Development in the District is looking like all fun and games since last Saturday, when city officials unveiled a new set of plans to build a D.C. United soccer stadium directly across the Anacostia River from the new Nationals stadium. Washington now has three stadiums in the works.
The proposed 27,000-seat arena is the centerpiece of an urban redevelopment plan at Poplar Point in Anacostia that also includes a hotel, housing and a park.
“This area has always been underserved in both retail and recreation,” Mafara Hobson, a spokeswoman for D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty, said.
Hobson said that the plans are still under review and that it is unclear whether any public funds would go toward the project, which is being overseen by the quasi-independent Anacostia Waterfront Corporation. Fenty is a member of the corporation’s board. The Corporation did not return calls for comment.
The entire plan is contingent upon the transfer of the Poplar Point land from federal to city ownership, which Keith Perry, Marion Barry’s Chief of Staff, said would not take place until a development plan was in place. Now that a plan is materializing, D.C. United Vice President for Communications Doug Hicks believes development could begin next summer, with the goal of an April 2009 opening date.
“In addition to providing our team and fans modern amenities associated with a new building, a new stadium would open up new revenue streams essential for the long-term viability of D.C. United,” he wrote.
Councilman Marion Barry (D-Ward 8), whose home territory would host the new stadium, supports the redevelopment plan.
“The project presents an opportunity for unprecedented development … for elements that would be affordable for many residents from both Ward 8 and other areas of the city,” Perry said.
Many Ward 8 residents were less enthusiastic when the proposal was unveiled, expressing concern that gentrification would price them out of their homes, according to Perry.
“[Council member Barry] feels that many of the citizens don’t yet understand the plan,” Perry said. “He’s going to be pressuring the city to provide ample housing and be sure that this project does not displace anyone.”
Hobson echoed the sentiment, saying the administration would ensure affordable housing remained in the community. Affordable housing was a major issue in Fenty’s campaign last fall.
“Certainly, we agree with the community that this project should not be about gentrification and displacement,” Hicks said on behalf of D.C. United. “However, neither can it be just about affordable housing.”
Hicks emphasized that in order for the redevelopment to have the transformative effect envisioned by city officials, the Poplar Point area must become a mixed-use development anchored by the stadium.
Since ticket prices are determined on a year-by-year basis, Hicks could not predict how much fans will pay to see a United game in the new stadium. According to the magazine SoccerAmerica, United’s average attendance at RFK Stadium was just under 17,000 fans per game in 2005.
