Commanders Score Final Approval Of $3.8B Stadium Deal
Washington's NFL team will once again be fighting for old D.C. in old D.C.
The D.C. Council voted 11-2 late Wednesday to grant final approval to a landmark development deal with the Washington Commanders that allows the team to develop a new stadium on the site where Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium — the team's previous home for decades — is in the process of being demolished.
“Fans of the team can rightly celebrate. The return of the Commanders to the District is a major moment in our city's proud history,” Councilmember Charles Allen said just before the vote. “But football fan or not, every resident should be eager to see these 180 acres become D.C.’s next big neighborhood and be a point of pride for what can be accomplished.”
The team has committed to spending $2.7B toward the construction of the new stadium and thousands of units of housing, 30% of which would be designated as affordable. It would lease the site from the District for 30 years, and the city has agreed to fund $1.1B in infrastructure improvements to support the project.
“This will be the largest economic development project in DC history, it will supercharge our Growth Agenda, and we’re ready to deliver for our city — our businesses, our people, our project,” Mayor Muriel Bowser said in a statement.
On the Commanders' X account, the team's managing partner, Josh Harris, said it was a “historic day for D.C., the Commanders organization and our fans.”
“We are deeply grateful for the warm return to the District and the center of the DMV, and look forward to officially bringing the team back to its spiritual home in 2030,” he said.
Councilmembers Robert White and Brianne Nadeau voted against the deal. Councilmember Matt Frumin, who voted against it on the first reading, reversed his stance at the eleventh hour.
“Let's all get shoulder to shoulder and make this as great as it can be and try to use whatever tools we have to increase accountability,” Frumin said.
In addition to the 65,000-seat, domed stadium, the team is expected to serve as master developer for a 6M SF district that includes 6,000 housing units, hotels, entertainment venues, restaurants and retail, and an $89M sports complex. The team and city are also exploring adding a new Metro station at Oklahoma Avenue.
At the final reading Wednesday, amendments from Frumin and White aimed at holding the team accountable if development of the mixed-use portion of the site stalls dramatically were both voted down.
The team has played in Landover, Maryland, since 1997 in what is now known as Northwest Stadium. Its lease for that building expires in 2027, and Commanders officials have expressed a desire to play in a new facility starting with the 2030 NFL season.
While Bowser struck a deal with the team in April for the RFK site, negotiations with the council have been tense. Before the initial vote on Aug. 1, the Commanders agreed to make additional payments to the District out of revenues generated by the project. D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson said in July that the updated deal could bring in nearly $1B in additional revenue over the course of the 30-year lease.
The council approved that deal in the initial vote by a 9-3 margin on Aug. 1.
The federal government still owns the 174-acre site, but then-President Joe Biden in January transferred control to D.C. through a 99-year ground lease. Some control still lies with the federal government, including architectural reviews. President Donald Trump has threatened to derail the project, demanding the team change its name back from the Commanders to the Redskins, a term widely considered an ethnic slur toward Native Americans.
