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202 Blog Posts Since 2003
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From Saturday's Post ("New Hurdle For Stadium Lease Deal"): "A majority on the D.C. Council is demanding a vote on a stadium lease between the city and Major League Baseball, and several council members said they will reject the deal unless baseball agrees to pay for any cost overruns on the project. [...] The council's involvement in the lease represents a setback for the mayor, the sports commission and baseball, all of which had been operating under the assumption that any lease agreement reached by the negotiators would be locked in place." From Sharon Ambrose, who voted in favor of the financing package last year: "I'm not prepared to continue being one of the biggest baseball boosters in the city without taking a look at that lease. Baseball is something the city really wants, but nobody wants it at any cost. . . . Wouldn't you think baseball wants a snazzy, attractive stadium in the nation's capital? Well, guys, ante up a little bit."

More posts: Nationals Park
 

The DC Sports and Entertainment Commission is now saying (in Thursday's Washington Times, "Ballpark estimates made without data on area, design") that they were "forced to predict the cost in 2004 before knowing where the ballpark would be built or what it would look like and that unforeseen delays contributed to rising costs that have pressured the city to stay under a $535 million budget. " But Mark Tuohey, chairman of DCSEC, is quoted as saying, "There are no cost overruns ... it's all manageable. We're going to build the stadium for $535 million." Jack Evans is quoted (again) about getting different designs (saying that he asked HOK Sport for three designs, but got only one), but DC government official Stephen Green says that the "iconic" glass-stone-and-steel design is not inherently too costly.
More posts: Nationals Park
 

The back-and-forth about the new baseball stadium has become exasperating for everyone--and finally Thomas Boswell has weighed in, with "Play Ball--Now" in Thursday's Post. The summary: "But now is the time to abandon such tough-guy negotiating methods. Both sides should stop stalling. Stop pretending to debate who pays for the last 2,000 parking spaces for the richest customers. Or (get a load of this one) what happens if the District is destroyed by a super catastrophe like New Orleans and the new ballpark has cost overruns. Seriously, that is the kind of stuff these geniuses claim they've been squabbling about. What, no mandatory Meteor From Mars insurance? Let's finally cut to the chase. Both sides need to stop posturing over the last few million bucks and bragging rights. Instead, compromise, shake hands and start mining the gold from this Washington mother lode. Together."

More posts: Nationals Park
 

The Washington Times is reporting that the DC Council will be told at the Nov. 28 stadium roundtable that the $535 million cap on the new stadium's pricetag is written in stone, meaning that either the design would have to be scaled back or Major League Baseball would have to chip in (yeah, right). The story also reports that the stadium lease agreement appears to be far enough along that it will be able to be discussed publicly at Monday's roundtable (which is expected to be, the article quite rightly notes, a fairly contentious meeting). Will the "iconic" glass-stone-and-steel design that was presented to DC officials recently have to be scaled back? Would a brick retro stadium a la Camden Yards be cheaper? Will this ever end?
More posts: Nationals Park
 

The DC government has delayed by one month the vacate date for landowners in the footprint of the new Nationals stadium, according to Wednesday's Post ("Stadium Property Takeover Delayed"). Properties must now be vacated by Feb. 3, 2006; the mayor's spokesman says this will not effect the stadium's completion date. The article also says that several of the landowners filed counterarguments in court this week to the city's eminent domain proceedings: "Some are contesting the city's legal right to the land, some are challenging the amount of money the city is offering for the properties and some are fighting on both fronts." A hearing has been scheduled for Feb. 24, although one owner has requested a hearing date before the Feb. 3 vacate deadline. You can visit my Stadium Offers page to see which lots have been seized by the city, what the properties were assessed for in 2005, and what the city offered.
More posts: Nationals Park
 

Zoning Update: The hearing on the new proposed amendment to the Capitol Gateway Overlay is now scheduled for Nov. 28 at 6:00 pm. The main objectives for the proposed amendment are to further regulate density transfer available through the existing combined lot provisions; to require Zoning Commission review of development proposals throughout the overlay area; to establish retail requirements along Half Street SE and First Street SE; and to establish setback and step back requirements on Half Street SE, South Capitol Street, and Potomac Avenue.  (FYI, the CG Overlay is mapped to include an area roughly bounded by M Street to the north, the Anacostia River to the south, Fort McNair to the west, and the Southeast Federal Center site to the east.) Also, at Monday's meeting, the commission voted to approve a proposed text amendment to allow asphalt plants as permitted uses within industrial zone districts subject to special exception review and also to specifically allow Senate Asphalt (a plant being forced to leave its 60 P Street SE location because of the baseball stadium) to relocate to DC Village.
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ANC6D chair Andy Litsky has penned an open letter to Mayor Williams (posted at DC Watch, scroll down to find it) alerting him to the Nov. 28 town meeting being held by ANC6D and the Southwest Neighborhood Assembly, "How Baseball Will Impact Southwest." He explains: "Whether by design or default, it has become apparent that baseball stadium project management is balkanized. We'd like our November 28th meeting to provide an opportunity for all parties under one roof to provide our community with as complete a picture as possible of what is going on presently and what we can expect moving forward. Timelines and, more importantly, a clear delineation of who's in charge, would be most welcome."  The letter goes on to cite specific DC government entities that have their hands in the stadium, and what organizers would like to hear from them at this meeting.
More posts: ANC News, Nationals Park
 

Happy Monday morning! In "D.C. Ballpark's Rising Price Tag Compels Cuts," the Post details growing problems with the city's attempts to stay under the mandated $535 million price tag for building the new Nationals baseball stadium: "City officials had included money to repave roads and expand a Metro station near the stadium in the $535 million budget approved by the D.C. Council last year. Those funds now will go instead toward labor and building materials and to cover the cost of land for the stadium, which also is more expensive than anticipated. [...] The D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission, which is overseeing the construction, determined that the cost of the distinctive ballpark designed by its architects has risen from $244 million to $337 million. That set off a scramble by top city officials who have since reduced the cost to $300 million but still are seeking money to complete the project."
More posts: Nationals Park
 

A Sunday editorial in the Washington Times ("More Baseball Blunders") gives it to Major League Baseball for ballking at the city's proposal that MLB pay the $6 million insurance that Wall Street is requiring for the new baseball stadium in the event of a player strike or terrorist attack: "The fact that MLB can balk at even this tiny a committment with any credibility is another indication of the sorry depths of these negotiations. No sweetheart deal is good enough."
More posts: Nationals Park
 

After days of no-progress-on-the-lease stories, today we get to shift gears, with word that the design of the new ballpark is being shown to DC officials, and that the reaction is positive. From the Post ("Stadium's Modern Design is Clear Winner on Council"): "A much-anticipated design for a new home for the Washington Nationals features glass, stone and steel as the primary materials and departs sharply from the popular red-brick throwback ballparks. The design will not be released for several weeks and still could be modified, but Mayor Anthony A. Williams (D) and key city officials have given the nod to the modern look." Mr. Bowtie, Linda Cropp, and Sharon Ambrose gave the design high marks, but apparently Jack Evans is still working hard to convince everyone that a Camden Yards-like red brick stadium is what DC needs (and that it would be cheaper). More on the design, from the Post: it "features an exterior wall largely made of glass and broken up by limestone portals, according to city sources who have seen the drawings. Aspects of the design create a translucent quality, offering fans inside views of the surrounding neighborhood and teasing those outside with glimpses of game activities. [...] Two cantilevered ramps leading to the upper decks contain viewing platforms from which fans can pause to take in sweeping scenes of the city -- the federal monuments to the north and the Anacostia River to the south."

More posts: Nationals Park
 

After 19 months of construction, the Navy Yard entrance at 11th and O Streets is set to reopen on Nov. 21, and will become the sole entrance for visitors and deliveries. A new visitor parking lot has been constructed as well. Next question--when will the public be able to access the beautiful Riverwalk the Navy has constructed along the Anacostia without having to show ID? (When visiting the area this past weekend, I saw what appear to be new fences between the Riverwalk and the Navy Yard itself, and a nicely done brick gate to enter the Riverwalk from the east, but the gate is closed and cyclone fences block it as well.) UPDATE: Scroll to the bottom of my Navy Yard page to see photos of both the new O Street entrance and the fenced-off Riverwalk.
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(UPDATED to fix address for Nov. 28 meeting) ANC 6D and the Southwest Neighborhood Assembly are holding a Baseball Stadium Update meeting on Monday, Nov. 28 at 7 pm at St. Matthew's Lutheran Church, 222 M Street SW. They are working to get city officials, Sports Commission officials, and others to attend to discuss "traffic, construction, zoning and other important issues." This was announced at the ANC 6D meeting on Nov. 14. Also at that meeting, the ANC voted to support the Florida Rock project; as for Capper / Carrollsburg, while the ANC voted to support the alley closings/street openings portion of the zoning application, they are for now opposed to the second-stage PUD. ANC Commissioner Williams is trying to organize a special meeting to hear more from the community so that another vote can be taken by the commission before the zoning deadline (former residents are complaining they are having problems with the developers about their potential return to the development).
 

My patience is wearing thin having to track all these financing stories! "Think Tank Questions Stadium Financing Plan" in Thursday's District Extra in the Post highlights a study by the DC Fiscal Policy Institute which says "A private financing plan being used by the District to help pay for a new baseball stadium project has the potential to cost city taxpayers nearly $60 million in lost revenue." The specifics and numbers all make my head hurt, so your homework assignment tonight is to read both links yourself and come to your own conclusions :-).

More posts: Nationals Park
 

Mayor Williams has gotten personally involved in the negotiations between the city and Major League Baseball over the lease for the new baseball stadium, according to Wednesday's Post ("Williams Joins Talks With Baseball Officials"). In other news, the City Council gave final approval to the technical amendments correcting the wording of the stadium financing package.
More posts: Nationals Park
 

District officials are prepared to ask Major League Baseball for a $24 million letter of credit and a $20 million payment for parking costs when high-stakes negotiations over the terms of a new stadium lease resume today, says the Post ("DC to Seek More Money from Baseball Officials"). Read the article for the details, but it does appear that the city is trying a slightly different tack from the request last week for $6 million outright to cover "catastrophe" insurance. Will it work? We shall see....

More posts: Nationals Park
 

DC council member Jack Evans, one of the biggest champions of bringing baseball to DC, is angry over the continuing stalemate over the stadium, and has launched a broadside at Major League Baseball, according to NBC4, who quotes Evans as saying that baseball must sign an important new stadium lease or just "move the team somewhere else." Quoting the article: "To sell bonds to build the new stadium along the Anacostia waterfront, Wall Street requires someone to guarantee that the $6 million annual rent will be paid despite any disaster or work stoppage. [...] Baseball is insisting the city bear the cost through expensive insurance. Evans said the city won't commit more money and baseball can move the Washington Nationals again." The money quote from Jack: "This is non-negotiable, so you either agree to this or you go somewhere else, because we are wasting our time. This is non-negotiable, and that's where we are right now," he said. "We are building a $535 million stadium for this group. That's enough." UPDATE: The Post's article ("Baseball Balking Over Stadium Rent") adds background and detail, as does the Washington Times.

More posts: Nationals Park
 

Adrian G. Washington, president of the Neighborhood Development Company, has been appointed as head of the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation, replacing Andy Altman, reports Saturday's Post ("Ballpark Area Chief Named"). Washington was raised in Anacostia, has an MBA from Harvard, and has spent 18 years developing and rehabilitating houses in DC. The Post article also says that the AWC has named the four finalists in its search for a "master developer" to oversee the creation of millions of square feet of housing, office, retail, and hotel space expected around the new ballpark. They are: Cordish Co. of Baltimore (which hired architecture firm Michael Graves & Associates, designers of the new Department of Transporation Headquaters around the corner from the stadium site); Monument Realty LLC of the District and its partner Federal Realty Investment Trust of Rockville; Forest City Enterprises Inc. of Ohio and its partner D.C.-based Western Development Corp.; and Akridge of the District. The selection committee is supposed to give its recommendation to the AWC board by early December. UPDATE: Here's the press release on Adrian Washington's appointment.

 

The 11th Street Bridges EIS web site has posted a two-page Project Overview document explaining (briefly!) the scope of the project and the "aggressive" schedule (with a timetable showing construction of the improvements happening in the 2007-2010 timeframe). There will be two meetings to review the draft set of alternatives before they are selected for detailed study, on Dec. 13 and 14. The handouts from the October scoping meetings are a good place to get general information on what the project is trying to accomplish (mainly, to add additional ramps to allow better access between the 11th Street Bridges and the Anacostia Freeway).
More posts: 11th Street Bridges
 

I attended the Community Ballpark Meeting on Nov. 2; it was hosted by the DC Sports and Entertainment Commission, which led to grumbling from the audience that the many DC government agencies who also have a hand in the stadium and surrounding development weren't in attendance. The one real piece of news (to me, anyway) was that the orientation of the ballpark has been decided on, and it's north-northeast, as you can see in the schematic contained in the handout. There are supposed to be public meetings in December to discuss the architecture, which I guess means that the design of the stadium will be unveiled at some point before then (hee hee). They are planning for zoning hearings in January, and now list April 2006 as the groundbreaking date. UPDATE: I've now scanned the 17-page agenda/handout (PDF), which has a lot of bullet points addressing economic opportunities, neighborhood "protection" (i.e., noise, lighting), transportation systems (traffic, parking, Metro), and community activities being undertaken (none of which at the moment are actually in the stadium neighborhood, which brought about much audience angst). UPDATE II (11/11): The Nov. 10 Voice of the Hill has (on page 3) a story on the meeting, detailing the somewhat fractious question and answer session.
More posts: Nationals Park
 
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