renovated to the delight of the team's fans, the decision to renovate was largely made for nostalgic, not economic, reasons. The Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs' identities are fused with their old stadiums, making constructing an entirely new stadium a blasphemous thought in the eyes of baseball fans.

However, the fact still remains that these recent renovations to these ancient stadiums are only quick fixes to a long-term problem that will eventually need to be solved. And by solved, I mean torn down.

Renovations may make sense for houses, but not for stadiums.