Krafts Eye Site For Soccer-Specific Revolution Stadium
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Krafts Look To Build 20,000 To 30,000-Seat
Soccer Stadium For MLS Revolution Franchise |
The Kraft Group is "strongly considering" whether to build a soccer stadium in Somerville, Massachusetts, as a home for the MLS Revolution, "a move that would allow the team to raise its profile in the region and capitalize on a rich concentration of immigrant soccer fans," according to Eric Moskowitz of the BOSTON GLOBE. The Kraft family, who also own the Patriots and Gillette Stadium, "wants to build a 20,000- to 30,000-seat soccer stadium" because at the 69,000-seat Gillette Stadium the "typical home crowds of 10,000 to 20,000 fans can feel swallowed up." Putting a stadium near a subway stop in Somerville, a town of about 77,500 located two miles north of Boston, "would allow the team to easily tap into the fervent soccer fan base in the region's ethnically diverse urban neighborhoods." Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone said that the Krafts "contacted the city about a year ago," and that they "increased their interest in June by investing $150,000 in a planning study to work with Somerville and explore development opportunities" for the city's infrastructure. Curtatone said a soccer stadium would be "a major focal point, an anchor that brings a lot of value and a lot of activity to that district." Patriots Exec Dir of Media Relations Stacey James said that the Krafts are "exploring multiple urban and suburban locations for a Revolution stadium, but the Somerville site is the only one that has undergone a planning study." James reinforced that the team "has not committed to a particular community or site" (BOSTON GLOBE, 10/16). At presstime, this story was the third-most e-mailed item on BOSTON.com.
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