D.C. United Stadium To Be Located On Old Jail Site?
by Martin Shatzer on Jul 24, 2011 5:11 PM EDT
in Stadium News
Email
PrintAs fans, we remain desperate for any bits of information on a potential new D.C. United stadium. Or land acquisition that could lead to a new DC United stadium. Or hints that someone with any small semblance of political power might be talking about a new D.C. United stadium.
Well this article from the Washington Post today references a new potential location that we had not heard before (as first brought to our attention by The AMT). The article identifies a patch of land just blocks from RFK Stadium, south of the Stadium-Armory Metro stop and west of D.C. General Hospital that could be perfect for the soccer team. What's currently in this location?
A jail.
The proposal by D.C. Council Member Tommy Wells involves the erection of a new jail at the Buzzard Point site that is currently owned by Akridge. Wells is proposing for Akridge to swap a piece of Buzzard Point with the City in exchange for the old jail property. If all goes according to plan, United's new stadium could be where the jail currently resides - at 1901 D Street SE.
Is this something we should treat as good news? At this point, its just an idea from a Council Member. But at least its a signal that United has a friend in D.C. with Wells. And its more confirmation that United and Akridge may be having ongoing conversations about various parcels of land in and around the District.
Its doubtful that D.C. United will have any comment on the report. They've been intentionally quiet, hoping to avoid another fiasco such as the Prince George's County press conference. We might not hear another word out of United about a new stadium until a loan is signed. We'll just be happy to see progress being made (Is it?).
8 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
One thing to note in the "optimism" column (and one or two for the pessimism side of the ledger)
Tommy Wells is the CM for Ward 6, which includes not just the jail site, but also Buzzard Point. Well, for now anyway. The portion of Hill East containing the jail and DC General will be switching over to Ward 7 once redistricting takes effect, which will likely be before much of substance could happen here. So let’s start making nice with Ward 7 CM Yvette Alexander, pronto.
One other potential issue is Wells’ popularity on the Council – or rather, his lack thereof. He was just stripped of the committee that includes his pet issue (transportation), probably because of his role in investigating the Council Chair’s less than ethical behavior in leasing two “fully loaded” SUVs on the city’s dime. Of course, as he says in the article, this reshuffling left him with oversight over the Office of Planning, which does give him some sway over redevelopment in Hill East (even if it is moving out of his ward).
In short, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Vamos United; Boiler Up
Support your local club.
Black & Red United
Seems bassackwards
Why would you want to put a jail near the riverfront and a stadium near the old jail?
Washingtonian and Penn Stater -- My blog features the triumph of hope over experience that is being a DC sports fan (especially the Nats) as well as the Nittany Lions, life in BeltwayLand and other things I find interesting. @doubleuefwhy
Potential
Hill East is slated for massive redevelopment in the near future – well, it has been for a while now, actually. It’s currently the site of not just the jail, but also DC General (don’t call it a) Hospital. It’s incredibly valuable land, being adjacent to Capitol Hill and very close to a Metro station, and the city would love to up its tax base by putting it to productive use. Buzzard Point is closer to the river, but it’s a bit cut off – Ackridge bought the parcel there from Pepco at the height of the real estate bubble thinking they could get GSA to lease government offices there; unfortunately for them, it’s outside of the maximum distance from Metro that GSA is willing to lease for that use. So they’re sitting on really expensive land with not much to do with it (for now, anyway).
From the city’s perspective, the waterfront along the Washington Channel to the northwest of Buzzard Point is a much higher priority than the point itself, which currently houses a military installation (not going anywhere) and a power plant (due to be decommissioned in a few years). So is Hill East (which is also river-adjacent), and Poplar Point (king of the "zzzzzzzzzzz"s). In a perfect world the jail might not be at Buzzard Point, but it could make sense for the city if it lowers the costs of running the jail and jumpstarts development in Hill East.
Vamos United; Boiler Up
Support your local club.
Black & Red United
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Another possible scenario (or, why I'm not committing to a position on this idea)
What if Wells just wants to move the jail to Buzzard point? It’s entirely possible that he threw a United stadium out there to a) get some more attention to a pet cause and b) to get United and its fans to cozy up to the idea of the land swap, thus leaving us to the side of the conversation. What I mean is that Wells could be worried that we’d be the loudest source of opposition towards Buzzard Point becoming something other than a stadium, so he’d give us a reason to hope that the land swap is connected to a stadium at the jail while not being particularly committed to the idea himself.
There’s nothing in any of this that concretely links the land swap to us getting a stadium. It’s just one more idea that’s floating around. As such, I don’t think fans or the club should feel much of anything about this until the land swap is formally a step in the direction of a stadium. If the land swap is to be done and the stadium just remains one of many ideas, it’s hard to get excited. What the club should be doing is trying to ensure that the land swap becomes both to build a new jail and a new stadium, not just the jail.
Writer on SB Nation's DC United blog Black and Red United
Caution
I think the guarded stance is probably the right one at this point. What’s most exciting about this story is that the stadium quote came from Tommy Wells, not from a developer angling for the land swap or the team. First time in a while that we’ve heard anything related to a new stadium and bordering on positive from a DC official in a long while.
Vamos United; Boiler Up
Support your local club.
Black & Red United
I know nothing about stadium construction so this may be a dumb question but
why not just tear down RFK and build a new stadium right on top of it?
Congress.
The city has control of RFK and the land under it through a congressional charter. To build another stadium on the site (whether or not we tear down RFK) would probably require an amendment to the charter.
Vamos United; Boiler Up
Support your local club.
Black & Red United
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
