a day ago
New report indicates new Commanders stadium could bring $24B in revenue to DC
The Brief
A new report shows that the new Commanders stadium could bring in even more revenue than originally expected.
The report comes from a data analytics company called CSL and was commissioned by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser.
The $4 billion deal to build a new stadium at the old RFK Site still has to be approved by the D.C. Council.
WASHINGTON - A recent economic impact report indicates that revenue from a new Commanders stadium could be even higher than first predicted.
The study commissioned by the Bowser administration claims that billions of dollars in spending and tax revenue would come from a new stadium at the RFK site but economists tell FOX 5 that they're not so sure.
What we know
The report comes from a data analytics company called CSL.
The proposed $4 billion deal would have the Commanders invest $2.7 billion in the stadium, while the D.C. government is expected to contribute $1.1 billion.
The new 22-page report commissioned by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser—no surprise—supports what her administration has been saying are the economic benefits of the stadium
The report says that once open, a new Commanders stadium is estimated to generate $24 billion in economic activity across the entire RFK Stadium campus project and over $5 billion in new tax revenue for the District. These projections are higher than the Bowser administration itself first predicted.
"The financial projections of the stadium didn't change that much but look at the 'top line' of this," said D.C. City Administrator Kevin Donohugh. "It is a historically large private investment that will produce multiple of investments in terms of both spending and taxes."
Big picture view
Pro-sports franchises and local governments often tout an economic windfall from public tax dollars going to privately-owned sports stadiums but some economists warn the projects often don't deliver the promised economic impacts.
Salim Furth is an urban economist at George Mason University. He told FOX 5 that the teams, not the cities, wind up with the economic touchdown.
"We've seen more and more sports owners willing to do that and cities that say, 'hey we are going to work with you and easy do business, we want you in our city but we're not going to treat you differently than the people who run our grocery stores and the people who pump our gas,'" Furth said.
The D.C. Council still needs to approve the deal.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Washington Commanders told FOX 5 that the team is now conducting a search for an architect to design the new stadium, with a target opening in 2030.
