Dive Brief:
- The DC Zoning Commission will vote Thursday on whether to approve a $300 million soccer stadium for the Major League Soccer's D.C. United, according to The Washington Post.
- The commission gave its preliminary approval for the stadium's design in December, which sent the project to the National Capital Planning Commission for review. Zoning commissioners also asked the team to provide more details on how they planned to address transportation and environmental impacts around the stadium during and after construction.
- Last-minute snags notwithstanding, the commission is expected to give its final approval at the Thursday meeting.
Dive Insight:
Project officials told the commission previously that they would set up air monitoring systems during construction so that they could better ensure the health and wellbeing of neighboring residents. If the commission does green light the project, D.C. United could begin submitting permit applications for the stadium structure, and construction could begin within weeks. This would put the team one step closer to being able to move out of its current RFK Stadium digs.
The team has faced several obstacles in its attempts to get the project underway. The city agreed to divide responsibility for the construction costs equally with D.C. United, but before city officials pulled the trigger on the project, they insisted the team owners put up a $5 million escrow to protect the city's investment in case the stadium plans fell apart. Finally, the city agreed to move forward and even decided to split cost overruns up to $20 million.
When it came to design, however, both business owners and zoning officials took shots at the plans, with one commissioner comparing its aesthetic to that of a prison. Area landowners piled on and complained that the stadium design did not include enough retail and other elements that would draw visitors into the adjacent business district. They argued that this would reduce the value of their property and cut into profits of future lease deals. However, the team worked with detractors to come up with an alternate design.
The 20,000-seat stadium is expected to generate about 1,000 construction and permanent jobs and create $1 billion of economic benefit for the area. The team is already underway with site work and has hired Turner Construction to build the stadium under a $150 million contract.