Mayor trying to keep D.C. United in city with public funds

In an effort to keep MLS D.C. United from leaving Washington, D.C., mayor Adrian M. Fenty has proposed using public funds to help build a football stadium.

The potential 27,000-seat stadium is part of a plan to revamp the Anacostia River waterfront with shops, housing, restaurants and parkland. It is a project valued at USD 2.5 billion.

Fenty called for public funds to be used for about half the stadium cost. That could run up to at least USD 150 million. The mayor proposed using excess revenue collected from the city's baseball tax, which is between roughly USD 10 million and USD 20 million a year.

The plan is a way to keep the club from leaving for a suburban area in Maryland or Virginia. D.C. United currently plays at RFK Stadium, which is 46-years old. It was once the home of the NFL Washington Redskins, and later house Major League Baseball's Washington Nationals.

Source: euFootball.BIZ © Copyright 2006 - All rights reserved.