The MLL Chesapeake Bayhawks, who currently play at the 34,000-seat Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, are looking to "partner with the Maryland Stadium Authority on what would be the first MLL-dedicated stadium," according to Joshua Gordon of the BALTIMORE BUSINESS JOURNAL. The Bayhawks are proposing a $40M stadium, part of a "bigger sports complex being floated for the state-owned property." Bayhawks President Mark Burdett said that the former psychiatric hospital site that closed more than a decade ago has been "earmarked for the project after years of looking for a stadium site." Plans call for a "three-phase project to be kicked off with a 10,000-seat stadium." Burdett said that the team is "hoping to play its first game on the field" in the spring of '19. He said that the "ideal funding option" would be for the Maryland Stadium Authority to "float bonds to private investors that are backed by the state and then the Bayhawks, as part of the Chesapeake Sports & Entertainment Group, would be the lead tenant of the stadium and pay back the bonds over the course of time through its events." Burdett said that they would "like to include" an MLL museum and a HOF in the future. The Bayhawks have met with the MSA to discuss the plans, but MSA Exec Dir Michael Frenz said that it is "too early in the process to talk much about the project" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 3/22).
