The newest stadium in Washington D.C. will indeed be in southwest, but it won't be soccer. The Washington Post has reported that the Washington Kastles have a deal to build a stadium on the southwest waterfront, replacing the temporary stadium on the site of the CityCenterDC project, which is scheduled to begin construction within the next month. The new stadium will also be temporary, with the hope that a more permanent stadium will be incorporated into the plans for the greater waterfront redevelopment project.
The southwest waterfront project, headed by PN Hoffman, Madison Marquette, and design firm EEK, has been long on plans but short on specifics, though developers have put forward a late 2012 start date for development. The two-year deal with the Kastles therefore won't interfere with any development plans, though the "stadium" - small and temporary - could allow it to stay until the moment other construction is underway. The Kastles won't release details of their lease - which has not yet been signed - other than to say it will cost them "$10m over 2 years for construction and programming," according to a team spokesperson. The tennis season runs only from July 4 through July 24 this year, designed to begin after Wimbledon and before the U.S. Open, so the current contract ties up the space only until July of next year, in plenty of time for the redevelopment project even under the most optimistic projections. At the same time, the spokesperson indicated this was a positive indicator that the team could work out a longer term deal to remain on the waterfront.
The stadium will occupy the former Hogates site with a 2700 seat, "semi-permanent" structure that will entail pouring a concrete pad for the court with "high end bleacher seating" akin to scaffolding, with concessions and even waiter service to some of the seats. A spokesperson for the project called the size "a little larger than most" of the tennis stadiums in the league. "We were approached by many developers," said the spokesperson, who declined to offer other developers or sites, but it was "very important to us to stay in Washington D.C." Neither contractors nor a designer have been named, but the deal could be signed "any moment," and construction will have to start quickly, so that announcement should be days away.
Washington D.C. real estate development news
5 comments:
Will be interesting to see what CFA says about their design. CFA has review authority over everything on the waterfront
not really a fan of yet another stadium that blocks the view of the water, which i thought was the reason for bringing down those huge restaurants that were underutlized...especially since we all agree that a tennis stadium won't be used for much more than tennis and shakespeare...ie, we already have a world class tennis center in NW.
When I read the headline, I was really hoping for a quidditch stadium
PROPOSED IMPROVEMENTS TO BENJAMIN BANNEKER PARK
Banneker Park would undergo major renovations, which include construction of an
intermodal transportation center and parking facility (ITC) within the park property. The ITC
would be designed to accommodate up to 1,150 automobiles and 75 tour buses. The facility
would be recessed into the hillside, designed to blend into the topography of the park. The
highest elevation of the park, which is the same height as L’Enfant Promenade, would remain
unchanged. Due to the modification of the sloping park hill required to construct the ITC, the
existing circular park would be eliminated and the traffic circle would be modified into a
smaller traffic circle at a location closer to I-395..
Stadiums like this one you are talking about, always bring life to people who live nearby. New stores and shops start opening their doors when there is a game and people from other towns come to see the matches. I don´t have one close to my house here, but I did see how all of that happened in Argentina, with the Boca Juniors Stadium (you know, the most famous Argentine team of soccer). I had a Buenos Aires temporary rent there and every Sunday (day of games) the neighbourhood was full of tourists and locals that went to cheer for their team. The stores sellling merchandising were crowded, it was madness! (but in a good way)
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