Concerned citizens from across the region are on a mission to stop the Washington Wizards and Capitals from moving out of the District to Virginia.
A diverse coalition of people woke up early Thursday and boarded buses to Richmond to speak to Virginia lawmakers and lobby against a new arena and entertainment district that Monumental Sports, the owner of both teams, is planning in Northern Virginia.
“We want to help Virginia, but we don't think this is the development that will do that,” Andrew MacDonald, founder of the Coalition to Stop the Arena at Potomac Yard, said.
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The Stop the Arena rally saw the Sports Fans Coalition, the National Consumers League, Alexandria residents, Don’t Mute DC and others from the region united in their opposition to the new stadium.
“I’ve lost all respect. I no longer call him Ted Leonsis. I call him Ted Snyder; that’s how I feel,” Ronald Moten, co-founder of Don’t Mute DC, said in an apparent reference to former Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder.
Opponents of the proposed arena have cited concerns ranging from traffic congestion and the cost to taxpayers to what will happen to downtown D.C. if the move goes through.
“It's bad for the fans to have that experience for the quality when they have such a perfect location already,” Brian Hess, of the Sports Fans Coalition, said.
“We think that once the deal gets some transparency, we'll find out that the numbers behind it are bogus and they're trying to sell us a bill of goods,” said John Breyault of the National Consumers League.
Leaders of the different groups had scheduled morning meetings with Virginia lawmakers. At noon, the group rallied in front of the General Assembly bell tower.
The day before the rally, Ted Leonsis, the majority owner of Monumental Sports, sat down with News4 to explain his decision to move the Wizards and Capitals out of D.C.
“I don't believe I'm abandoning D.C. That's probably something that maybe I misunderstood,” Leonsis said. “And I've been asked, 'Well, what about the small business owners here?' They're not my constituency. My constituency are our fans, the players, the employees, the union workers — and they're all going to benefit dramatically.”
A Virginia Senate committee was scheduled Thursday to hold its first hearing on a bill that would allow Monumental to build the new arena complex, but that hearing was delayed.
Several pieces of the bill are still changing, and lawmakers told News4 the bill wasn’t ready yet.
