The Washington Nationals stadium could receive a major upgrade if the baseball team pledges to remain in the city for at least 30 more years, the latest offer by D.C. officials to invest in local arenas to entice pro sports teams to stay in the nation's capital for the long term.
The D.C. Council unanimously passed a bill on Nov. 26 to establish a fund to help oversee maintenance, repairs and improvements of Nationals Park, home to the Major League Baseball team.
Nationals officials said this year that as much as $350 million in improvements could take place through the end of its lease in 2038, according to an accompanying D.C. government committee report. But the legislation would take effect only if the team agrees to a lease that keeps its home in the southeastern quadrant of the city through 2054.
“We need to be not taking our eye off of the goal of making sure that we are focused on getting a long-term lease done,” Councilmember Charles Allen said during the Nov. 26 hearing.
Local officials agreed to the legislation to avert a potentially similar debacle over Capital One Arena, another sports complex in the city. Ted Leonsis, the owner of the downtown arena as well as the Washington Wizards basketball team and the Washington Capitals hockey team that call it home, had a deal in place earlier this year to move the teams to Virginia before D.C. officials agreed to make $515 million of improvements to the building. That helped convince Leonsis to keep the teams in Washington.
The council advanced a bill for that modernization project the same day as the vote on the baseball stadium.
Meanwhile, federal lawmakers are contemplating whether to give the District permission for commercial and residential development at another sports venue in the city, Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, a move that could potentially lead to the return of the Washington Commanders football team to the site.
Stadium upgrades
Nationals Park opened in 2008 in the city's Navy Yard neighborhood. The D.C. government owns the nearly 42,000-seat ballpark at 1500 S. Capitol St. SE, while the city's convention and sports authority, Events DC, both has jurisdiction over it and is responsible for its upkeep.
The new bill "creates a return on investment," Allen said. "We're talking about a site that is generating 150 events per year when you tally it all up. That type of return on economic investment is what we want."
A previous concern regarding park updates involved whether the team would get a new scoreboard, which it did earlier this year.
“By committing resources to ensure that Nationals Park remains a vital anchor for years to come, our area will not only continue to grow, but will also attract more visitors from around the region — including Maryland and Virginia — thereby contributing to our city’s overall economy,” a Nationals spokesperson told CoStar News. However, the spokesperson did not answer a question regarding the status of discussions on staying in D.C. through 2054.
The bill as amended describes how the new Ballpark Maintenance Fund would draw revenue from three different sources: sales tax collected on purchases at the park, rent paid to D.C. and another revenue fund.
“It is estimated that these sources will total approximately $25 million in fiscal year 2025, increasing annually thereafter,” according to the committee report, which added the bill supports the ballpark relying solely on revenue generated by the site itself rather than additional borrowing or taxes raised from sources other than the stadium.
Earlier this year, the Washington Post reported that the Lerner family was no longer considering a sale of the baseball team after previously pondering the move.