d0ublestr0ker0ll Posted December 9, 2005 Share Posted December 9, 2005 http://www.nbc4.com/news/5502909/detail.html 30-Year Lease Approved By MLB Commissioner WASHINGTON -- Major League Baseball and District officials have reached an agreement on a lease for a new stadium, according to News4's Tom Sherwood. District officials will have its long-awaited 30-year stadium lease with MLB in hand for a public hearing Tuesday, Sherwood reported. A vote by council members is expected next week. The lease, which was approved by MLB Commissioner Bud Selig, was delivered to the D.C. Council Friday afternoon. According to the Mayor's Office, MLB agrees to severe penalties if the team is ever moved from the District; that baseball contribute $20 million to help cover cost overruns associated project; and that team continue to provide free tickets to low-income District residents. The lease for the new stadium, to be built along South Capitol Street, was a major sticking point with MLB as it tried to sell the team to a new owner. "This lease moves us one step closer to building a beautiful, state-of-the-art ballpark along the Anacostia River," Mayor Anthony Williams said. "We've negotiated a good deal for the city and persuaded Major League Baseball to concede on many fronts." According to Williams, MLB will give the city $20 million and will turn over two-thirds of parking revenue on non-game days to the District. "I look forward to a full discussion of the lease during a hearing next week and I urge the Council to approve this lease as quickly as possible the following week so that we may move forward with this project," Williams said. Other agreements in the lease include: The Nationals will pay the city about $5.5 million a year in rent. Their rent payments are higher if more fans attend the games. The Nationals are responsible for making all repairs and routine maintenance at the stadium. The city has the right to use the 41,000-seat stadium for its own events 18 times a year. The Nationals are required to fund and promote a charitable foundation, make low-cost tickets available each year and set aside a minimum of 8,000 free regular season tickets each year that District charities can distribute to low-income residents. The District retains authority to control development in the area around the stadium. Earlier this week, Williams said the city promised taxpayers the cost of the stadium itself wouldn't exceed $535 million. City officials say that costs for things like Metro station improvements have been among those categorized as ancillary, and they'll now have to find money to pay for them. Williams and D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission Chairman Mark Tuohey disagreed over whether those costs are specifically part of the legislation the Council approved last year to sell bonds. Councilmember David Catania insists the cost is approaching or exceeding $700 million. Catania is trying to restore language placing a cap on borrowing authority for the stadium project. He contends that language was stripped from the legislation in an earlier vote. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chomerics Posted December 9, 2005 Share Posted December 9, 2005 Sounds cool. . .congrads guys How far from RFK? It's on S. Capitol St. Doesn't that run right by RFK? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinsHokieFan Posted December 9, 2005 Share Posted December 9, 2005 Sounds cool. . .congrads guys How far from RFK? It's on S. Capitol St. Doesn't that run right by RFK? Not too far from RFK, a little bit south on the Anacostia from RFK East Capitol I believe is what runs by RFK It'll be real nice if they fix up 395 that runs by South Capitol St, so that there is an unobstructed view of the capitol from the staidum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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