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Mayor Bowser presses DC Council to approve new Commanders stadium plan
For the first time since the D.C. Council announced a plan to build a new stadium for the Washington Commanders that would be separated from the budget, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser spoke out, seeming less concerned about how the deal passes, but more adamant it has to happen soon.
The mayor spoke Thursday at an event held by Bisnow, a commercial real estate platform, that was focused on stadium and the impact it could have on the Hill East area of the city. It was an audience that was very friendly to the concept being pushed by the mayor.
“We are on the verge in D.C. of benefiting from the single largest private investment in the history of the District,” said Bowser. And she promised that would kick-start massive development around the site, to go with jobs and other big events that would be lured by the stadium.
“We know that this is a once in a generation opportunity. We also know that we have to seize the moment,” she warned. “Sometimes a window of opportunity opens and we don’t know how soon it’s going to close. So the way I live my life, I get through the window.
“We don’t want the window of opportunity to close on RFK,” she added. Then dipping into sports metaphors, she proclaimed, “I passed the ball … to the D.C. Council a couple of months ago. They’re doing their work, and we want them to do their work and to stay on track.”
Afterward, the mayor spoke with reporters about where things stand, and urged the council to take a more proactive stance, lest the city miss out on some big events in the future.
“I was interested to see that they told the newspaper the things that they want to change,” Bowser said about the council. “But they need to get to the table and have those conversations, because the changes, the time to do them is now, not later.”
Bowser admitted she’s spoken with council chair Phil Mendelson about the project recently, but wouldn’t go into details. She also conceded there might be room for negotiation on some of the details of the deal she reached with the city.
“In all negotiations there are counteroffers. The council has yet to make one,” she said. “Me and the team will work all day and all night. We’ll sit down with them whenever wherever, and we will stay true to our agreement. It’s important however, that the agreement stays on time.”
#### Why stakeholders are worried about meeting deadline
Now during the same forum, Andy Van Horn, who is the head of real estate for the Commanders, seemed to suggest the original July 15 deadline might have some wiggle room — perhaps as late as into September, but anything longer than that could have economic repercussions not just on the team, but on the D.C.
“We have a window of opportunity to move forward immediately, and we need to do that,” Van Horn said. “If we wait another six months, that adds risk to everything.”
Later, Van Horn promised the new stadium would be the premiere indoor event space not just in the D.C. area, but in the mid-Atlantic and Northeast. The closest comparably-sized indoor venue would be in places like Atlanta and Detroit.
And while there’s been lots of talk about hosting a future Super Bowl, Van Horn promised there would be hundreds of other events bringing people to that site every year.
“We’re going to make it soccer ready, we’re going to make it rugby ready,” Van Horn said.
That ties into the importance of getting a deal done soon so the stadium can open in 2030.
“2031 is a major year in the sports world globally,” said Van Horn. “The Women’s World Cup is coming to North America. We have the Rugby World Cup coming, and we believe we have opportunities — we’re already in discussions for both of those events. We think it’s a three quarter of a billion dollar year for the District.”
Van Horn said opening the same year as those events will take D.C. out of the running to host any of those events.
“You need to be open for a full year. They won’t give it to you if you open at ’31,” said Van Horn.
“So we are absolutely focused on that year being an incredibly pivotal year.”
Is there a Plan B if the D.C. Council doesn’t come through? The answer could be yes, but it’s also not really under consideration.
“Our key focus is just staying on Plan A. We’re going to take Plan B and put whatever that might be to the side and say, ‘This is our laser focus,'” said Van Horn. “We want to be the best partners to D.C., if possible.”
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