With D.C.'s exclusive window closed, other jurisdictions are joining the chase for a new Commanders stadium.
A recent report from WUSA9.com indicates that Maryland and Virginia have resurrected potential efforts to host the team, now that July 15 has come and gone. Per the report, both states have recently contacted the team with proposals.
Meanwhile, one member of the D.C. Council recently wrote an op-ed for the Washington Business Journal pushing back against the stadium deal.
“It gives too much away, gets too little back, and lacks an ambitious vision for how our city needs to grow,” council member Charles Allen wrote.
Proponents routinely tout the investment the Commanders will make to justify the public investment. But no investment is made without an expected return. And if the investment and return don’t match, don’t make it.
That doesn’t matter when cities and states are willing to jockey for the ability to host a professional team. Having Maryland and Virginia at the table can’t hurt the overall effort. It’ll either wake up D.C. or open the door for something else.
The effort to wake up D.C. also has included pressure from House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Kentucky). Via Sports Business Journal, Comer has threatened to get his committee involved, if the D.C. Council doesn’t quickly approve the stadium deal.
Regardless of where it goes from here, the process hasn’t gone nearly as smoothly as the team had hoped. And the team hasn’t seemed to learn that pressuring D.C. Council to pick up the pace isn’t making things better.
If anything, it’s making things worse.
