DC Mayor, Council Members Publicly Back Away From Soccer Plan
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DC United Meets Roadblock To
Soccer-Specific Stadium |
DC Mayor Adrian Fenty, DC Council Chair Vincent Gray and "several other key council members have been willing to move forward with a public financing package of at least $150[M]" for a soccer stadium, but "mindful of the political fallout" from Nationals Park, have been "reluctant to push hard publicly" for the facility, according to David Nakamura of the WASHINGTON POST. That contradiction now "appears to have torpedoed another attempt to get the stadium project, on hold for more than a year, moving again." Gray and Council members Jack Evans and Marion Barry last week were "quietly drafting a bill to authorize the funding package," but council sources said that Gray "backed away ... after the plan was disclosed by the media." The sources predicted that without Gray's support the legislation, "once scheduled to be introduced at Tuesday's legislative meeting, will be delayed at least a month." Gray: "I have no fear of taking the lead. I like having soccer in the city. It can be valuable for the city. The question is, what am [I] taking the lead on? I want to make sure, to the best of my ability, that we get the best deal we can." As the three council members "took some heat" over the proposed financing package for the stadium, Fenty "tried to keep the controversy at a distance, even though his office has been closely involved all along." Fenty, who as a council member voted against public financing for Nationals Park, has "consistently shied away from the soccer project in public, saying repeatedly that it is up to the council to take the lead." Nakamura noted council elections in the fall complicate the effort to gain majority support for the stadium. Several members, including Evans, are "running to maintain their seats," and some are "said to be fearful of a political backlash if they support the stadium" (WASHINGTON POST, 6/1).
MONEY WELL SPENT? A WASHINGTON POST editorial stated a soccer stadium "could be money well spent" if, as supporters contend, it would "kick-start the transformation of Wards 7 and 8." But a "key issue is whether [DC] even has the money to consider this development," as the financial climate is "much different today from what it was when then-Mayor Anthony A. Williams led the fight for baseball." The "burden on businesses" also is a consideration. The editorial: "Is it fair that they continue to pay what was billed as a baseball tax so that extra revenue can be diverted to a soccer stadium? ... If [Fenty] really thinks the soccer stadium is in [DC's] best interest, he must put it on the line" (WASHINGTON POST, 5/31).
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