you're probably right. Nats probably get a lot of the revenue, given what DC was willing to compromise (give) to baseball at the time when Williams was trying to land an MLB team. http://www.dcsec.com/aboutdcsec/index.html -------- The D.C. Sports & Entertainment Commission, an independent agency of the District of Columbia government, is responsible for the management and operation of Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, the D.C. Armory and their adjacent facilities and for presenting and promoting sports, entertainment and special events in the District and the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The Commission is overseen by an 13-member board of directors, led by Chairman Matthew D. Cutts, Esq. The Commission played a significant role in bringing major league baseball back to the nations capitol. The Washington Nationals will play at RFK Stadium until a new stadium is built along the Anacostia waterfront. The Commission is leading the contracting effort for construction of the new stadium and will own and lease the facility when complete. ------- So even though the DCSEC "own and lease the facility", I'm sure the Nats have a very sweet rental deal, and likely control a lot of the revenue streams in their new ballpark (given the power of MLB and the ineptitude of the DC govt).
Didn't the Maryland Taxpayers finance a big chunk of that stadium deal? I know that Maryland bought the Ravens their stadium, but I thought there was a $300+ million payout for the Redskins too... What you didn't like the Tony Williams negotiating line "if I give you a blank check plus let you sleep with my wife at will and take my car, would you please put us on the waitlist for a team. I mean, we'll take anyone. Is there anything else we can do for you? We might have some more stuff around here that we could give you..."
As far as I recall, "the Jack" was largely privately financed, while PSInet/Raven's/M&TBank Stadium was a $300million handout, which is why I hate the Raven's to this day.
Any news on the bids for the MD Economic Feasibility Study? How many bids were there? - How many serious bids? - When would the selection be? - How soon might the studies actually start and have a Final Report?
The deadline was Tuesday of this week, and they didn't say when they would publicize anything about the response.
From Goff's Soccer Insider Q&A on 2/1/08: http://blog.washingtonpost.com/soccerinsider/2008/02/your_questions_my_answers.html --------- Q. What's more likely this year -- announcement of stadium location or MLS Cup? A. Wow, that's a tough one. Given United's playoff struggles of late, I'll go with the stadium location announcement. --------- --------- Q. Why are United fans so supportive of the front office? Yes, they land an ocassional success like Emelio and Fred, but they have far more failures, including drafting several players who had already publicly stated their desire to play in Europe, not to mention Guppy, Stoichkov, Chris Albright, and a seemingly endless list of players who cost us draft picks and other players. We're NOWHERE on a stadium, because the FO failed to realize it needed to put pressure on the administration by securing bids from elsewhere (isn't that basic business strategy?) Why is this a blind lovefest? A. United has been awfully successful on the field over the last 12 years. Hard to complain about that. If the team performed like, say, the Red Bulls, you would see and hear more public criticism. As for draft picks, MLS is not the NBA or NFL, where you look to the draft for immediate help. The MLS draft is secondary to identifying and signing international players, or finding a diamond in the rough (Perkins, Boswell, etc). The stadium situation has not gone smoothly and I'm sure United regrets its initial negotiating tactics, but they have secured two potential sites in Maryland and will pursue one of them for construction if the District does not commit to a stadium very soon. ----------------
I hear lots of things little voices in my head! But none of them say anything about Fenty not being a jerk, or Maryland announcing a stadium groundbreaking... SIGH
You can see the electric wires so infastructure is already in place. Its not densely built on so there will be no surprises (like Red Bull stadium) when excavation begins. This will make a grand site for a new stadium.
DC government officials claim that the infrastructure costs for the wiring escalated to $600 million during construction