Lawmakers will not include funds for a sports and entertainment district in Alexandria in Virginia's budget, The Washington Post and Richmond Times-Dispatch reported, likely ending Monumental Sports & Entertainment owner Ted Leonis' and Gov. Glenn Youngkin's plan to bring the Washington Capitals and Wizards to Northern Virginia.
Senate Finance and Appropriations Chairwoman L. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, told The Post sports arena language will not be in the House of Delegates and Senate budget compromise coming out Thursday.
Lucas, a staunch opponent of the arena plan, posted a meme of herself flashing a peace out sign over a grave with the caption "Youngkin and Leonsis' $5 billion arena" on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The House voted 81-18 in favor of a budget that included the arena deal, though delegates said they voted for it in order to continue negotiations.
The Senate then passed its own version of the budget without any language on arena plans.
A handful of senators and delegates then met in what's called conference committees to hash out the differences between the two budgets.
Virginia's General Assembly typically hammers out its final budget proposal in the final seconds of session, which is scheduled to adjourn Saturday.
One of the House negotiators, Del. Mark Sickles, said the process had gone smoothly overall and lawmakers should still be able to adjourn Saturday, as scheduled.
“Chairman [Luke] Torian showed great leadership in bringing this negotiation to a close on time. And we’re really happy that we were able to work closely with the Senate in almost all areas,” he said, adding that House leaders had pushed to see if there was a place to find consensus between Democrats and Republicans on the arena.
Monumental move
In a news conference at the foot of the Capitol steps, the governor said he believed the Democratic-led General Assembly was poised to make “a monumental mistake” and argued that lawmakers should reconsider and restore the project language to the budget before sending it to his desk.
“They have a chance to stand up and do what's right. They have a chance to assess this one-of-a-kind, first-of-its-kind economic development opportunity on the merits of the opportunity,” he said.
Lucas, who used her perch as chair of the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee to keep the deal out of the pending budget legislation, stood on the Capitol portico as Youngkin spoke, looking down and sometimes smiling.
The deal's leading opponent and a sharp critic of the governor, Lucas told reporters she remains firmly opposed to the proposal, in large part because of its reliance on bonds backed by the state and city governments.
Both Lucas and Democratic Del. Luke Torian, who chairs the House Appropriations Committee and led negotiations for his chamber, confirmed that the arena-related provisions were removed from the budget legislation, which lawmakers are expected to take up Saturday.
Moving forward, if the arena is excluded from the budget, Youngkin has a few options.
Virginia governors have the ability to seek amendments to legislation, so he could attempt to put the arena language back in the budget. Lawmakers are scheduled to meet April 17 for a one-day session to consider Youngkin’s proposed amendments and any vetoes.
Youngkin could also call a special session where the process could start over with a new bill.
Lucas said she was “not likely” to change her mind moving forward.
Democrats, who control both General Assembly chambers, could lose Youngkin’s support for some of their own priorities if they kill the arena deal. Both sides have been unusually transparent about the fact that the arena was a bargaining chip in broader negotiations over other Democratic priorities ranging from marijuana retail sales to toll relief in Hampton Roads.
In D.C., Council ChairMan Phil Mendelson welcomed the news and expressed hope that the teams would remain in the city, which has made a $500 million offer to renovate Capital One.
“The arena and Monumental Sports have been partners with the District for almost 30 years and a great asset to downtown,” Mendelson said in a statement. “As a deal in Virginia remains uncertain, the Council continues to be ready to welcome Monumental Sports’ change of mind.”
D.C. activist Ron Moten also believes the development creates an opportunity to keep Monumental’s teams in Washington.
“I feel Ted can come back, repent and rebuild the house that [former Capitals, Wizards and Mystics owner] Abe [Pollin] built with his own money,” he said.
Monumental released a statement Thursday, saying, "We are disappointed in the legislature's decision not to fully consider a proposal that promises transformative benefits for Alexandria and the entire commonwealth. We remain hopeful that the merits of the proposal will eventually get a fair hearing so this important project can advance for our fans, players, employees and the residents of Virginia."
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